La. judge resigns after admitting to sending racist text messages
BREAKING: Louisiana Judge Jessie LeBlanc resigns after admitting to using racial slurs
By Scottie Hunter | February 27, 2020 at 12:39 PM CST - Updated February 27 at 5:40 PM
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - 23rd Judicial District Court Judge Jessie LeBlanc submitted her resignation Thursday, Feb. 27, levying a slew of allegations on her way out.
Her resignation comes one day after Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards called for the judge the step down for her admitted use of the “n-word.”
LeBlanc also recently admitted to having an eight-year extramarital affair with Bruce Prejean, a high-ranking deputy in the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office.
District Attorney Ricky Babin and others have questioned whether defendants appearing in front of LeBlanc should have been made aware of her intimate relationship with Prejean.
In her resignation letter to the Louisiana Supreme Court, LeBlanc said another judge in her district, Judge Alvin Turner, was made aware in 2017 that his own law clerk allegedly had an affair with the same man.
Click here to read the resignation letter in full.
LeBlanc is making the implication that if the affair actually happened, Turner should have done something to inform defendants in his court that one of his staff members was allegedly in a relationship with Prejean.
Turner, by phone Thursday, said LeBlanc is distorting the truth.
“My law clerk does not handle any criminal matters for me; she handles my civil matters,” Turner said. “As usual, she’s distorting the truth as to my knowledge of any affair between the law clerk and Prejean, which is par for the course for her.”
“I further understand that warrants were likewise submitted to the court, but no one is seeking recusal, reopening of cases, or public outcry of any kind,” LeBlanc said.
“Likewise, I understand it is fairly well-known Mr. Prejean has engaged in a relationship with a high-ranking official with the governor’s staff, yet, no one seems to have bothered to ferret that out. Let me be clear, I would not wish this on anyone, but I do believe that if we are to inflict punishment on one, it must be fairly apportioned across the entirety,” LeBlanc said.
In her letter, LeBlanc pointed to a former high-profile case she presided over, seemingly as a way to prove she is not biased against African Americans in her court.
“I am proud of the work I did as a judge and challenge anyone to look at my record, any and all cases I handled,” she wrote.
“I diligently worked to administer justice fairly, blindly, and without regard to any bias. I respectfully submit that my work ethic in that regard sparked and stoked the ire of the district attorney and the sheriff. Particularly, when I found an African American LSU football player not guilty of sexual battery of a white female because the evidence did not support guilt, I was placed in a highly uncomfortable position by the district attorney who could not contain his anger toward me. As time wore on, I correctly determined the district attorney had engaged in prosecutorial misconduct, a decision of mine upheld on appeal. Again, he was incapable of containing his contempt,” LeBlanc said in the letter.
District Attorney Ricky Babin responded by saying, “I regret that she’s blaming me for her demise. I received facts that I’m required by law to make notifications on and that’s what I did. The aftermath of this will go on for years and we will do the best we can do handle issues that come up as a result of it.”
During an exclusive interview with WAFB on Sunday, Feb. 23 LeBlanc, who is white, admitted to using a racial slur against two African Americans during a string of texts with her former lover during a time when she was angry with him.
Judge Jessie LeBlanc admitted to sending text messages with racial slurs in an exclusive interview with WAFB's Scottie Hunter. (Source: WAFB)
“I admit that I used that word,” LeBlanc said Feb. 23. “I profusely apologize for that. I should have never said it. It was uncalled for. I was angry. I was upset, but it’s no excuse."
HER WORDS: Verbatim of Judge LeBlanc’s interview with WAFB
Asked if she had ever used the slur before, the judge seemed to stumble over her own words.
“Not in a – no - not – no – not in a – no - I have not used that racial slur in the past,” the judge replied. “This was in a moment of a heated exchange that was private between Bruce and one I that I never dreamed would have come out to the public."
CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTOS OF THE TEXTS
LeBlanc previously admitted she had an affair with a Prejean, the former chief deputy in Assumption Parish. Both were married to other people at the time of their affair.
“It is something I’m not proud of,” LeBlanc said of the eight-year affair. “I’ve had to apologize to my husband, I will continue to have to apologize to my husband, my children, and my God for the rest of my life."
Assumption Parish Sheriff Leland Falcon demoted Prejean from his position as chief deputy after Prejean admitted to the affair in 2019.
In a rare move, District Attorney Babin and the district’s lead public defender earlier this year filed a motion asking that LeBlanc voluntarily remove herself from criminal matters in Assumption Parish or be forced to do so because of the affair.
LeBlanc said during the WAFB interview that she does not believe the affair is something that would warrant any new trials.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, which previously called for the judge’s removal, released the following response to her resignation Thursday:
“We welcome Judge LeBlanc’s resignation and thank all those who stated clearly that they would not tolerate racial bias espoused by someone who is required to administer the law with impartiality and objectivity."
CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper
The Louisiana Democratic Party, which also called for Judge LeBlanc’s resignation, responded Thursday:
“We’re glad that Judge LeBlanc did the right thing and resigned. But it doesn’t change the fact that her use of racial slurs cast doubt on every case she’s presided over. Her scorched earth resignation letter is further evidence that she was never fit to serve in the first place. Louisiana deserves better.”
Chair of the Louisiana Democratic Party Sen. Karen Carter Peterson
Copyright 2020 WAFB. All rights reserved.
BREAKING: Louisiana Judge Jessie LeBlanc resigns after admitting to using racial slurs
By Scottie Hunter | February 27, 2020 at 12:39 PM CST - Updated February 27 at 5:40 PM
BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - 23rd Judicial District Court Judge Jessie LeBlanc submitted her resignation Thursday, Feb. 27, levying a slew of allegations on her way out.
Her resignation comes one day after Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards called for the judge the step down for her admitted use of the “n-word.”
LeBlanc also recently admitted to having an eight-year extramarital affair with Bruce Prejean, a high-ranking deputy in the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office.
District Attorney Ricky Babin and others have questioned whether defendants appearing in front of LeBlanc should have been made aware of her intimate relationship with Prejean.
In her resignation letter to the Louisiana Supreme Court, LeBlanc said another judge in her district, Judge Alvin Turner, was made aware in 2017 that his own law clerk allegedly had an affair with the same man.
Click here to read the resignation letter in full.
LeBlanc is making the implication that if the affair actually happened, Turner should have done something to inform defendants in his court that one of his staff members was allegedly in a relationship with Prejean.
Turner, by phone Thursday, said LeBlanc is distorting the truth.
“My law clerk does not handle any criminal matters for me; she handles my civil matters,” Turner said. “As usual, she’s distorting the truth as to my knowledge of any affair between the law clerk and Prejean, which is par for the course for her.”
“I further understand that warrants were likewise submitted to the court, but no one is seeking recusal, reopening of cases, or public outcry of any kind,” LeBlanc said.
“Likewise, I understand it is fairly well-known Mr. Prejean has engaged in a relationship with a high-ranking official with the governor’s staff, yet, no one seems to have bothered to ferret that out. Let me be clear, I would not wish this on anyone, but I do believe that if we are to inflict punishment on one, it must be fairly apportioned across the entirety,” LeBlanc said.
In her letter, LeBlanc pointed to a former high-profile case she presided over, seemingly as a way to prove she is not biased against African Americans in her court.
“I am proud of the work I did as a judge and challenge anyone to look at my record, any and all cases I handled,” she wrote.
“I diligently worked to administer justice fairly, blindly, and without regard to any bias. I respectfully submit that my work ethic in that regard sparked and stoked the ire of the district attorney and the sheriff. Particularly, when I found an African American LSU football player not guilty of sexual battery of a white female because the evidence did not support guilt, I was placed in a highly uncomfortable position by the district attorney who could not contain his anger toward me. As time wore on, I correctly determined the district attorney had engaged in prosecutorial misconduct, a decision of mine upheld on appeal. Again, he was incapable of containing his contempt,” LeBlanc said in the letter.
District Attorney Ricky Babin responded by saying, “I regret that she’s blaming me for her demise. I received facts that I’m required by law to make notifications on and that’s what I did. The aftermath of this will go on for years and we will do the best we can do handle issues that come up as a result of it.”
During an exclusive interview with WAFB on Sunday, Feb. 23 LeBlanc, who is white, admitted to using a racial slur against two African Americans during a string of texts with her former lover during a time when she was angry with him.
Judge Jessie LeBlanc admitted to sending text messages with racial slurs in an exclusive interview with WAFB's Scottie Hunter. (Source: WAFB)
“I admit that I used that word,” LeBlanc said Feb. 23. “I profusely apologize for that. I should have never said it. It was uncalled for. I was angry. I was upset, but it’s no excuse."
HER WORDS: Verbatim of Judge LeBlanc’s interview with WAFB
Asked if she had ever used the slur before, the judge seemed to stumble over her own words.
“Not in a – no - not – no – not in a – no - I have not used that racial slur in the past,” the judge replied. “This was in a moment of a heated exchange that was private between Bruce and one I that I never dreamed would have come out to the public."
CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTOS OF THE TEXTS
LeBlanc previously admitted she had an affair with a Prejean, the former chief deputy in Assumption Parish. Both were married to other people at the time of their affair.
“It is something I’m not proud of,” LeBlanc said of the eight-year affair. “I’ve had to apologize to my husband, I will continue to have to apologize to my husband, my children, and my God for the rest of my life."
Assumption Parish Sheriff Leland Falcon demoted Prejean from his position as chief deputy after Prejean admitted to the affair in 2019.
In a rare move, District Attorney Babin and the district’s lead public defender earlier this year filed a motion asking that LeBlanc voluntarily remove herself from criminal matters in Assumption Parish or be forced to do so because of the affair.
LeBlanc said during the WAFB interview that she does not believe the affair is something that would warrant any new trials.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group, which previously called for the judge’s removal, released the following response to her resignation Thursday:
“We welcome Judge LeBlanc’s resignation and thank all those who stated clearly that they would not tolerate racial bias espoused by someone who is required to administer the law with impartiality and objectivity."
CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper
The Louisiana Democratic Party, which also called for Judge LeBlanc’s resignation, responded Thursday:
“We’re glad that Judge LeBlanc did the right thing and resigned. But it doesn’t change the fact that her use of racial slurs cast doubt on every case she’s presided over. Her scorched earth resignation letter is further evidence that she was never fit to serve in the first place. Louisiana deserves better.”
Chair of the Louisiana Democratic Party Sen. Karen Carter Peterson
Copyright 2020 WAFB. All rights reserved.
