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Hurricane Katrina
In the late summer of 2005, Hurricane Katrina and its
aftermath altered the landscape of New Orleans’ criminal
justice system. The LCAC was at the forefront of efforts to
locate the thousands of inmates who had been displaced,
highlight the plight of the prisoners who had been evacuated
to wretched conditions, and secure the release of hundreds
of inmates who undeservingly languished in jail. The LCAC
hopes to use this opportunity to play a critical part in
rebuilding a criminal justice system which has been in
disarray for generations.
The Atkins Project
The LCAC is developing an expertise in the litigation of
claims pursuant to Atkins v. Virginia, the 2002 U.S. Supreme
Court case prohibiting the execution of individuals with
mental retardation. The LCAC is willing to consult on Atkins
cases, providing assistance in the areas of investigation,
expert selection and development, and litigation. The LCAC
has developed a motions bank related to the new Louisiana
statute, as well as a list of potential experts.
Blackstrikes
The Louisiana Capital Assistance Center (LCAC) works to
highlight systemic problems in the application of the death
penalty in Louisiana. In 2003, we co-ordinated a study in
Jefferson Parish, a suburban community of New Orleans which
harbors a dark and shameful culture of racism. The study,
Blackstrikes, probed the process of jury selection, when
prosecutors and defense attorneys are given the opportunity
to select or reject potential jurors for a criminal trial.
Our study highlighted the endemic problem of racism in the
criminal justice system. Jefferson Parish prosecutors were
three times more likely to reject, or strike, an
African-American than a white person.
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