City Council - Special Meeting

Mic checks. One, two. Okay.

Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats. Please take your seats. We're going to get started shortly. Please take your seats. Um, a little bit of a Well, I I'll go over housekeeping after we do roll call. So, Madam Clerk.

Okay. I received a letter May 7, 2026. Dear Madame Clerk, pursuant to my authority in section 3-1075 of the home rule charter of the city of New Orleans, there will be a special coun city council meeting on Monday, May 11th, 2026 at 12:00 p.m. The meeting will be limited to the discussion and consideration of matters relative to the appointment of a person to assume the duties of the vacant office of Orleans clerk of court to issue a proclamation ordering a special election to fill the vacant office of Orleans clerk of court and any other matters that may properly come before the city council. Please make the necessary arrangements to have this special meeting cable cast live on the government access television channel and tape for recasting in the future. Sincerely, JP Morell, President New Orleans City Council. Roll call. Council President Morell

here. Vice President Willard here. Council member McCarron here. Council member Harris here. Council member King. Council member Green here. Council member Hughes here. We have seven members. We have a quorum.

Thank you. Thank you. I want to go over a couple of housekeeping items. So, just so everyone's aware, um we will be suspending rule 47 to take up both items simultaneously. There will be 30 minutes of public comment, 2 minutes per speaker. Now, I want to remind everybody of a couple of things. The items before the council today deals with whether there was ambiguity in the law that was passed, whether a new office was created, and whether there should be election for set office. That is what is on the agenda today. We have a rule and it is a rule that has been unanimously enforced since I have been on this council. Your comments must be gerine to the items that we have in front of us today. So if you're here to talk about reaportionment, redistricting or the like, there are people here that want to speak on the items in front of us today. I will shut you down. So we're here to talk about just the item that is in front of us. That is what we're here to talk about. After that 30 minutes, we will vote on both of the items. Council members will have the option to speak before or after the vote, whatever they want to, but we have another meeting following at 100 p.m. So, that is the run of show. With that, Madam Clerk, could you read the items?

Excuse me, council member, could we have a vote to suspend rule 47? I apologize. I'll move to vote suspend rule 47.

Second by councel Green. Please vote your machines. Six yays, seven yays. Seven yays, no naysay. Rule suspended. Orders of business. We have item one, resolution R261 194 by Council Member Morell. A resolution appointing a person to assume the duties of the vacant office of Orleans Clerk of Court pursuant to LS1 18602 and act 15 of the 2026 regular session of of the Louisiana legislature. We have resolution R26195 by Council Member Willlet. A resolution ordering a special election to fill the vacant office of Orleans Clerk of Court pursuant to LA RS18602 and Act 15 of the 2026 regular session of the Louisiana legislature setting primary and general election dates and providing qualifying dates.

Thank you. Before we get started, there were several letters that we have received uh since last week. Uh can you acknowledge those letters for the record? Uh, Miss Becknell, as well as there were some concerns that were raised regarding whether or not this meeting today was necessary. Can you respond to those as well, Becknell? Yes, council member, we received uh letters from the district attorney, Jason Williams. That letter was received on May 7th. We also received a letter from Mayor Helena Moreno on May 8th, as well as a letter from the Louisiana Attorney General, Liz Merl, on May 8th, 2026. Would you like to have these letters added to the record?

I would and I believe that in the Liz Moral letter there were some concerns that ways. Could you address those as you have reviewed them with the city attorney?

Yes, council member. Uh we're we're certainly aware of litigation pending regarding Act 15 in both the federal and the state courts as well as the stays that have been issued in those courts. As of now, the city has not been served with anything that would prevent this meeting from going forward. Nor has a court made a final determination regarding the vacancy of the office of Orleans Clerk of court. Given that, I've advised the council that proceeding today allows all paths forward to remain on the table while the courts decide the questions surrounding Act 15 and to ensure that should the people have a right to weigh in at the polls in November, they're able to do so.

Thank you. Um, as the items have been read at this time, we are going to allow individuals in the public to speak. Once again, uh, there's 30 minutes total for public comment on both items. Each person is restricted to 2 minutes. You don't have to take up that full 2 minutes because the two minutes you use is less time for other people in the audience provide an opportunity to speak. So, first up, we have Alicia Plameumber. Good afternoon everyone. I hate to be first anyway. And um I'm going to be quick cuz I don't want you screaming and holling at me because I don't want to be out of order. And what I was going to say, I'm understanding that this is not what it's about. So I'm going to say this. I think it's unfair to have another election because although clerk Chelsea won her seat fair and square, there was no opposition and so did clerk Duncan. And for full disclosure, I was with Darren Lombard. But I don't think it's fair for those two to have gone through the process, won their elections. you're gonna open it up for another election and some other person from out of nowhere come and get their seats. So that's all I have to say.

Thank you, Jerry Bruce Harden. I don't need these eyeglasses, but I'm put them on anyway. Aesthetics. Mr. President and members of the council, I want to thank you for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Jerry Bruce and I appear here solely in my capacity as council for Chelsea Richard Napoleon, the current clerk of court uh for Orleans Parish pursuant to act 15 of the 2026 session. And I intend to keep my remarks focused narrowly on the law and present some legal status of the office. At the outset, I want to emphasize what this discussion is not about. It's not going to be about personalities or politics or whether reasonable persons can agree or disagree on how Act 15 came about. Those issues are already being litigated in the courts and debated obviously in the public square. So in my view and based on um council president Morel's introduction the question before this court is uh this um council is very narrow and it is does the city council presently possess lawful authority to appoint an interim clerk of court for all parish and I would respectfully suggest to you all that the answer is no because the clerk is not a municipal office created by the home charter or any city ordinance. It is a constitutional judicial office established under article 5 of the Louisiana constitution. Article 5 section 32 specifically governs the Orleans Parish civil and criminal clerk's office and expressly provides that those office are subject to change by law. The legislature exercised that

authority through act 15. Whatever disagreements may exist governing the wisdom or the constitutionality of the act is it is the act itself is presently the operative law. the attorney general's office. I understand you all received the letter and I had an opportunity to see that letter as well uh addressed this issue directly um and observed that act 15 did not create a vacant new office requiring an appointment but rather that the legislation abolished the office of the Can we move one more minute? Thank you. We appreciate your time today.

Your time's up. Thank you. Next we have Alexandra Irvin followed by Chelsea Richard Napoleon third court. So Miss Urban gone once going twice. That's kind of really one everybody.

Good afternoon. So, I am Chelsea Richard Napoleon, your clerk of court for Orleans Parish. And as I stand before you today, the clerk's office is fully functional. I repeat, the clerk's office is fully functional. So, as such, is the goal to create chaos where there is none? Are we called here today to talk about the law or politics? As a duly elected and qualified public official, I took an oath to uphold the law, and I will continue to do so. Each of you took an oath to do the same. President Morurell, as a lawyer, you know, the actions being considered today are illegal and contrary to law. The other lawyers on the council know the same. The legislators on the council know the same. Will you follow the law? The law act 15 section 4 reads as follows. The office of the clerk of criminal district court for the ar for the parish of Orleans shall be abolished at the end of May 3rd, 2026 and before the term of any other criminal clerk of court begins. immediately thereafter the authority, functions, duties, and responsibilities of the office of the clerk of criminal district court for the parish of Orleans and all of the books, papers, records, money, actions, and other property of every kind and description, movable and immovable, real and personal, possessed, controlled, or used by the office of the clerk of criminal district court for the parish of Orleans, shall be transferred and owned, etc. for the use of the civil district court clerk for the parish of Orleans and that office shall be referred to as the clerk of court for the parish of Orleans. So there is no vacancy. Additionally, this position is governed by the state, not by the city. So this

is an illegal proposition that is before you all today. There is no vacancy and if there's a elective election to be called. Thank you. Next up, we got two more. Sorry. Each of them have cards. The cards are in a specific order.

The cards are in the order in which they are received as timestamped. That's why I'm reading the cards as they were received. That's the way the council conducts its business. So if one of those two people is Alexandra Urban, then she can speak. Read statue 18 137. The governor is to order an election, proclamation, and publication. It is referenced in act 15. Therefore, there's no question as to what the law states. So again, are we called here today to talk about law or politics? If you thought that the law was so bad, there were committee meetings held by the legislature that gave the opportunity to speak regarding the bill before it became law. mayor because I'm not going to have her say that since these are my remarks. I'll say that myself during those public comment periods at the legislative committee president to speak.

You cannot yield time to other people once your time is ex has been exhausted. Only another person can speak. That is the rules of this council. I'm not. Well, then she doesn't have to say it then if you don't want her to say it. This is not chaos where there is hardworking staff of the clerk's office continues to work every day in the civil court records, land records, criminal court records, and elections. I'm sorry, ma'am. Just want you to know you have less time because the time was used up. You have 5 seconds 56 seconds just for clarification.

To ensure the integrity of the election this Saturday, we were at early voting walking through the process to make sure that there will not be an issue with the upcoming election. Just let them know we're available for questions. We're available for questions.

Thank you. Next up, we have Michael Willis, followed by Edwin Lombard. Good morning. Apparently, this is what we did, y'all. She couldn't follow instructions like you just gave instructions. We've dropped the ball on general public communities, ordinary people like myself, we dropped the ball. Everybody came out. We saw somebody vote. A lot of people came out and vote. And we thought, the general public thought that that's how the process worked. She said that this the the seat is not vacant. The person that won the seat that we all came out and voted for is not sitting in that position. So to me, a general public person, ordinary person that know how to follow instructions, I was told if I go out and vote, certain things should happen. The people went out and voted. We dropping the ball, y'all. So, I don't know if this constitutional uh I don't know what terminology y'all want to use for this, but I saw a man go and run for office and I saw people go out by the thousands and vote for him. And he's not sitting in that seat and we're going to try and figure out who's going to determine that position or get people to go back out and vote again for that same position. That's unheard of. And I'm 52 years old. So, I've always been told I I don't have rights. Now I understand what's going on with our civil rights.

Thank you, Mr. Wallace. Next up, we have Edwin Lumbard, followed by Gary Crockett. Uh, we just want to assure the public that Saturday is election day and we intend to have the election out there despite all the distractions that the clerk's office is ready and prepared for this important event and we would urge all the citizens in New Orleans to go out and vote. Thank you. Gary Crockett followed by Kenneth Jennis. I'm Gary Crockett and in in the interest of transparency, I happen to plaintiff on the current suit that is still alive in the state and just recently this morning as we speak rather it is being submitted to the United States Supreme Court. The letters that you referenced earlier I think in interest of transparency I think the public needs to see those letters. They need to see letters from Liz Morel, Jason, as well as our mayor, which prompted some of this. What I also want to say is that all of you took an oath to the Constitution of Louisiana as well as to the United States. These actions does not follow that oath. The stay that was granted, which now has been stayed, would have allowed things to continue as they are, would have also allowed that seat to remain until then.

I would like for each of you to receive a copy as council members of what is submitted to the United States Supreme Court today if you would like as the seat has been drawn into this by Liz Morurell during those letters which all of you have read. So what's going to happen next is the city will be brought into the same type of litigation and it won't be for a state but it will actually be for monetary damages as well which we know that the city can't afford. My desire is that Chelsea Napoleon remains in her position that we find the appropriate solution for putting Mr. Duncan in his position. And if you want that to change, let it be changed through an amendment to the constitution.

Thank you. Kennet, I think it's Janice Jr. Janice Jr., you certainly have lawyer handwriting. I am a lawyer last time I checked, sir. The handwriting saying the handwriting is a little hard to read. Well, hey, lawyers, dogs, and Indian chiefs. For what it's worth, good afternoon, members of the city council. I rise today simply to say, don't start no stuff, won't be no stuff.

We already know what this is. You're not currently a defendant in any form or fashion in this case. Take somebody's beating y'all twice. You don't want to be here. You don't need to be here. what you are doing, which makes sense, is to put this out for public discourse, for public information, to let people know that you're being proactive and not reactive, and you're trying to get that done. Sometimes the best course of action, quite simply, is to wait and let it play out. This is playing out through the courts. This is going to happen. I don't need to go over the legal history and other stuff I was prepared to do cuz other people have already done all of that. My appeal to you is quite simple. Watch what happens. You don't have to jump into the fray and jump into the grease. I know you want people to have confidence. Sometimes confidence comes in terms of making sure you're making the right move, not just you're moving because it's happening in front of you. Thank you for your time and your energies. Ranata Collins followed by Ronald Marshall. Good afternoon. My name is Ranata Collins and I'm here today because I am aware of the freeze that took place on May 8th which would have allowed Kelvin Duncan to be reinstated back into his position. And I'm also here because we need to ensure that the we the voters, the people in the city of New Orleans have the fair chance. We need you guys to be able to effectively ensure that what we did when we came to elect Kelvin Duncan stands. We need to make sure that as we're here today that we become unified as one. We need to ensure that this is not a puppet because I question the the legitimacy of the election in itself. And I'm wondering are we trying to overstand a vote that was taken? And if we feel

that our vote was taken and it should be adhered into law, why is it that today it's it's being on trial? And at the end of the day, how can we build trust if we don't even trust the reason why we're here? There's a lot of speculations and un unresolved issues and miscommunications that's taking place. But if we want to ensure that we are in fact a community where we can come and be heard through our votes, we need you guys to be able to effectively make sure that our votes stand above our feelings, above our desires, our personal desires. We need to listen to the 68% of the people who came and they voted. And if anything changes, we question the validity, the reason, and the purpose. But we can't have trust if we can't trust why we're here. Thank you.

Thank you, Ronald Marshall. Followed by Darlene Jones.

Good morning. I'm have to put these thoughts on paper because my emotions are all over the place this morning. Members of this body, how y'all doing? What happened to Kelvin Duncan is not just political. It's a standalone democracy. The people of Lean Parish voted. They spoke clearly and overwhelmingly. Calvin Donkey won this election fair and square. But outside influence, political power, and the ugly spirit of bigotry and racism stepped in to overturn the will of the people. And when this legislature abolished that criminal critical court position only after Calvin Duncan won, it violated the spirit of democracy and insulted the constitutional rights of the voters of Alen's parish. Calvin's victory meant something powerful to poor communities, black communities, and formerly incarcerated people who finally believe redemption could exist in America. And now, instead of honoring the will of the people, some are attempting to legitimize this harm through legislation and appointment. I oppose the appointment. Any person supporting legislation that attempts to justify the harm done to our elected clerk, Kelvin Duncan, is participating in an affront to democracy itself. Because democracy does not work only when the the powerful prove the outcome. Democracy means respecting the vote, even when you don't like who wins. History is watching the moment clearly and generations from now, people will remember whether this body defend the people's voice or help to silence it. Thank you.

Thank you, Darlene Jones, followed by Bruce Riley. And I'm Darlene Jones. Upon first hearing about this, my first thought was for Miss Napoleon. It was like she's being thrust into the limelight with everybody looking at her and she's being asked to take on the responsibilities of two jobs instead of one. Did her salary increase when she got this new responsibility? Did she get benefits that's going to reflect her new position? No one knows. My next immediate thought was, well, wait a minute. If the two offices are now combined into one office, that means both of them are elected positions. So, they are no longer viable. It's a new office. So, another election should be had in order for the people to vote to elect who they want to be the clerk of the Orleans Parish office. It seems to be a very simple thing to me. It seems to be a simple thing to the community of people who got out here to vote and to elect Calvin Duncan or even Miss Rishard, Miss Napoleon. She was elected to her position, too. No one should be appointed to a position that is an elected position. It's an election. It's an elected position. It should be a new election held to cover it. Thank you so much.

After Mr. Riley, we have Emily Ratner. Thank you, members of committee. Bruce Riley a vote. Uh just a reminder that you know Jeff Landry put us all in this position. It's nothing that any of y'all did or anyone in this room did. Excuse me.

Oh. Uh and so, you know, and he famously said he wanted to bring New Orleans to heal, right? I I think we're seeing a lot of that. You know, a lot of the shenanigans around the Voting Rights Act that are happening across the state, you know, we're seeing him spending somewhere around $40 million, I think, was some some stat I heard recently on litigation. So he's doing a lot of harm to communities, particularly communities of color across the state of Louisiana, and we're just the main target. This clearly was a targeted attack on Calvin Duncan. We know that there's people that maybe have to collude with that to make the attack happen. We saw Senator Jay Morris, who I think is just a tool for Jeff Landry. And the reality is for those that were paying attention, SP 256, there was no plan in place until after the committee hearings were heard. Those of you who are legisl have been legislators, you know that that can be a tactic where we don't give you the actual plan until we get to the final house floor and then they reveal the plan that they're going to hand it over to the to the uh district clerk's office, which is a total affront to the people who came up to testify and talk about why this is a good or a bad bill. Everybody was against that bill. And so the reality is when you create a new office, which under the Constitution must be elected, all clerks must be elected. this new office was not elected as we know and so for someone to say that this is now my office you were not elected to this new office. So therefore you become a de facto interim and so we should be doing a replacement for this role in the same way we would do an interim for any other role for any of y'all or the mayor or the district attorney or someone else. So, special election should be called. And the Louisiana Constitution also empowers the home rule charter to give you control over your own affairs. And you can't do anything that's inconsistent with state law. But again, as I point out, this would be consistent with state law to hold an election for this new office. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Emily Ratner, followed by Pastor Lisa Williamson.

Thank you, and good afternoon. Um, I agree with part of what every single person has got up here to say today. And like a lot of the people in the room, I feel really invested in this. I volunteered, donated, and voted in this election. Um, the governor and the attorney general and the legislature have handed our parish a mess. A lot of us went to Baton Rouge to say, "Please don't make this mess for us." And our New Orleans delegation told them the same thing. But they insisted on putting us all in this position. And I just want to say like the courts are going to tell us whether this law is constitutional or not. There's a lot of judges and a lot of lawyers working on that. But until they figure out whether this bill is constitutional, the responsibility of the parish and particularly our leadership is to figure out how do we move forward in the way that the law requires as we implement this bill. And I we live in a time where our governor and attorney general use coercion as a tactic. That's just fact. And I'm really proud that we have a city government that is refusing to be coerced by the state government is into doing things that are not legal. As far as I can see, y'all are following the constitution and you are following the election code and you're setting us up for a lawful interim clerk and an election so that we get to pick our clerk, which is how it's supposed to be. So, thank you. I appreciate y'all for that. Thank you, Pastor Lisa Williamson. And our last speaker is uh Lodri, I think is it. I can't read the first name.

Good morning. I haven't been in the council since you you guys are been newly installed here. So, uh unfortunately for such a time, but good afternoon members of the council and citizens of New Orleans. My name is Pastor Lisa Williamson. I come today not only as a pastor but as a clinician, social worker, veteran, and a servant of the people. I stand here deeply concerned about the emotional, civic, and spiritual implications of decisions that appear to override the express will of voters in Orleans Parish. As a clinician and social worker, I understand that communities experience trauma just like individuals do. When people repeatedly feel unheard, dismissed, or particularly powerless, it creates collective distrust, hopelessness, anxiety, anger, and disengagement from civic life. And I think that is the intent here. For African-Americans in particular, this history is not abstract. Our communities carry generations of lived experiences involving barriers to voting, unequal representation, exclusion from systems of power, and decisions being made for us rather than with us. That is why this moment matters. This is not only about an office. It is about public trust. It's about dignity. It's about whether democracy is represented after citizens have already voted. As a chaplain, I and I minister to people in crisis. I see firsthand how instability affects families, mental health, public confidence, and social coherence. Healthy communities require transparency, fairness, and consistency. People need to believe that institutions are accountable to the public, not above the public. And as a veteran who served this country for 34 years, I believe

deeply in democratic participation, constitutional principles. Citizens must feel that their votes carry meaning regardless of race.

Thank you. Uh Bert Lodri. Afternoon. Uh Bert Lodri, 3438 Inet Street here in New Orleans. Um it's uh really not a good day at all in the city. One more time we uh come before you with an unnecessary matter. Uh we first of all right now our current governor is under scrutiny. There's a uh there's a recall petition passed around uh regarding him and uh as just one more uh regrettable situation in the city of New Orleans that we have a whole lot other issues we can take care of. But uh I think uh the law speaks for itself. Uh obviously uh there's a dispute between the state with the city and some citizens are question who's doing right, who's doing wrong, but I think most of all what we really should do is protect the law as it is and follow through with the law. Uh we have persons on the council who are both uh lawyers and some of them are not. And with the majority of the uh council members being attorneys, I think uh you know really this situation should uh really be settled uh without going and uh disrupting uh you know the public's uh trust. So uh as I said uh please follow the law and uh that way we'll uh continue the trust of the citizenry of our great city of New Orleans. Thank you. That concludes public comment. Um we will take up the resolutions. Uh we'll take up 195 before 194 as 194 will not be ripe until 195 is considered. Um if you council members, our machines for once are working. So if you intend to

speak on the items, please make sure you press your buttons so that we can do this as expeditiously as possible. Councilman Willard. Thank you, Council President Morurell, and uh thank you to everybody who showed up today and good afternoon. Um we really appreciate you guys showing up to weigh in on a very important matter that's before us right now. Act 15, also known as Senate Bill 256 of the 2026 Louisiana Legislative Session, abolished the civil and criminal clerks of court positions in the city of New Orleans and created the Orleans Clerk of Court. Louisiana statute 18602 provides that if the unexpired term of the office of clerk of a district court is greater than one year, the governing authority of the local government subdivision in which the vacancy occurs shall issue a proclamation ordering a special election to fill the vacancy. Today, the governing authority of the local government subdivision is us, the New Orleans City Council. The term of the Orleans Clerk of Court is four years. Because of that, this resolution calls for a special election to be held on November 3rd, 2026. Runoff dates scheduled for December 12th, 2026. Qualifying periods running from July 29th through July 31st, 2026 for the Orleans Parish Clerk of Court. We've discussed this with our attorneys and have determined that genu genuine legal questions still exist as to whether this move act 15 undermines the people's right to elect a candidate of their choosing to this novel role of clerk of court.

Because of that, this pro this resolution calling for the special election preserves all available options, ensuring that those legal questions can be fully answered by the appropriate courts. This is also a matter of time sensitivity because under revised statute 18602, in this case, the council must call a special election and appoint an interim official within 20 days of the vacancy, which is when the governor signed the bill into law. So today, this measure is not about installing a certain person as a permanent clerk of court. It's about the council taking the steps to allow the people of the city of New Orleans to make that determination for themselves.

Thank you, uh, Council Member Harris.

Thank you, Council President, and thank you to everyone who is here today. Um, my comments are simply this. I cannot in good conscious vote for this today, especially while there is litigation pending to determine to determine whether or not the clerk of criminal court seat should have been abolished. I believe that calling a special election, by calling this special election, the council is agreeing with the legislature and ultimately saying that there is only one clerk of court. And again, all this while state and federal legislation is pending. By calling a special election, we are getting rid of a dyeleed black women's position and forcing two black elected officials to run against each other. And let me be abundantly clear, we are playing into the hands of Baton Rouge. We are pitting two black elected officials against each other. I and all of the members of the city council have been in opposition to the merger of the clerk of courts since it was pending in the legislature. We cannot sit by and take away another dulyeleed official seat and side with Baton Rouge on the number of clerk seats for the city of New Orleans. And for that reason, I am voting no today. Council Green, I do also appreciate everyone who is here today and I appreciate all the work that has gone on on the legislative level to um in this case on the part of the council to oppose the um the act which basically has quote unquote abolished the position. But I don't view that position as abolished. I will say this, when we talk about democracy, it's important to recognize that Chelsea Richard Napoleon

was a candidate for office twice, was elected by a vote of the people, and then was reelected without opposition, which suggest that the job was being done. I think that the job is still being done. There's no winner in this situation. I have had issues with regards to how the state treats New Orleans for a while and this year I've been a little bit more vocal about it because there are issues that the state um supremacy over our city. Those issues need to be addressed. But in this particular case, there's no winner or there's no loser. I oppose an interim election. I I oppose I'm sorry, a new election. I oppose an interim because I don't view the position as being vacant. I will not at this time pit one good candidate against another. I do recognize that that means that the will of people who voted in an election recently may not be until some other action is taken and there are options on our end um may not be if you will I guess satisfied but at the end of the day it's just important to recognize that democracy also requires us to recognize that our present clerk of court was elected by the people and was reelected because of the job that she's and I too will oppose both measures today.

Thank you, Council McGrain. U I'm going to add a couple of comments. Honestly, I did not plan to speak on this item, but when the council is accused of committing illegal actions, as the council president, I feel like I need to respond to that. Um this is not an issue the council undertakes lightly. This is not a position this council wanted to be in. The challenge is because things occurred in Baton Rouge without the say so of our local citizens, a conflict in law has emerged. And to be clear, this is not this is a conflict in law. You have law that was created at the state level pursuant to state law which restructured these two clerk offices. And then there's a conflict in law that says that this council is tasked within 20 days if a new office is created to have an election. Now the challenge as the vice president just said is that we would love to wait to see how the court cases play out. But the law that is in question has a time limit. It has a 20day time limit. And if it occurs that after 20 days that there was a responsibility at the time for the council to take action and it does not after 20 days after that town expires the person under the law in conflict who appoints the interim and decides the matter is Governor Jeff Landry. So the council is taking action today because we have two conflicting legal theories and a time limit to take a position. Now that being said, and you'll see the council is very restrained in its comments today. This is a matter that will be litigated. There will be an effort by a variety of parties from the moment a decision is made today to litigate it. But to say that the council is taking action under a time limit imposed by law that us taking a position

is illegal cuz you don't like it. That is not appropriate. This is not something that the council wanted to do. We received a variety of unsolicited legal opinions on both sides of this issue. And when you put a conflict of law up at this magnitude, is the responsibility of the council a to take action and b for courts to have the final decision? Because at the end of the day, no matter what the council does today, the courts will have the final say. So all that we are doing is doing what is required by law because the language that says in a special election shall be called is not permissive. It says that if if if there is a possibility that a new office has been created and that there needs to be an election because there was no election for that office, the council shall call a special election and elect an interim. So I would argue the council doing nothing could be breaking the law. And so we are doing what we believe is best situated to preserve all options on the table. What we do today will not be the final disposition on this issue. That will be for the courts to decide. But I just want to be sure because there was this allegation thrown out that us having this meeting is somehow illegal. There's actually an argument not having the meeting would be illegal. So we are doing the best we can with what has been presented before us. See the board is clear. What's the will of the council? Council will moves. I will second. Please vote your We're going to vote by voice vote because there is also a conflict on law by the attorney general that certain votes can only be done by voice. So, Madame Clerk, can you call the voice vote?

Voice. Council President Morell. Yes. Vice President Willard. Yes. Council member McCarron. Yes. Council member Harris. No. Council member King. Yes. Council member Green, no. Council member Hughes, yes. We have five five yays, two nays. The motion is approved. Resolution is approved. Uh, next we'll take the second item up. Um, there's an amendment.

We have an amendment to resolution R261 194. an amendment to resolution R26194 to name Judge Calvin Johnson as the person to be appointed to assume the duties of the vacant office of Orleans Clerk of court pursuant to LS18602 and act 15 of the 2026 regular session of the Louisiana legislature. We need the vote to receive. I'll move to receive the amendments. Second by Council Willer. Please vote your machines. Seven yays, no nays. We need the vote to add.

I'll move to add. Second by council Willard. Please vot your machines. Council members, can we do voice votes as well? Uh why don't we do voice vote on the final vote, but there will be a I hear you Ashley because I know where this will be another part of the lawsuit we're going to have shortly. So we will do a voice vote for the final vote on this vote on this motion.

Voice vote. Council member Before we vote on the final motion, I do want to make a comment. Um, I want to be clear because I know there's been some allegation on both sides of us taking this action is the council establishing a preference for one another party to be the clerk. Part of the reason why this council is selecting an interim like retired judge Calvin Johnson who always gets volunteered for everything. He's in the back over there. Thank you very much for being volunteered all the time. is we pick someone beyond reproach who has no desire to seek higher office. Um the idea of an interim is someone who has the experience and the wherewithal and the knowledge base to do the job on an interim basis while an election is pending. I say that because there were parties that have lobbyed both sides of this council to pick one of the two candidates for the office to be the interim and that would not be appropriate because we are doing this action today pursuant to the law without favor to who would be the person that gets that job. And I I want to further emphasize just this and I know uh Judge Johnson will not take too much much umbrage to me bringing up our conversation. I was very conflicted with doing this action today. Both the vote and the appointment of an interim council person. And I do that because for those of you who know me, I abore performative actions. I do not like doing things to an elected official that do not have a clear purpose or a clear path to victory. And as I've said previously, the law is very gray on this issue. But when a law tells the council that it must or shall do an action, I take that

very, very seriously. And as I was expressing my concerns to Judge Johnson, cuz I was and still am very conflicted on this issue, sometimes you have to have faith and take trust that history will resolve this one way or the other. And um I was reminded by Bud Jud by Judge Johnson of Py versus Ferguson of having a group of people do something that they aren't sure how it's going to turn out, but you do it because you think it's an obligation. You think it's the right thing. Now, one thing I want to point out cuz I I heard that and I did tell him I said, "No one wants to be Homer Py, but I want to add one thing just because I think it's pertinent to this conversation. What's really sad and an indictment kind of on where we are today in the United States of America is that contrary to popular belief, Homer Pie in the Citizens Committee thought they were going to win at the Supreme Court. They had hope that their position at that time was so obvious that they would prevail. What I tell you today that even as we move forward on this item, it is a sad indictment on this United States that I have less hope in our Supreme Court almost 150 years later versus the court that Mr. Mr. Pie had in front of him. Council member Harris.

Thank you, uh, Council President. Uh, Judge Johnson knows that I am one of his biggest fans, so please don't take this vote no personally. It's based on my decision to vote no on uh placing an interim in this seat. So, thank you, Judge Johnson. Council member,

I also want to emphasize to um to all present who might be listening, my appreciation for Judge Calvin Johnson, former um criminal court judge, but also since his retirement has been working hard in our community on a variety of issues, Metropolitan Human Services District and other issues that really do enhance our community. So, at the end of the day, in terms of qualification, someone who's motivated, who would um work hard for the citizens of New Orleans, I have no doubt that Judge Calvin Johnson is an excellent citizen and an excellent civic affairsminded person who will do a good job in whatever job he does. Thank you. With that,

council members, we need to read the amendment into the record. We already read the amendment and adopted it, I believe. Oh, we did. We read it into the record. You just need to vote as I mean vote on it. Thank you, Madam Clerk. I will move to adopt the amendment. We will do a voice vote on the item as amended. So, please vote your machines right now on the amendment. This is the amendment, not the underlined vote. All right. 70 on the amendment. Now, we'll do a voice vote on the item as amended. Madam clerk, council member Moro, yes. Council member Willlet, yes. Council member McCarron, yes. Council member Harris, no. Council member King. Council member Green. No. Council member Hughes.

Yes. We have five yays, two nays. The resolution is adopted as amended. Thank you. Thank you, members. Thank you for your time today. I'll move that we adjourn. Can I get a second? Second by Council Willard. Please vote your machines. Seven yays, no naysay. We're adjourned.