Orleans DA’s workplace settles all claims in civil rights lawsuit over use of pretend subpoenas | Courts
Orleans Parish prosecutors have resolved a longstanding federal civil rights lawsuit over New Orleans prosecutors’ use of fake subpoenas – along with other hardball tactics under former prosecutor Leon Cannizzaro – according to court records.
The lawsuit was filed by Washington-based Civil Rights Corps and the ACLU on behalf of a group of plaintiffs who alleged they were in jail or imprisonment for alleged failure to cooperate with law enforcement. Most of these plaintiffs said the prosecutor’s office served them so-called “DA subpoenas,” a term that prosecutors use to refer to the fake subpoenas.
The terms of the settlement were still unclear this week. The court files did not contain any details about the agreement. Tara Mikkilineni, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, confirmed in an email on Thursday that an agreement had been reached but said she would not be able to speak until it was final, which should happen in the coming weeks. A call to the prosecutor’s office was not immediately returned.
Former Orleans District Attorney Leon A. Cannizzaro, Jr. reacts loudly when then-City Councilor Jason Williams arrests him over using fake subpoenas and detaining witnesses at City Hall in New Orleans, La. on 09/20/2017.
The lawsuit was filed in October 2017, several months after a report in The Lens revealed the existence of fake subpoenas that had been used for years by prosecutors in New Orleans and the surrounding communities. Cannizzaro announced that the office would end the practice the same day The Lens released its first report.
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The documents used by the prosecutors appeared to be genuine subpoenas. Although they evolved over the years, a form that Orleans prosecutors began using from 2014 included the word “subpoena” in bold above and threatened recipients with imprisonment for non-compliance. Typically, the false subpoenas ordered key witnesses – including crime victims – to appear at private meetings with prosecutors.
State law allows prosecutors to force witnesses to appear at such meetings with a subpoena – a so-called Article 66 subpoena – but only with the consent of a judge. “DA summons” were neither approved by a judge nor issued by the office, as required by law.
Cannizzaro settled several of the claims in the lawsuit before stepping down. His successor, DA Jason Williams, made further claims earlier this year. But the lawsuit, which survived several unsuccessful prosecution challenges, lasted until this month, and a jury trial was scheduled for November.
According to court records, the parties reached an agreement during a July 13 trial. The lawsuit was officially dismissed on Thursday morning.
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