Lafayette Parish, Louisiana is operating a wealth-based detention scheme by relying on pre-determined cash bail amounts without giving any consideration to what any individual can afford to pay or to alternative, non-financial conditions of release.
The MacArthur Justice Center, Civil Rights Corps, and William P. Quigley, a veteran litigator and professor at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law, have joined forces to challenge this unconstitutional practice via a federal class action lawsuit.
The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants in February 2020. Our clients’ appeal of the dismissal of their clients’ claims against the Commissioner, Chief Judge, and Sheriff of Lafayette Parish is now pending in the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Case Developments
-
Notice of appeal filed in Fifth Circuit —March 9, 2020
-
District court grants summary judgment to Defendants —February 7, 2020
For media inquires please contact:
(NOTE: This mailbox is for media inquiries only. All other inquiries, including legal and representation questions, should be submitted through our Contact Form.)