opinion

Viewpoint: Proactive policing needed to combat surge in violent crime, MCC says

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The Metropolitan Crime Commission (MCC), New Orleans’ premier criminal justice watchdog agency, is urging the New Orleans Police Department to refocus on violent offenders during a time when shootings and murders are surging and fewer arrests are being made for violent and weapons felony offenses. A new MCC analysis shows that there is currently a high community demand for police services. They recommend that the NOPD reinstitute a centralized task force model that allows police to strategically identify and target violent felons who continue to pose a threat to community safety. “Every violent crime that goes unresolved by arrest fuels the vigilante cycle of retaliatory justice, thereby diminishing public confidence in law enforcement,” said Rafael Goyeneche, MCC president. “The foundation for prosperity is built upon public safety.

colleges

Xavier students showcase work in timely exhibit at Ogden Museum of Southern Art

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For the seventh year, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art has partnered with the New Orleans Chapter of The Links, a women’s volunteer service organization, to present a showcase featuring art from students at a historically Black college or university. This year, 12 students from Xavier University have work featured in the exhibit: Kennedi Andrus, Allana Barefield, KaLya Ellis, Barriane Franks, Lauren Gray, Ashley A. Miller, Reid Hobson-Powell, La’Shance Perry, Michael Riley, Makeda Wells, Bryce Williams and Maliya Vaughan. For many students, it’s the first time their work is featured in a gallery. La’Shance Perry, a senior at Xavier from Cincinnati, Ohio, majoring in mass communications and minoring in art, said the experience has made her feel validated as an artist, something that she has struggled with lately. “I guess I’ll say I can be self-conscious about my work, which is why I haven’t shared a lot,” she said.

events

‘Eve’s Bayou’ Reunion: Live chat with Kasi Lemmons and Lynn Whitfield

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The New Orleans Film Society (NOFS) is reuniting Eve’s Bayou (1997) director Kasi Lemmons and actor Lynn Whitfield for a special livestreamed conversation this Friday (Aug. 21) at 5:30 p.m. Ahead of the 31st Annual New Orleans Film Festival (Nov. 6-22), this reunion kicks off the “Why Film Matters” series in which NOFS highlights a landmark film as the basis for a series of conversations and varied programming around its impact. Fans of “Eve’s Bayou” are encouraged to stream the film synchronously on a platform of their choosing and live tweet with NOFS using the hashtag #EvesBayouReunion starting at 3:30 p.m. The NOFS Twitter account will be leading the conversation with lesser-known facts about the film and scenes with the help of fans, writers, and critics. The reunion conversation is free to stream and will be moderated by NOFS Programming Manager Zandashé Brown (Blood Runs Down).

crime

15-year-old girl, two men injured in Gert Town triple shooting

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A teenage girl was injured Saturday night in a triple drive-by shooting on a residential Gert Town street, the New Orleans Police Department reported. The 15-year-old was sitting in a car outside a home in the 4300 block of Thalia Street at about 9:20 p.m. when a Red Kia Soul drove up. Gunfire erupted from the Kia, striking the teenager and two 37-year-old men. The suspects fled down Thalia in the car. The Emergency Medical Service took the teen and one of the men to the hospital.

opinion

Viewpoint: Before Kamala Harris, a very long battle for women in politics

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U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris’ selection as the 2020 Democratic vice presidential nominee — and potentially the most consequential vice president in American history — is the crowning glory of more than 150 years of incredible work by countless suffragists who first fought for the right to vote and later battled for unfettered access to the top echelons of U.S. government. Though Hillary Clinton, Geraldine Ferraro, Shirley Chisholm and others mightily aspired to reach the White House, polls currently show that the Biden-Harris team has more than a fighting chance to meet that goal. As America remembers the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which cracked open the doors for Harris and many others, there is no better way to celebrate than registering a friend or family member to vote. History tells us that the national women’s suffrage movement began in 1848 at the Women’s Rights Convention in Seneca Falls, New York, which was organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Lucretia Mott and Mary Ann McClintock.   

The suffrage movement started a little later in Louisiana because of an antebellum-influenced view of the Southern lady, delicate as a magnolia blossom in the spring.  Southern males believed the women’s rights movement could only be attributed to an inferior Northern culture and likened it to abolitionism.  Equality of the sexes was a blatant disregard of social distinctions, according to author Armantine M. Smith writing in the Louisiana Law Review. In 1861 men began leaving home to fight in the Civil War, thereby compelling womenfolk to take the lead in caring for children and the elderly.

crime

Victims identified in Olive Street, MLK Boulevard homicides

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The Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office has identified the victims of two recent homicides in Uptown neighborhoods. Cleve Baham, was shot to death in Gert Town on Friday (Aug. 7), according to police reports. Officers responding to a report of shots fired in the 7900 block of Olive Street at 9:10 p.m. found Baham suffering from gunshot wounds. The Emergency Medical Service took him to the hospital, where he died.

crime

Police blotter: Carjacking, two robberies

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A carjacking and two robberies were reported in Uptown neighborhoods over the weekend, according to the New Orleans Police Department. A woman was carjacked Sunday afternoon in Central City, the NOPD reported. A man shoved the 28-year-old victim to the ground at South Tonti Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard at about 1:30 p.m., the report states. He then took her keys and fled in her car. The police report states the NOPD knows the identity of the assailant, but his name was not provided.

Viewpoint: Gusman says additional health care facilities could save lives at parish prison

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Armed with the ruling yesterday (Aug. 5) by U.S. District  Judge Lance Africk, which returned control of the Orleans Justice Center to Sheriff Marlin Gusman, the sheriff said he is moving ahead with his push to build a new facility to house inmates with severe health and mental health needs and to repurpose Templeman V as a temporary facility for COVID-19 inmates. “I’m trying to save lives,” said Sheriff Marlin Gusman after Wednesday’s ruling, as he discussed plans for new or repurposed health facilities for prisoners. 

Court-appointed monitors reported in July that the OPSO was in partial or substantial compliance with the majority of federal reform provisions. Though Judge Africk returned control of the Orleans Justice Center to Gusman, the consent decree continues. 

On Wednesday, Gusman said his immediate concern is containing the spread of the coronavirus within the prison walls. “NOPD officers are bringing known COVID-19 positive patients to the Orleans Justice Center,” Gusman said.

opinion

Viewpoint: Nuns at Xavier Prep set Judge Piper Griffin on her path

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As she campaigns to become the second Black female and third Black jurist to serve on the Louisiana Supreme Court, Civil District Court Judge Piper Griffin, 58, credits the nurturing she received during her teen years at Xavier Prep for her courage and tenacity. “The nuns told me I could do anything if I put my mind to it, and I believed them,” said Judge Griffin. Her first dream, however, was to become an astronaut. “I loved exploring and being exposed to different things,” she said. When Judge Griffin began college at the University of Notre Dame, she realized aerospace engineering was not her forte.

crime

Central City shooting victim dies of his injuries

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The victim in a Central City shooting Sunday (July 26) died from his injuries, the New Orleans Police Department reported. The incident began with a traffic accident on Fourth Street and Claiborne Avenue, police said. After the crash, the gunman got out of one of the vehicles and shot at a man in the other vehicle before fleeing the scene. At around 11:48 a.m., Sixth District officers responded to an aggravated battery by shooting at the intersection at the intersection. Upon arrival, officers discovered a 28-year-old man suffering from a gunshot wounds.