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For 60 minutes, both sides tried to convince the Vermilion Parish Police Jury what to do about lawsuits on having oil companies repair the damage they did to parish coastlines years ago.
The lawyers handling the lawsuits argued that the lawsuits would continue if the police jury votes to take their name off the lawsuits. If a settlement is reached, Vermilion Parish is expected to receive about 9.3 percent of the settlement. The guesstimate amount will be around $9 million to be used to repair the parish’s eroding coastline.
Then there were those from the parish who worked in the oil field arguing why not to sue oil companies for something they did 40, 50 and 60 years ago.
It stems from oil companies drilling in the parish marshes back in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. The oil companies received the proper permits from the state to drill the wells. The fine print of the permits stated that oil companies must restore the land to its original shape after they are finished drilling on the property.
Oil companies dug hundreds of canals through the marshes and never closed them back up after completing the drilling. The oil field canals are a major reason why Louisiana’s marshlands are eroding at a fast rate.
The state, in 2016, filed lawsuits against about 200 oil companies for not correctly restoring Louisiana’s marshland 50 and 60 years after drilling on the land.
Police Juror Mark Poché argued that this lawsuit filed in 2016 is “not a legitimate lawsuit.”
“I do not think you should be able to go back to the 1940s, 50s, and 1960s and sue someone for what they did, and the state gave another thousand permits to do the same thing,” said Poché. “That is my first issue. My second issue is that you are suing on behalf of the landowners that do not get the money back. I have a problem with the police jury suing on behalf of the landowners, and the landowners do not get 100 percent of the money. It does not make sense. It looks like it is a lawsuit for trial attorneys. “
After hearing both sides, the Police Jury voted 14-0 to take their name off the lawsuits. A few years back, the Police Jury voted 14-0 not to attach the Police Jury’s name to the lawsuit, but then-District Attorney Keith Stutes attached the Police Jury’s name to the lawsuit, despite the Police Jury’s wishes.
Newly elected district attorney Don Landry attended the police jury meeting and said he would do whatever the police jury wanted him to do. He reminded the Police Jury that he has only been in office for three months and is just getting around to looking into the Police Jury’s request.
“If the citizens of Vermilion Parish want me to get out of this lawsuit, then I will do so. Police jurors represent the citizens of Vermilion Parish.”
Landry did warn the police jurors that in the contract with the lawyers signed by Stutes if the lawsuit ends, there is a chance the district attorney’s office could be stuck paying lawyer fees. Landry told the police jurors his office does not have the money to pay attorney fees and costs for the last five years. If his office has to pay attorney fees, he will be approaching the police jury for money.
Landry was not 100 percent sure if the attorneys would charge the district attorney’s office, but he will let the jurors know if and when it does occur.
The following is a statement from Grow Louisiana Coalition Executive Director Marc Ehrhardt in response to the Vermilion Parish Police Jury’s vote on coastal lawsuits:
“With its unanimous vote to support dismissing coastal lawsuits, the Vermilion Parish Police Jury has taken another step toward standing up for Louisiana’s working coast and the community that relies on it.
“Coastal lawsuits do nothing more than impede our oil and gas industry’s coastal restoration efforts and economic progress while also directly harming the hardworking people in Vermilion Parish who rely on the energy industry to support themselves and their families.
“The success of Louisiana’s oil and gas industry directly impacts funding and resources available for local communities, especially those throughout Vermilion Parish. The Vermilion Parish Police Jury’s support is a strong indicator to other parishes that citizens should not stand for these senseless lawsuits that only line trial lawyers’ pockets and divert necessary funding from coastal investments.”

Who is Laine Broussard?
How did she go from never running in a track meet to competing in four individual events at the Class 1A State Track Meet in Baton Rouge on Thursday?
The answer is simple: pure talent and good coaching.
She is coached by the legendary track coach at VC, Ossie Blaize, and his son, girls’ track coach Travis Blaize.
Broussard, who is 16, is a sophomore at Vermilion Catholic High School. This is the only year she competed in track. As a freshman, she could not because track was canceled due to COVID-19.
She was home-schooled while in middle school, so track was never an option.
But then VC track coach Travis Blaize saw this 5-foot-2 girl dust and an older boy in a 300-meter run, and it raised an eyebrow or two. He also watched the same girl run down a male all-district winger soccer player and steal the ball. At that moment, he knew Broussard was special and convinced her to sign up for track and field.
“She is a freak,” said Travis Blaize. “At 5-2, her stride is so beautiful - like a gazelle.”
“I always wanted to do track when I was younger,” said Broussard. “People always told me I was fast, but I never took them seriously.”
She is serious now.
Broussard, the only VC girl, going to state, will compete in the high jump, 100-meter dash, 200-meter dash and 400-meter run. The meet will be held in Bernie Moore Stadium on the LSU campus.
The first event will be the high jump at noon on Thursday. Her best jump on the year is 5-0. She jumped 4-10 at last week’s regional meet. The top jump going in is 5-2.
Her best event to try and win state will be in the 400-meter run. She has the second-best time going in. Her regional time of 1:02.59 is the second-fastest time. However, for her to win state in the 400, she will have to run fast like a gazelle. A Washington Marian runner has the top time of 59.43 seconds.
In the 100, she has the eighth-best time (13.78) and the ninth-best time in the 200 (28.22).
“I will be nervous at state,” admits Broussard. “I am not sure what to expect.”
She is the daughter of Valerie Stakes and Shane Broussard.
Also competing at the state meet will be the VC boys in four events.
VC’s 4x100 and 4x200 meter relays, along with Chad Zenon in the discus and the Eric Bourque in the pole vault.
This will be the first time any Eagle competes in the state track meet.
Running on the 4x100 meter team are Mikie Bazar, JP Summers, Josh Sagrera and Saul Dartez. They won regional with a time o 44.41.
The 4x200 meter relay team finished third at regional. The team consists of Sagrera, Summers, Zach Broussard, and Dartez, who ran a time of 1:34.50.

KAPLAN — After meeting with the board of the Kaplan Fire Association, Mayor Mike Kloesel has appointed Captain Robbie Pommier to Interim Fire Chief effective immediately.
Captain Pommier is a 12-year veteran of the Kaplan Fire Department.
Mayor Kloesel said he has total confidence in Robbie’s leadership and ability to lead this department in a safe, effective and professional manner. “Robbie is excited for the opportunity to serve his community,” Kloesel said.
Captain Pommier meets all of the Kaplan Civil Service Requirements and has the certifications and credentials for the fire chief position.
The Kaplan City Council approved to relieve former Chief Jacob Mathiew of his duties during a special meeting Monday night.

KAPLAN — City officials met in Kaplan Monday evening to discuss the future of Fire Chief Jacob Mathiew.
During the special meeting, Kaplan City Council unanimously agreed and voted to terminate the fire chief, mainly, but not limited to, his temper.
Last month, the city placed Mathiew on suspension for two weeks. Mayor Mike Kloesel provided information during the meeting leading up to Mathiew’s suspension and ultimately his termination.
“After an investigation, done by myself, it is my recommendation that we have to terminate the fire chief,” the Mayor began. “One of the biggest issues that we’ve had to deal with is pertaining to the GPS tracker, the other, his temper.”
The GPS tracker is located on all city emergency vehicles, meaning that it is also located on the Chief’s emergency vehicle.
The issue that was brought to the Mayor’s attention by a third party was that the GPS tracking device was removed from the city vehicle by the fire chief and placed in his personal vehicle.
The Mayor provided documentation to the council showing that in August of 2020, Mathiew was told to remove the tracker from his personal truck and place it back on the emergency vehicle, to which he did after the second warning.
City Attorney Calvin Woodruff stated that it is against the law to remove the GPS tracker in the first place and that it should never have happened.
“State law states that the hiring or termination of ahead of staff could only occur by first, recommendation by the mayor and a confirmation by the city council,” Woodruff stated. “The Mayor has made the recommendation.”
The council then voted to confirm the Mayor’s recommendation to terminate the Fire Chief, opening the room for discussion.
Before beginning the discussion, Woodruff read the definition of malfeasance in office of any public officer or public employee. It read: “Shall one intentionally refuse or fail to perform any duty lawfully required of him, or, intentionally performing any such duty in an unlawful manner.”
Woodruff also added that Article 7, Section 14 of the Louisiana State Constitution prohibits the personal use of public funds or public property.
Several questions arose during the meeting, including that of Councilman Justin Johnson, who asked if there was any other way to deal with this situation.
“Is there any other course of action that we could take other than terminating the fire chief?” Johnson asked.
In this particular situation, the Mayor told the council that there had been previous warnings given to the fire chief and that it was up to him to fix these issues.
“This is our last resort,” the Mayor replied. “I can’t foresee us giving Mathiew any more chances. It’s nothing personal. I have to look at this as a Mayor for the greater Kaplan.”
Several incidents were also brought up by the Mayor and Council concerning complaints made to them from those who have dealt with Mathiew.
“There are many concerns when it comes to Mathiew’s temper and anger. That’s not something we can tolerate any longer as it has gotten out of hand,” the Mayor expressed.
“There are too many incidents with the same complaints, and it’s our duty as Mayor and Council to take action.”
The Mayor also added that the former Chief was a great fireman, a great person and a great trainer.
“But that’s not what we are here for,” he said. “We know he’s great at his job, but with too many warnings about his temper and the situation with the GPS, it has come down to termination.”
Jacob Mathiew, then Fire Chief, attended the meeting to express his concerns for the decision made by the Mayor and Council.
Understanding the situation with the GPS, his wishes were to be treated a little more fairly.
“No one asked me where the GPS was located after knowing it was taken off the emergency vehicle,” Mathiew said.
“In my job description, it states that I respond to all calls, and I’m not always in that city truck. Sometimes I respond in my personal truck, and I should not have forgotten to put it back, sure, but sometimes that emergency truck is in the shop getting worked on, leaving me to respond in my personal vehicle. It was a mistake, but not a malicious one.”
The council all agreed that this was not an easy decision. Personal feelings for Mathiew were all positive, but as a chief, not so much.
Councilwoman Melissa Guidry said that she has watched Mathiew train firefighters, watched him work, and it is always an excellent job done by Mathiew.
“We just can’t ignore the complaints,” she said.
The council still decided to part ways with Mathiew, wishing him well. Mathiew returned the GPS tracker to the city upon leaving city hall.