St John’s Parish President Jaclyn Hotard accused of perjury in controversial grain silo trial – L’Observateur

Jaclyn Hotard, president of Saint-Jean-Baptiste Parish, has been accused of lying in court for failing to disclose information related to a proposed grain terminal, as part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by Joy Banner, a local environmental activist, according to court records.

In the Eastern District of Louisiana, United States, where the deposition took place, Hotard testified under oath that she did not know that her mother-in-law, Darla Gaudet, might have profited financially from the rezoning plans for the district. parish to make way for a controversial grain farm. elevator offered by Greenfield Louisiana.

“I don’t know what they are doing or what land they are buying or not buying. So anything you tell me about this company would be a (surprise) to me. Because I’m just not involved at all,” Hotard said during the deposition.

The controversial project, which was later abandoned, required rezoning of the area for industrial use. It would have been built near historic sites and residences in a predominantly black community.

She also said she and her mother-in-law had not corresponded about the grain terminal and had no discussions about it or the property owned by her mother-in-law’s shipping company.

Judge Karen Wells Roby had ordered Gaudet, who was subpoenaed, to turn over text messages in which she and Hotard discussed the Greenfield grain terminal, the value of Gaudet’s land and the votes of the Saint Parish Council. -Jean-Baptiste regarding Greenfield and Banner.

After unsuccessfully fighting the subpoena, Gaudet turned over the text messages to the court, acknowledging that she had exchanged text messages with Hotard as part of the ongoing lawsuit filed by Joy Banner – co-founder and co- executive director of The Descendants Project, an organization dedicated to historic preservation and racial justice.

The texts specifically identified Hotard using profanity and violent language about Banner, calling her a “slut” and saying she wanted to choke him. Hotard also said of the Banner sisters: “I hate these people. »

Other text messages showed Hotard sending his mother-in-law images of Gaudet’s land, highlighting it on a map and discussing his valuation. The document also includes messages from Gaudet to Hotard before and after the parish council’s April 9 vote, 7 to 2, in favor of the rezoning.

“These communications demonstrate that the accused Hotard lied when she swore under oath that ‘no such document exists’ and that she was unaware of Ms. Gaudet’s affairs,” the lawyers said. Banner’s lawyers in the court filing.

At a council meeting in November 2023, Banner opposed a council motion to retain a private law firm, using taxpayer funds, to defend Hotard against any potential charges from the from the Louisiana Board of Ethics.

Banner’s complaint against Hotard pointed out that his mother-in-law would benefit financially because she owned and operated a shipping company that owned land near the area being rezoned.

Banner then sued the parish in December 2023 after Hotard and another parish councilor, Michael Wright, threatened her with arrest and prevented her from speaking during a public comment period at the November 2023 council meeting , which she claimed violated her First Amendment rights.

Banner’s attorneys, Dave Lanser and William Most, had asked the judge to sanction Hotard, pay Banner’s attorney fees and order Hotard to appear for another deposition. The lawsuit is expected to go to trial early next year.