Covering Louisiana
Judge nixes bid to disqualify Letten's office
Posted: Jul 26, 2012 5:43 PM by AP
Updated: Jul 26, 2012 6:00 PM
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A federal judge has refused to disqualify U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office from prosecuting former Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard on charges he conspired to fraudulently award a lucrative parish job to his ex-wife.
Thursday's ruling by U.S. District Judge Hayden Head says the "extraordinary remedy" of disqualifying Letten's office isn't warranted in the case against Broussard and former parish attorney Tom Wilkinson.
Broussard's lawyer claimed Sal Perricone, a former prosecutor in Letten's office, may have publicly revealed secret information about the case. Perricone resigned in March after acknowledging he anonymously posted comments on a newspaper's website about cases on which he has worked.
Head said Perricone's involvement in Broussard's case is "so tangential that it is insignificant."
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