LPPJ meeting details

Yes, it was a cold, dark, and stormy night. Yes, the meeting was at the Lincoln Parish Court House instead of the Library Events Center.

Still, it was a surprise that almost no one, save four or five diehard gadflies, showed up at last night’s Lincoln Parish Police Jury meeting to witness a unanimous vote to hire former administrator Courtney Hall for his old job.

We were not the only ones surprised, as evidenced by the number of extra chairs set up for the meeting, and that remained empty for the hour long meeting.

The five-member Personnel Committee began by discussing Hall’s salary which was set at $75/hr for working days only. That is no pay for holidays, no vacation pay, nor medical or retirement benefits.

It was also revealed that Hall would be employed as a contractor through an employment agency. It was estimated that the overhead would be in the 30% to 35% range.

District Five’s Logan Hunt noted, “I do very much respect Courtney’s leadership. I have the utmost respect for the job he did in this office.”

He added that he was surprised at the pay rate that was being discussed. “That just caught me flat-footed,” he said.

District Ten’s Milton Melton made the motion to hire Hall, and District Eleven’s Sharyon Mayfield seconded.

There was a bit more discussion about transparency and the duties of the personnel committee, with general agreement that those goals would be pursued.

The full jury unanimously ratified the committee’s decision without discussion and then went into executive session to discuss a pending lawsuit, Jones v LPDCC.

Notably present was The Lincoln Agency’s Randy Graham. That agency is the insurance carrier for the jury.

It is unclear what liability the Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Department might have in the litigation, as that agency hires and trains the personnel alleged to have neglected a prisoner’s health issues that resulted in his death.

We will have more reporting on this issue as we obtain more information.

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