EBRP DA Hillar Moore rebuffs activist Gary Chambers’ claim that he joined the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men only because he faces a black opponent, Ryan Thompson, in his November reelection quest.

East Baton Rouge Parish (EBRP) District Attorney (DA) Hillar Moore poses recently displaying his membership into the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men (photo courtesy of Baton Rouge Activist Gary Chambers’ Tik Tok feature.)

In our most recent feature, EBRPDA Hillar Moore indicated that he “leans against” having cameras in courtrooms (though he did equivocate in our interview of him after his appearance before the Baton Rouge Press Club – BRPC).

As Moore’s appearance neared an end, one BRPC Member asked Moore about the role of the DA with the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men.  Moore responded, and BRPC host Bill Bryant indicated there was time for one more question, but nobody raised a hand to pose one.  Accordingly, Sound Off Louisiana founder Robert Burns indicated he’d “follow up” on the question entailing 100 Black Men.  We are going to provide the video of Moore responding to both questions shortly.

First, however, most folk who live in Baton Rouge or are from South Louisiana have almost assuredly heard of community activist Gary Chambers.  He is extensively involved in Louisiana politics and has himself run both for a U. S. Congress seat and, more recently, he challenged incumbent U. S. Senator John Kennedy in the 2024 election for U. S. Senate.

Chambers is known for being controversial, and he also doesn’t mince his words on how he assesses a matter.  Before we provide Moore’s responses, let’s provide video of Chambers lambasting the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men for admitting Moore as a Member and his strong focus on the timing of such admittance mere months before Moore’s upcoming reelection effort in November:

7/18/26:  Chambers lambasts the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men for having EBRPDA Hillar Moore “join the club” only months before Moore’s reelection effort this November.

That would be a pretty authoritative rebuke of Baton Rouge’s Chapter of 100 Black Men, no?  Now, here is video of Moore being provided an initial question regarding 100 Black Men for which Moore responds, after which Burns, since nobody else had a question to close the event, opted to have Moore respond to Chambers’ allegations about the timing of Moore’s joining 100 Black Men:

7/27/26:  Moore first responds to a softball question on his involvement with the Baton Rouge Chapter of 100 Black Men, after which Burns asks Moore to respond to Chambers’ allegations in the first video above.

Our viewers can decide for themselves regarding Chambers’ allegations about the timing of Moore’s membership in 100 Black Men and whether that timing had anything to do with the challenge by black opponent Ryan Thompson in November.

Since Moore does indicate that Thompson also joined 100 Black Men (along with EBRP Mayor-President Sid Edwards) at the same time as Moore, let’s provide a little more background on Thompson:

Ryan K. Thompson is a Baton Rouge attorney and public defender who is the first challenger in nearly two decades to longtime EBRPDA Hillar C. Moore III in the November 2026 election. Both are Democrats.  Moore has held the office since 2009 without opposition after his initial 2008 win over former Orleans Parish Assistant DA Dan Claitor, who subsequently prevailed in his quest to become a Louisiana State Senator.

Thompson, whose approximate age was 44-45 at the time of his October 2025 announcement, was born in Birmingham, Alabama, and he was raised in the Inglewood/Compton area of California. He earned a B.S. in criminal justice (with a sociology minor) from Southern Utah University on an athletic scholarship, where he helped found the Black Student Association and a Kappa Alpha Psi colony. He later obtained a Master of Public Health in Urban Health Disparities from Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science and a Juris Doctor from Southern University Law Center in 2019. He also completed Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) coursework.

He and his wife moved to Baton Rouge in 2015 with their daughters for graduate studies, and the family stayed after law school. Professionally, he has worked as a Section Lead/Assistant Public Defender in the EBRP Public Defender’s Office, handling serious felony cases and supervising litigation. He directs the Thompson Justice Institute (a civil practice focused on constitutional rights and accountability) and has represented plaintiffs in suits against the city-parish over alleged police abuses at the now-shuttered “BRAVE Cave” interrogation facility. Earlier roles included advocacy on child welfare (via an Obama-era grant with California’s Department of Children and Family Services), community organizing on environmental issues, and serving as deputy campaign manager for Gary Chambers’ 2021 Congressional bid.

Campaign and Platform

Thompson announced his candidacy in October 2025, criticizing crime levels during Moore’s tenure (noting Baton Rouge’s deadliest years on record, with homicides peaking at 149 in 2021 before declining but remaining elevated relative to earlier periods) and calling for “fresh eyes, new ideas, and a renewed commitment to fairness and safety.” His platform emphasizes:

  • Aggressive prosecution of violent crime while applying the law fairly and without bias or political influence.
  • Accountability, transparency, and rebuilding public trust in the justice system.
  • Supporting victims/families, using prosecutorial discretion responsibly, and partnering with law enforcement and communities on root causes (drawing on his public-health background).
  • Equal justice under the law.

His campaign website frames him as a grassroots candidate focused on integrity and measurable results. He has been door-knocking and organizing with support from figures like Gary Chambers, who has long criticized Moore. Qualifying is this upcoming week, and the primary/general is November 3 (with a possible December runoff).

Notable Exchange with Moore

In June 2026, the two clashed publicly over a hate-crime case involving a 13-year-old boy allegedly in KKK garb who painted racist messages and carved a swastika on a neighbor’s property in Central. Moore’s office charged the teen with hate crimes. Thompson (representing the victim in a related civil suit) held a news conference with the NAACP, urged additional charges (e.g., stalking/terrorism), and called for greater transparency. Moore accused a participant of advancing a political narrative and creating a false account of the case.  Thompson replied that the focus should stay on justice for the family.

Moore, about 70, has highlighted initiatives on domestic violence, sexual assault, opioids, and violence reduction (e.g., Stop the Loss, TRUCE) while dealing with ongoing office funding disputes (including a lawsuit against the city-parish for more resources after a failed tax proposal). Thompson positions himself as an outsider to the prosecutor’s office with defense and civil-rights experience who can deliver both public safety and fairness.

With the BRPC’s invitation of Moore to appear before it to present his case for reelection, Thompson is bound to receive an invitation to appear in the near future as well.  We look forward to providing coverage of his appearance just as we did for Moore’s appearance six (6) days ago.

 

As AG Liz Murrill clamors for judicial “transparency,” EBRP DA Hillar Moore, while thrown off guard by the question, ultimately “leans against” having cameras in courtrooms.

At the Baton Rouge Press Club (BRPC) meeting of Monday, July 27, 2026, East Baton Rouge Parish (EBRP) District Attorney Hillar Moore prepares to respond to a question by Sound Off Louisiana‘s Robert Burns regarding his position on cameras in courtrooms.

EBRP District Attorney Hillar Moore was the guest speaker at the BRPC meeting of Monday, July 27, 2026.  On our last two features, we have focused almost exclusively on affecting changes in Louisiana laws to permit cameras in courtrooms.  Here is a summation of the present state of such cameras in courtrooms in various states as taken from our July 5, 2026 feature entailing the New Orleans patently absurd indictment of AG Liz Murrill:

Regarding the permissive granting of cameras in courtrooms at the state level:

“Yes” or permissive policies apply in the vast majority. Examples include broad access in states like Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, Texas, and others, with varying exceptions (e.g., no jury selection, no jurors, closed proceedings, juveniles, or certain sensitive cases).

Restrictive or “No” states (typically requiring special permission or effectively barring routine use, especially at trial level): Delaware, Iowa, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania are frequently cited as the most restrictive (often described as the primary holdouts prohibiting most camera use).

On July 22, 2026, during a press conference ostensibly about any preparations for Tropical Storm Bertha, both Gov. Jeff Landry and AG Liz Murrill devoted significant time to lambasting the entire process in New Orleans Criminal Court which gave rise to Murrill’s indictment.  Let’s take one minute to watch Murrill vent regarding that process and stating in no uncertain terms that what she wants is “transparency.”:

7/22/26:  AG Liz Murrill laments how her indictment came about and states emphatically that what she wants is “transparency.” [Note:  Video segment courtesy of WWL-TV in New Orleans].

We hold the strongly held position that there is no greater measure of judicial transparency than having cameras in courtrooms!  The atrocity that transpired with Murrill is not some isolated incident, but rather Murrill’s misfortune is emblematic of a judicial system (both civil and criminal) in Louisiana that has reached epidemic insanity, and we firmly believe that the only means by which the public (including Murrill) has any hope whatsoever of reining in the outlandish actions taking place in courtrooms throughout Louisiana is via cameras exposing these atrocities in near real time.

With that in mind, we asked Moore where he stands on permitting cameras in courtrooms, and here is his response (including a one-on-one segment Sound Off Louisiana’s Burns conducted with Moore after the meeting had concluded):

7/27/26:  Moore states his rationale for “leaning against” cameras in courtrooms, and Burns continues to press him on the issue.

As is obvious from the preceding video, Moore began to equivocate on his “leaning against” cameras in courtrooms even while the camera continued to roll.

Further, in a discussion with Burns after the interview, he indicated that, in light of how difficult it is to even get timely “minute entries” for court proceedings, not to mention a severe shortage of court reporters and the extreme delays that obtaining court transcripts entail, Moore did start to come around to the idea that cameras in courtrooms may not be such a bad idea.

Of course, that could always be to avoid exposing a potential vulnerability for his opponent, Ryan Thompson, to exploit in the November election for EBRP DA.  After all, once Hillar Moore defeated former Orleans Parish Assistant DA Dan Claitor 18 years ago, he has not faced any opposition on subsequent reelection efforts until this year.

In our last feature,  Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany Parish’s Terry King had this to say:

I know numerous judges who would be removed from the bench and many cases overturned if the recordings were released (since the court reporters don’t always transcribe every word). I can just imagine what would happen if video was available!

King, who has authored two (2) outstanding books entailing St. Tammany Parish corruption with a heavy focus on courtroom corruption within the Parish, is certainly in a position to know.  Furthermore, to his point about transcripts not “transcribing every word,” we submit that it’s actually much, much worse than that!

As we followed and reported upon court proceedings on the Ronald Greene matter, we published this 6/25/23 feature outlining how “perilously close” Union Parish DA John Belton came to being held in contempt of court.  In that hearing, Union Parish DA John Belton and defense attorney Eugene Cicardo (representing Union Parish Sheriff Deputy Chris Harpin), conducted an exchange in which Cicardo told Belton that he needed to “man up” and provide the bill of particulars/specificity on the indictment counts.

Belton took strong umbrage at the remark and insisted that he be permitted to defend his character, which he claimed had been attacked by Cicardo.  Third JDC Judge Thomas Rogers told Belton, “this is not the time nor the place for that.”  When Belton insisted that he was going to defend his character, Judge Rogers reiterated that, “I’ve told you to stop!”  Belton then retorted in a very, very hostile tone:  “Or what?”  Judge Rogers’ verbatim response (and trust us, moments like that in a court proceeding are not forgotten) was, “I think you know what!”

Well, all we can say is that we viewed a transcript of the exchange, and that transcript didn’t read anything like what we just outlined above!  If we had the ability to have filmed with our camera the exchange between Belton and Judge Rogers, we could have had it out for the public to view in a matter of hours; furthermore, the exchange would not have been subject to manipulation of any transcript (and, yes, we flatly believe the transcript was manipulated in that instance — we know what we heard, and Burns discussed it with attorneys involved in the case, and they too state unequivocally what got stated between Belton and Judge Rogers).

One can also consider the matter in which Fourteenth JDC Judge David Ritchie admonished Billy Broussard to “do as the commercial suggest and choose your attorney carefully,” in slamming the legal skills of Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.

Sure, Broussard supplied us with this transcript to substantiate that Ritchie certainly did take the pop shot at Landry’s legal skills (see bottom of second page).  Nevertheless, that’s all it is:  mere printed words on a page!

Broussard, who was the subject of the imposition of a permanent restraining order prohibiting him from obtaining any more public records from either the Gravity District or the Calcasieu Parish Police Jury (which we contend never should have been signed by Judge Ritchie but was because Broussard was accumulating overwhelming evidence of intentional, premeditated FEMA fraud), has told us that the courtroom was “packed” with attorneys and that Ritchie was mocking Landry and demonstrating through his gestures the unspoken words of, “As if Jeff Landry has any chance of winning the race for Attorney General against Buddy Caldwell.” In other words, he was “putting on quite the show.”

Well, none of that is captured in the transcript, and we believe video coverage of such episodes is fully warranted and, in fact, necessary, if Louisiana citizens are ever going to obtain any level of accountability at all from the judiciary in this state.  If a judge is going to basically showboat in front of a packed courtroom as Broussard asserts Ritchie did entailing Gov. Landry and his legal skills, then the people have a right to see such showboating and not be relegated down to a few words on a transcript!

So, since AG Murrill says that she has matters she intends to address with Legislators in an upcoming session (Landry has even hinted that he may call a Special Session to deal with the Murrill fallout and Orleans Parish Courthouse corruption), we would strongly advise her that one of those sought-after law changes in Louisiana needs to be the provision of video camera coverage of courtroom proceedings just as is done in Texas, Florida, Georgia, and many other states!  Just like AG Liz Murrill deserves better than was done to her, so do many other citizens of this state who also have endured absurd episodes in Louisiana courtrooms, but who lacked the “bully pulpit” that Landry and Murrill enjoy to vent their anger as Murrill does in the first video above.

CLICK HERE to see Moore’s presentation in its entirety.

With Gov. Landry now seemingly admitting Louisiana courts are a “circus,” McHugh David, Louisiana Press Association Executive Director, says it will take a “consolidated push” to overcome the “entrenched judiciary interests” in the Legislature and get cameras in courtrooms to capture the “circus.”

Louisiana Press Association (LPA) Executive Director McHugh David.

In our last feature, in which we outlined the insane indictment of AG Liz Murrill by a corrupt and out-of-control loose cannon disgraced “judiciary” in New Orleans, we emphasized the fact that, during his infamous April 24, 2026 “hug a thug” tirade, Gov. Landry said that permitting cameras in courtrooms would transform such courtrooms into a “circus.”  In that feature, we provided Landry’s full tirade, and we stated that his commentary after he poured cold water on the reporter’s question of whether cameras in courtrooms would advance his stated goal of judiciary accountability would be extremely difficult to argue against.  We certainly pose no argument whatsoever to his commentary after his direct response to the reporter’s question.

Since we already provided his full tirade (and anyone is welcome to go watch it at the above link), today we are going to limit his commentary to his direct response to the reporter regarding advancing Landry’s goal of judicial accountability via permitting cameras in courtrooms:

4/24/26:  Landry firmly states that permitting cameras in courtrooms would turn those courtrooms into a, “media live circuit circus.”

The very day after we published the feature first linked at the outset of this feature, a New Orleans motorist stopped traffic on I-110 in Baton Rouge and began randomly firing a gun at other motorists indiscriminately.  Upon seeing news of that development, Landry made this post on “X” (formerly Twitter).  From Landry’s X post:

Governor Jeff Landry
@LAGovJeffLandry

The organizer of the recall effort is now accused of shooting a man in the head and received a $100,000 bond.

@AGLizMurrill

received a $400,000 bond. If anyone wants to know why Louisianans have lost faith in the justice system, start there. And these are the same people who accuse us of being the problem.

55.1K

Views

Sounds a little like Landry is tacitly admitting that Louisiana’s courtrooms already are a circus, no?

Also on the very next day after we published the feature first linked on this feature, July 6, 2026, McHugh David was the guest speaker at the Baton Rouge Press Club.  David serves as the Executive Director of the Louisiana Press Association (LPA) and its marketing subsidiary, LPA Marketing.  He assumed this role in May 2024 (with full transition around June 2024), succeeding Jerry Raehal. In this capacity, he also holds the position of Ex-Officio Treasurer.

David comes from a multigenerational family newspaper background. The Livingston Parish News in Denham Springs, Louisiana, has been family-owned since his grandfather acquired it in 1962. He previously served as co-publisher (alongside his mother, Nancy) and president of the publication. He stepped into the co-publisher role in 2015 following the death of his father, Jeff McHugh David Sr.

As Executive Director, David’s priorities include advancing state and national legislation affecting the press.  Sound Off Louisiana’s founder, Robert Burns, viewed David’s appearance as an excellent opportunity to pose the question of him as to why there has not been a much stronger push in Louisiana to obtain cameras in courtrooms.  Here’s the question and his response:

7/6/26:  David responds to Burns’ question of why there hasn’t been a much stronger push to advance the cause of cameras in courtrooms, particularly given the Murrill insane indictment.

As is evident by the video above, David says it is going to take a heavily consolidated effort to defeat the “entrenched judiciary.”  David also stated that Burns, “stole my thunder a little bit,” and referenced the organizations he’s working with to achieve the goal of cameras in courtrooms (and he stressed that everyone “needs to be” working toward that goal), he asked for everyone to push their  legislators to back an effort to bring cameras into courtrooms.

David also said that he wanted folk to grab one of his business cards so that anyone can contact him about helping push legislation to accomplish the goal of cameras in Louisiana  courtrooms.  We took a card, and we want to help him in every way possible, so here is a blown-up version of his business card so anyone can reach out to him and learn how anyone can assist him in this (in our opinion) badly-needed effort to obtain cameras in courtrooms:

David emphasized the need for all of us to contact our Louisiana State Representatives and our Louisiana State Senators and get this done!  It is long overdue, and now even apparently Gov. Landry knows just how out of control it has gotten!  For those unsure of which House or Senate District in which they reside, you can find out very easily right here.

We have intentionally named this feature with four short letters (cinc – short for “cameras in courtrooms”) to make it as easy as possible for anyone to send a very quick email to her Louisiana Legislators, which we too will be doing.  Here’s all the email needs to say (and all we intend to place in our emails to State Sen. Franklin Foil and State Rep. Dixon McMakin):

We desperately need cameras in courtrooms, and the rationale for why is outlined here:  www.SoundOffLA.com/cinc

It’s literally that simple but, as David says, these legislators need to be flooded with such requests by constituents because we (citizens and the media alike) are going up against (his words), “an entrenched judiciary in this state!”

CLICK HERE for David’s presentation in its entirety, which also includes a 17-minute segment where Burns and another reporter quizzed David one-on-one, and Burns openly inquired if the Legislature made a mistake in removing personal liability from the custodian of records for failing to turn over public records.

Another benefit of watching David’s video in its entirety is that he spoke at length about HB-410 of this past Legislative Session, which seeks to place some limitations on Louisiana’s one-party-consent rule of recording or videotaping of conversations with another individual without her consent.  We certainly understand the intent of the bill, which is to restrict abuses of social media dissemination of embarrassing material, and we think that is a noble cause.

Furthermore, we believe that, with the significant number of exceptions (they are all outlined in the link for the final engrossed bill which becomes law on August 1, 2026), the legitimate needs of having a conversation recorded remain intact.

Furthermore, we think that the following provision of the bill is extremely noteworthy, and we salute David and others who fought hard to get the bill amended in the manner in which it was amended to protect the rights of folk who have a legitimate need to audio record or video record interactions which have a high probability of becoming problematic to the recording individual if he fails to  have proof of activity which may give rise to his own civil or criminal claim against the individual(s) he is secretly recording:

Violation of House Bill 410 (now Act 965) is treated as a civil matter, not a criminal act.

The penalties section (§2790.4) specifies that a person found to have violated the provisions shall be liable to an individual for any damages, including court costs and reasonable attorney fees, as ordered by the court. There is no provision for criminal penalties, fines payable to the state, or prosecution as a crime.

This aligns with the bill’s placement under Civil Procedure in the Louisiana Revised Statutes (Title 9). It creates a private right of action for affected individuals rather than establishing a criminal offense. The law does not alter the existing Electronic Surveillance Act in a way that introduces new criminal sanctions for these in-person recording notifications.

So, the ability to covertly audio record or video record matters which may rise to the level of prompting the recording individual to file a civil suit or seek criminal prosecution for acts committed by the individual(s) being secretly recorded remains intact.  Now we just need to get the court proceedings of both civil and criminal matters subject to cameras being permitted in courtrooms because, as demonstrated by the Murrill disaster and numerous instances we could cite that we have observed in courtrooms both entailing criminal and civil matters, those episodes absolutely should be subject to videotaping by camera!

We thank everyone for the dedication demonstrated to this blog over the 11 years of its existence.