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.