Gov. Edwards, pictured days before then-LSP Col. Kevin Reeves “retired” in disgrace, uttering these now-infamous words: “I have complete confidence in Kevin Reeves as Superintendent of State Police.”
Everybody, and most especially Gov. Edwards himself, recognizes that, without the black vote in Louisiana, he would never have been elected Governor. In fact, even with 97%+ black support in the 2019 race for Governor, Edwards still managed only an approximate 30,000 vote margin of victory.
It is now becoming increasingly clear that the Edwards campaign did an absolutely masterful job ensuring that an arrest of Ronald Greene, in which Greene died at the hands of Louisiana State Police (LSP) troopers, was kept on the ultimate down low.
Now, with Edwards’ second and final term as Governor nearing its half-way mark, black residents across Louisiana are openly doing one of two things regarding Edwards and that Greene arrest along with numerous other instances of LSP alleged brutality entailing the arrests of young black drivers by LSP: #1) openly questioning how much Edwards knew and when he knew it (to the point that even Edwards-friendly The Advocate can no longer ignore the question), or #2) outright accusing him of playing a key role in LSP’s cover-up of the beatings after the Associated Press exposed the extent of Greene’s beating via LSP leaks of critical audio and video files to AP reporter Jim Mustian.
In light of recent developments, one cannot help but wonder if Gov. Edwards now views the most regrettable words he has ever uttered during his 5 1/2 years as Governor to be, “I have complete confidence in Kevin Reeves as Superintendent of State Police.” Edwards uttered those words mere days before Reeves would “retire” in absolute disgrace. Let’s take a look at Edwards uttering those now-infamous words:
Mere days before former LSP Col. Kevin Reeves “retired” in disgrace, Gov. Edwards voiced his strongest words of confidence in Reeves.
Perhaps nowhere has the exposure of Edwards’ actions been laid more bare than on the broadcast of the Monday, June 7, 2021 edition of Delaware-based “The Hard Talk With Jakim” show. As we mentioned on our last feature, Sound Off Louisiana founder Robert Burns was an invited guest on the show, and he, along with panelists Belinda Parker-Brown and 30-year retired Los Angeles Police Department Sergeant Randolph (“Randy”) Franklin, addressed Gov. Edwards and his potential role in any cover-up of Ronald Green and other LSP arrests on the show. Let’s take a look at a few highlights:
The show’s host starts things out by showing a brief clip of Greene’s 5/10/19 arrest, followed by discussions of the political nature of the Louisiana State Police Commission (LSPC) and a lack of accountability to the people of Louisiana thereof.
A further overview of Greene’s death and the lack of availability of the video of that death is next discussed.
Activist Gary Chambers laments black politicians in Baton Rouge prioritizing “photo ops” with Gov. Edwards over representing their constituents regarding safeguards against police brutality. Afterward, Belinda Parker-Brown openly appeals to viewers to attend the upcoming LSPC meeting of 6/10/21. Less than 24 hours after Parker-Brown made the above appeal, the meeting was abruptly canceled. Infuriated by the cancellation, Parker-Brown aired her frustration with the LSPC two days later on a New Orleans TV station. Also, late Friday, June 11, 2021, Brown filed this complaint with Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry’s office over the meeting cancellation.
The panel next discusses the extent to which Edwards has avoided addressing the Greene cover-up scandal as well as other problematic LSP arrests, particularly the way Edwards avoided addressing trouble on the home front in a meeting with the Louisiana NAACP on April 19, 2021 (Edwards’ only commentary on the matter is merged into the above video).
Belinda Parker-Brown seeks for Sound Off Louisiana founder Robert Burns to reinforce Gov. Edwards’ family’s strong law enforcement background, after which a discussion transpires about the outsized role law enforcement agencies (particularly the Louisiana Sheriff’s Association in Louisiana) play in Louisiana elections.
[Note: For some reason, the audio on the inserted clip above of Gov. Edwards’ touting his family’s law enforcement background did not work. CLICK HERE to watch (AND hear) that 10-second video clip, and we apologize for the technical difficulties.]
The panel discusses Louisiana’s Qualified Immunity for law-enforcement officers, including the fate of HB-609 of the 2021 Louisiana Legislative Session, which was an effort to dial back the immunity protection.
Gov. Jindal went from massive popularity early in his tenure as Governor to literally being despised as he exited office after focusing almost exclusively in his second term in office on an ill-advised and utterly laughable 2016 bid for President of the United States. Edwards, who has remained heavily supported by black Louisiana citizens, is now under a microscope among those black citizens regarding his handling of Ronald Greene’s arrest and similar cases of LSP brutality in Louisiana, particularly Troop F based in Monroe. That handling by Edwards may very well relegate him to the same irrelevancy that Jindal found himself relegated to once he departed from the Governor’s Mansion.
Shortly after President Biden was elected President of the United States, we at Sound Off Louisiana kept hearing recurring statements that Biden would tap Edwards to be Ambassador to the Catholic Church. While some knowledgeable folk indicated to us that those assertions were nothing more than propaganda being disseminated by staffers in the office of Lt. Gov. Billy Nunguesser, at least one major figure allegedly quietly indicated Edwards was likely to be appointed to the post. Nevertheless, judging by this recent feature touting the eight (8) contenders Biden is purportedly considering for the position, and the fact that Edwards’ name is nowhere to be found on the list, perhaps Edwards’ name has already become far too toxic for such a prestigious appointment by President Biden.
CLICK HERE for the Hard Talk With Jakim broadcast of Monday, June 7, 2021 in its entirety (Note: during the early part of the video, Burns had technical difficulties, resulting in an approximate 90-second white screen while those difficulties were addressed).
If you would like to be added to our Sound Off Louisiana email list to be notified of future posts, simply go to our home page and scroll to the bottom (mobile devices) or to the top of the right-hand column (desktops). Supply your email address within the subscribe box. You’ll then receive an automated email from Word Press, and all you have to do is click on the blue “confirm follow” bar contained within that email, and you’ll begin receiving great posts such as the preceding one above.