The voters of NO decided to replace white district attorney Harry Connick Sr. with black attorney Eddie Jordan in 2003.
Eddie fired pretty much all the experienced white staff in the DA's office and replaced them with his black political hacks.
The DA's office crumbled. Murder suspects were let out of jail after 60 days for failure to prosecute. Lesser suspects not covered by the 60 day "murdermeanor" statute were kept in jail for many months. It didn't bother the black community of NO enough to replace him. So be it.
Then came Katrina. Two years later Eddie Jordan remains as DA. The white attorneys have not been rehired. The courts are still a mess, and Eddie Jordan is turning the vast majority of murder suspects loose after 60 days for failure even to bring charges against them. It doesn't bother the black community of NO enough to replace DA Eddie Jordan or black Police Chief Warren Riley. So be it.
Black folks in NO are terrified of the black murderers among them. It is very difficult to convict anyone of a crime in NO under the best of conditions since most black folk refuse to "snitch" on their men.
Now that most murderers are automatically turned loose 60 days after arrest, however, even the most morally advanced and civic minded black folks are afraid to say anything to the police.
White folks caused the problem by passing the 60 day "murdermeanor" statute, which sets violent criminals free after 60 days if the DA's office cannot get its act together enough to bring charges. It can't. Murderous black criminals are turned loose. So be it.
And now you white folks at Slate want white attorneys to descend on NO like a plague of locusts, use their high-powered white law firm smarts against a pathetic DA's office and get ALL the criminals back on the streets? Turning murderers loose is not enough?
There is little we can do to convince black folks in NO to vote for competent whites instead of the incompetent blacks they prefer. So be it. We have a diverse nation with diverse cultures and diverse views of justice and morality.
On the other hand, we certainly don't have to trigger the absolute destruction of their city by insuring that all the black criminals are turned loose. Imposing white norms of justice on black communities in this case would be a disaster.
Let the black folks of NO solve their problems as best they see fit. It is their "chocolate city" after all. And right now that solution includes keeping a substantial number of black criminals in jail and off the streets. White folks in Slate-land need to respect black culture and black justice and stop meddling.
