NEW ORLEANS — The so-called Houdini of juvenile inmates because of his repeated escapes was acquitted of armed robbery last week in a case that had been transferred from juvenile court to adult court.
But Curtis Tassin, now 18, won't be leaving jail anytime soon.
WWL Louisiana has confirmed that Tassin could face a new charge of aggravated burglary, an offense that occurred while Tassin was still a juvenile.
Tassin was on the docket at Juvenile Court on Tuesday for an appearance in that new case, but he was not transported due to security issues, officials said. Instead, he remained in the juvenile wing of the adult jail, the Orleans Justice Center.
Tassin is well known to criminal justice officials in both juvenile and adult courts.
As a juvenile, Tassin was in and out of lockups since he was about 11 years old. After three escapes from those lockups, he earned the nickname “Houdini,” not just because of his ability to escape, but also because of how he was able to evade authorities when he was on the lam.
When Tassin and four other juveniles escaped from Bridge City Center for Youth in 2022, Tassin remained at large for months long after the other teens were captured.
In another bold escape in May 2023, Tassin was being dropped off at the New Orleans Juvenile Justice Intervention Center when he bolted after two state guards with the Office of Juvenile Justice opened the door to their transport vehicle. Security camera video of the escape was shown exclusively by WWL Louisiana.
Delays by officials in notifying the public about Tassin’s escape helped lead to a new state law requiring instant notification of juvenile escapes.
After Tassin was caught several days after he ran away from the JJIC parking lot, his mother, Keonine Rogers, was booked with being an accessory to the escape. She later was convicted and remains on probation, court records show.
The Orleans District Attorney's office attempted to get a longer and more secure prison stay for Tassin when it put him on trial as an adult last week for armed robbery in a carjacking case.
But Tassin was acquitted by a jury, leaving question marks about what will happen to him next. Those questions remain open as details about the potential new aggravated burglary charge were not made available because of the confidentiality of juvenile records.
