NEW ORLEANS — The Vermilion Parish dog-training company that said it would cover the costs for Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies stay at a French Quarter hotel during Carnival has backed out of the deal, according to our partners at The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate.
New Orleans taxpayers will now have to pay more than $18,000 in charges from the Omni Royal Orleans.
According to internal sheriff’s office emails obtained by WWL-TV, the hotel expenses were questioned from the very beginning by Sheriff Susan Hutson’s chief financial officer, David Trautenberg.
After the expenses became public, Hutson dismissed four top deputies, including Trautenberg. The public money was used to book local hotel rooms for 13 top commanders who helped supervise Carnival parade security.
“I don't see controversy here, no. I see this as being money well spent to make sure that a million dollars was also well spent,” Sheriff Susan Hutson told WWL-TV in an interview in March.
LAK9 offered to pay for the hotel rooms earlier this year, saying they just wanted to help "her (Hutson) out with a little problem.”
Paul LeBlanc of LAK9 told NOLA.com Thursday. “I’m not paying it,” he said. “It was just causing too much trouble – too many people calling saying, ‘Why are you doing this?’” LeBlanc also said that he’s trying to avoid stress while recovering from an operation.
Sheriff Susan Hutson issued a statement Friday: "We have discussed this matter at length and will now continue the important work of the Orleans Parish Sheriff's Office which is to provide community safety and service to the people of Orleans Parish by protecting the rights and humanity of people in custody, supporting the wellness of our staff and facilitating connections to community in order to restore public trust and maintain a healthy community."
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