Disclaimer: The comments and opinions expressed in Letter to the Editor submittals are solely those of the writer and should not be considered as the opinions or beliefs of this newspaper.

Subject: District Attorney Failure

In just a few days, it will be one year since the Louisiana Legislative Auditor released the findings of his Village of Eros audit. That day, June 22, 2022, Eros citizens were shocked to learn of the corruption of our public servants. It would be another five months, before any action was taken against the mayor and maintenance man, but finally, November 16, 2022 they were arrested and charged with 2 counts of felony theft each, and the mayor with one count of malfeasance in office.

Since then Eros residents have made several inquiries to the District Attorney’s office requesting information about the disposition of the charges, but as yet, no concrete information has been given, that I know of. In four days it will be seven months since the day they were arrested and charged. Seven months that the village of Eros has been unable to begin rebuilding after the criminal acts of the corrupt mayor and maintenance man.

I can come to no other conclusion then the District Attorney has an unknown agenda. By not scheduling the mayor and maintenance man for trial yet, he has undermined the ability of our community to elect new leaders and begin the function of handling our local affairs again. His flagrant narcissistic attitude, has made it clear to concerned Eros residents, that his message is, “I’m in charge”, and our situation could not concern him less.

His failure to prosecute the mayor and maintenance man, leads me to believe there may be information we are unaware of, motivating his actions. Considering the short duration of time needed to try this case, what possible logical or ethical reason remains for his dismal performance in closing out this paramount issue. He knows that Eros has no choice but to remain in limbo until after the outcome of this trial. Anyone that took time to reflect on the proceedings thus far would arrive at the same conclusion I have, that there are unknown private factors in play.

Whatever the reason, it is not his struggle to see justice done for the municipality of Eros! That would narrow down the possible recipient list to either himself, Kelly Gryder, or both! After assimilating the facts, what other logical conjecture is there? This same thought process leads me to surmise that he plans on dismissing the charges all together or dropping them to misdemeanor level, or whatever you want to call it for throwing the case.

Whatever his reason, it is not concern for Eros. As someone with limited knowledge of the involved parties, or whether or not they have family ties or a social relationship, I have come to the only conclusion I can. What could be the reason for Danny Newell’s dismal performance? What is the reason for his moral failure and dereliction of duty? He has provided no coherent reasoning to not seek convictions for the atrocities performed by the Mayor and maintenance man against the State of Louisiana and the Municipality of Eros. The appearance of protection for these corrupt “public servants” leads one to wonder, why?

The process of selecting new aldermen, electing a new mayor, and moving forward after enduring the local corruption cannot take place because the District Attorney is depriving our community of the right to conduct day to day municipal operations. In nine days, it will be one year since the results of the audit brought to light the illegal criminal activities in the municipality. Yet here we are, one year later, waiting for an elected official to step up and do the job he was hired to do. It’s pretty obvious that is not his focus. There is no reason our citizens have not been able to reclaim possession of our village offices, our only public setting to communicate with each other and new management.

The District Attorney’s flagrant lack of concern for justice should speak very loud come election time. In Eros, we are American citizens, proud of our Constitution, cherish our inalienable rights, and still believe in right and wrong, which is where our District Attorney abandons ship. He has proven one thing to me, he’s a dismal failure and needs to be kicked to the curb. Remember to get out and vote. Thanks for nothing.

Shannon G. Morris