The Times-Picayune editorial board makes the following recommendations for the Tuesday (Nov. 6) ballot.
CONGRESS
1st DISTRICT
Steve Scalise
2nd DISTRICT
Cedric Richmond
6th DISTRICT
Garret Graves
STATEWIDE
SECRETARY OF STATE
Julie Stokes
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DISTRICT 90
Brian Glorioso
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
AMENDMENT 1
Would prohibit people convicted of a felony from running for elective office or be appointed to certain offices for five years after completing their sentence
Yes
The five-year period in this proposal, which could include probation, is reasonable. The restriction would not apply to someone who is pardoned and doesn’t prevent the former inmate from being hired by the government during the waiting period.
AMENDMENT 2
Would require a unanimous jury vote in serious felony cases
Yes
Louisiana is the only state other than Oregon that allows a split jury for a conviction in serious felony cases. In Louisiana, only 10 votes of a 12-member jury are required to convict in cases in which the punishment is imprisonment at hard labor. That has led to wrongful convictions. A jury voted 10-2 to convict Kia Stewart of shooting Bryant “BJ” Craig to death July 31, 2005. The two jurors who doubted his guilt were right. But Stewart, who was 17 when he was charged, spent nearly a decade locked up before the justice system acknowledged he wasn’t the murderer. Criminal District Court Judge Darryl Derbigny threw out his conviction in April 2015 at the request of defense attorneys and Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro’s office.
That kind of injustice has happened to other defendants over the years.
Unanimous juries were initially required in Louisiana’s Constitution. But that changed in 1898 with the post-Reconstruction Constitution, which was written specifically to take rights away from black Louisiana residents. That is a shameful legacy.
The Constitutional Accountability Center says, “Evidence has shown that when unanimity is required, jurors evaluate evidence more thoroughly, spend more time deliberating, and are more likely to consider all viewpoints.” Louisiana should require juries to do that.
AMENDMENT 3
Would allow certain government entities to loan each other the use of equipment or personnel
Yes
The Constitution currently forbids state or local governments to loan or donate anything of value to another entity without getting payment or something of equivalent value. This change would allow local governments to loan each other equipment or personnel with a written agreement. This is a sensible change.
AMENDMENT 4
Would prohibit the State Police from receiving revenues from gasoline or other fuel taxes in the Transportation Trust Fund for traffic control
Yes
The Legislature had gotten into the habit of using the trust fund to make up for a gap in State Police budget when general fund revenues are tight. That hasn’t happened in the past few years, but there is no prohibition against it. This would end that possibility and ensure gasoline taxes are used on infrastructure needs, as they need to be.
AMENDMENT 5
Would extend eligibility for certain property tax exemptions for senior citizens, disabled residents and military members who died in action and their spouses to property held in trust
No recommendation
AMENDMENT 6
Would require a four-year phase-in on property taxes for a home when a reappraisal increases assessments by more than 50 percent
Yes
This is a sensible protection to shield homeowners from having a large spike in their property tax bill. Instead of paying the full amount of the increase in the first year, the tax bill would increase by 25 percent over four years.
FANTASY SPORTS BETTING PROPOSITION
To allow internet and mobile device fantasy sports contests in any parish that votes for it.
No
Despite the vague language on the ballot, this proposition would legalize gambling on fantasy sports. The decision will be made parish by parish — so, Orleans might vote one way and St. Tammany another — but the result would be an expansion of gambling in Louisiana.
Proponents make fantasy sports “contests” sound like a $20 office pool, but they don’t like to talk about the likelihood that many bettors will lose money. This form of betting seems geared toward snagging the next generation of gamblers. Louisiana already has a problem with gambling addiction. A recent analysis by Wallethub said Louisiana is the fifth-most gambling addictive state, the Public Affairs Research Council said in its analysis of the proposition. This change in law is a bad idea.
