NEW ORLEANS, April 4, 2017 – Jones Walker's pro bono legal team of Mark A. Cunningham, P.J. Kee, and Jason Culotta secured an important victory for the Chief Public Defender for St. John the Baptist Parish Richard Stricks against a lawsuit filed by the Sheriff of St. John the Baptist Parish.  In the suit, Sheriff Mike Tregre sought a TRO and preliminary injunction to prohibit the District Defender from seeking court orders to transport indigent defendants from the parish jailhouse to the courthouse for their arraignments and other important appearances. The suit threatened to intrude on attorney-client communications and impair the ability of public defenders to provide meaningful assistance to their clients. After hearing argument from counsel, the district court dismissed the suit with prejudice holding that the Sheriff lacked standing to pursue his claims and that he had failed to allege a viable cause of action. 

"We are pleased with the outcome and proud to be part of our firm's pro bono efforts to protect the due process rights of the poor and challenge the structural barriers to indigent criminal defense in Louisiana," said Mr. Cunningham, Immediate Past President of the Louisiana State Bar Association and Corporate Compliance and White Collar Defense partner with Jones Walker.

Jones Walker attorneys are routinely called upon to provide pro bono representation to nonprofit organizations, international NGOs, and individuals in lawsuits raising novel legal issues and fundamental constitutional rights.  The law firm is particularly focused on cases involving the administration of justice and indigent criminal defense.

About Jones Walker
Jones Walker LLP (www.joneswalker.com) is among the 120 largest law firms in the United States serving local, regional, national, and international business interests with offices in Alabama, Arizona, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, Ohio, and Texas. The firm is committed to providing a comprehensive range of legal services to major multinational, public and private corporations, Fortune® 500 companies, money center banks, worldwide insurers, and emerging companies doing business in the United States and abroad.