Baton Rouge v. DEPART. OF SOCIAL SERVICES

970 So. 2d 985, 2007 WL 2683727
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 14, 2007
Docket2007 CA 0005
StatusPublished
Cited by9 cases

This text of 970 So. 2d 985 (Baton Rouge v. DEPART. OF SOCIAL SERVICES) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Baton Rouge v. DEPART. OF SOCIAL SERVICES, 970 So. 2d 985, 2007 WL 2683727 (La. Ct. App. 2007).

Opinion

970 So.2d 985 (2007)

CITY OF BATON ROUGE Parish of East Baton Rouge
v.
STATE of Louisiana, Through the Louisiana DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES, and the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.

No. 2007 CA 0005.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, First Circuit.

September 14, 2007.

*987 E. Wade Shows, Gwendolyn K. Brown, Ashley W. Beck, Baton Rouge, Counsel for Plaintiff/Appellant, City of Baton Rouge/Parish of East Baton Rouge.

Charles C. Foti, Jr., Attorney General, Uma M. Subramanian, Cherie Lato, Myers O. Namie, Assistant Attorney Generals, Baton Rouge, Counsel for Defendants/Appellees, State of Louisiana through the Department of Social Services and the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.

Before: CARTER, C.J., PETTIGREW and WELCH, JJ.

CARTER, C.J.

The City of Baton Rouge/Parish of East Baton Rouge ("City/Parish") appeals a trial court judgment dismissing its petition for declaratory judgment and injunctive relief. The City/Parish sought to enjoin the State of Louisiana ("State") from proceeding with its plan to house registered sexual offenders at the Joint Emergency Services Training Center (JESTC) in East Baton Rouge Parish in the event of a declared state of emergency. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment in part, vacate in part, and remand the matter for further proceedings.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

Act 285 of the 2006 regular legislative session went into effect on August 15, 2006. The Act was the legislature's effort to address problems relative to the housing of registered sexual offenders in the event of a declared state of emergency, such as those following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The stated purpose of the Act was to "amend and reenact R.S. 15:545(A) and to enact 29:726(E)(14)(c), (d), (e), and (f) . . . to prohibit registered sexual offenders from being housed with other evacuees during a declared state of emergency or after a declared state of emergency." More particularly, LSA-R.S. 29:726 now provides that a "registered sexual offender shall not knowingly be housed or sheltered in the same area with other evacuees" and that the "offender, if possible, shall be provided shelter or housing in an alternative shelter separate and apart from the general population of evacuees." LSA-R.S. 29:726 E(14)(c).

Following passage of the Act, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness ("Governor's office") together with the Department of Social Services concluded that the JESTC site, located on state-owned land in East Baton Rouge Parish, would be the designated shelter site for registered sexual offenders in the event of a declared state of emergency. The JESTC site encompasses a sizable amount of property *988 in Zachary, Louisiana, and is under the operation and control of the Louisiana State Police. In the event the JESTC site is utilized as a shelter for registered sexual offenders, it would potentially house approximately 238 individuals.

Dissatisfied with the State's designation of the JESTC site as the location for the proposed shelter, the Metropolitan Council of East Baton Rouge Parish passed a resolution in October 2006 amending the Code of Ordinances of the City of Baton Rouge and the Parish of East Baton Rouge to add Ordinance 15:8. Ordinance 15:8 prohibits any person from locating or operating "an emergency facility dedicated exclusively for the housing or sheltering of registered sexual offenders during a declaration of emergency in East Baton Rouge Parish."

Following the passage of Ordinance 15:8, officials from the Governor's office met with Mayor-President Melvin L. "Kip" Holden, Metropolitan Councilman Wayne Carter, and other City/Parish officials. According to the City/Parish, "the Governor's office agreed to gather more information and report back regarding how the State [had] selected the JESTC site as the designated shelter for registered sex offenders." Several days later, the Governor's office informed the City/Parish that it was standing by its decision to use the JESTC site as a shelter for registered sexual offenders in the event of a declared state of emergency.

In response, the City/Parish filed a "Petition for Declaratory Judgment and for Injunctive Relief" against the State, through the Governor's Office and through the Department of Social Services. Therein, it sought: (1) a declaratory judgment stating that the JESTC site is in the same "area" as the other housing for evacuees, and thus, its designation as a shelter for registered sexual offenders constituted a violation of Act 285; (2) a declaratory judgment stating that the State's designation of the JESTC site for registered sexual offenders further constitutes a violation of Ordinance 15:8; and (3) the issuance of a preliminary and permanent injunction to enjoin the State from housing registered sexual offenders at the JESTC site or "from taking steps in furtherance of that end."

Attached to the petition was an order requesting that defendants show cause why the plaintiff's request for a preliminary injunction should not be granted. On October 24, 2006, the trial court signed the order setting the matter for hearing on November 8, 2006, presumably to comport with the temporal requirements set forth in LSA-C.C.P. art. 3602.[1]

The record reflects that upon the commencement of the November 8 hearing, the following exchange took place between the parties and the court:

City/Parish Attorney: We have agreed to a stipulation as to the authenticity and admissibility of certain maps . . . to assist the Court in the presentation of the case. Likewise, we have — and just so we can get the record straight, I had appreciated that the matter before the Court today was a hearing on the entire matter, the declaratory judgment, permanent injunction, and that was my understanding. Since that time, I understand that the State is not willing to move forward in that regard, but merely wants to have this in terms of a hearing on a preliminary injunction.
*989 State's Attorney: That's correct, Your Honor. The plaintiffs [sic] in their [sic] petition request a 3602 hearing, a preliminary injunction hearing. It was our understanding to set this as soon as possible to have that summary proceeding.
The Court: Well, gentlemen, let me state for the record, also, my position is that I believe in the earlier discussions, we indicated that this matter would all be heard at the same time. I had a telephone conversation with the lawyers a couple of days ago, and at that time I started to say we agreed, but I agreed and decided that we were just going to have a preliminary injunction today. And I indicated that to the attorneys during that telephone conversation. I also suggested to the attorneys that they pare down their witness list that had been furnished to the Court. And it is my understanding that that has been done. . . .

Thus, the scope of the hearing was limited to the City/Parish's request for a preliminary injunction.

At the conclusion of the hearing, the trial court indicated that it would take the matter under advisement. After issuing written reasons[2], the trial court signed a judgment on November 30, 2006, that provided, in pertinent part, as follows:

This matter came on pursuant to regular assignment on the 8th day of November, [sic] 2006 on a hearing for Preliminary Injunction filed by the City of Baton Rouge, Parish of East Baton Rouge.
* * *

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
970 So. 2d 985, 2007 WL 2683727, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/baton-rouge-v-depart-of-social-services-lactapp-2007.