Brandon Winstead v. St. Bernard Parish Council, Guy McInnis, and David Peralta, in the Official Capacity as Administrative Adjudication for the Board of St. Bernard Parish of the State of Louisiana

• Court: Louisiana Court of Appeal
• Decided: November 10, 2021
• Docket: 2021-CA-0426
• Status: Published

Opinion

BRANDON WINSTEAD * NO. 2021-CA-0426

VERSUS * COURT OF APPEAL ST. BERNARD PARISH * COUNCIL, GUY MCINNIS, FOURTH CIRCUIT AND DAVID PERALTA, IN * THE OFFICIAL CAPACITY AS STATE OF LOUISIANA ADMINISTRATIVE ******* ADJUDICATION FOR THE BOARD OF ST. BERNARD PARISH OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA

APPEAL FROM ST. BERNARD 34TH JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT NO. 17-1512, DIVISION “C” Honorable Kim C. Jones, Judge Presiding ****** Judge Roland L. Belsome ****** (Court composed of Judge Edwin A. Lombard, Judge Roland L. Belsome, Judge Paula A. Brown )

Brandon Winstead P.O. BOX 565 Chalmette, LA 70044

PRO SE PLAINTIFF/APPELLANT

Ashton Licciardi Assistant District Attorney St. Bernard District Attorney's Office 1101 W. St. Bernard Hwy Chalmette, LA 70043

COUNSEL FOR DEFENDANT/APPELLEE

AFFIRMED

November 10, 2021 RLB This appeal is taken from the district court’s affirmation of an order rendered

EAL by the Board of Administrative Adjudication (BAA). For the reasons that follow,

PAB the district court’s decision is affirmed.

Brandon Winstead owns immovable property located at 320 East St. Jean

the Baptiste in St. Bernard Parish (“the Property”). On March 21, 2018, the BAA

held a hearing regarding several violations that were issued by St. Bernard Parish

(“the Parish”) due to the deteriorated condition of the property.1 At the hearing,

Mr. Winstead appeared and was represented by an attorney. The Parish called two

witnesses to testify about the Property.

First, Chad Coulon, a neighbor directly adjacent to the Property, was called

to testify. Mr. Coulon is a licensed master plumber that owns and operates a

plumbing business. He testified that approximately six to eight months prior to the

BAA hearing Mr. Winstead requested that Mr. Coulon provide him with an

1 Minimum Housing Standards; Dangerous Structure or Premises; Motor Vehicles (2 Count(s)); Sanitation; Vacant Structures or land; and Use of Land or Building (2 counts)

1 estimate to do plumbing work in the dwelling located on the Property. Mr. Coulon

stated that when he entered the dwelling he observed that there were no water lines

only a garden hose attached to a spigot on the outside of the dwelling running

under the front door. Thus, there were no functioning toilets, bathtubs, or showers.

Further, he stated that the walls were open exposing an active termite infestation

and the floors were unsecure. Even though the dwelling appeared to be without

basic necessities, Mr. Coulon claimed that Mr. Winstead stayed there regularly.

He further detailed that the Property was overgrown and there were some vehicles

that appeared inoperable. Mr. Coulon also stated that Mr. Winstead did not have a

garbage can and he had a large dumpster full of household garbage.

The next witness was Cynthia Varnado. Ms. Varnado is a neighbor that

lives across the street from the Property. She also testified to the condition of the

Property and that Mr. Winstead regularly inhabited the dwelling on the Property.

After presenting the witnesses, the Parish introduced several demonstrative

exhibits illustrating the condition of the Property. The exhibits also evidenced the

presence of two pick-up trucks and a cargo trailer on the Property. Both trucks and

the trailer were marked with the name of Mr. Winstead’s business Architectural

Roofing and Renovations, LLC. Additional exhibits showed that one truck had no

safety sticker and a license plate that had been expired for several years. The other

truck had a flat tire and an expired safety sticker. This evidence was illustrated

through pictures taken in November of 2017 and March of 2018 to indicate that the

2 condition and positions of the trucks and trailer had not changed in that time

period.

Mr. Winstead did not present any witnesses or exhibits. After the hearing,

the BAA, acknowledging that Mr. Winstead had applied for and obtained a permit

for improvements, ordered deadlines for certain improvements to be made to the

Property and imposed fines and fees in the amount of $650.00.

Mr. Winstead appealed the BAA’s order to the district court. He also filed a

motion to strike the word “demolition” from the order and any filed pleading. The

district court conducted a hearing on the matter. Mr. Winstead was represented by

counsel at the hearing. The district court rendered judgment on April 30, 2021.

The judgment affirmed the BAA’s order with the word “demolition” being struck

from the order and any pleadings filed by the Parish.

On appeal to this Court Mr. Winstead challenges the district court’s

affirmation of the BAA’s March 21, 2018 order. His primary argument is that the

Parish’s actions are unconstitutional in that it exceeded its statutory authority.

Section H of La. R.S. 13:2575 provides that “[a]ny property owner or

mortgagee of record of property determined to be blighted or abandoned property,

or any person determined by the hearing officer to be in violation of a public

health, housing, fire code, environmental, or historic district ordinance may appeal

this determination to the appropriate district court.” The district court acts in the

capacity of an intermediate appellate court. La. R.S. 49:964. The district court's

decision can be challenged in the appropriate appellate court as in other civil cases.

3 La. R.S. 49:965. An appellate court reviews an administrative agency’s findings

and decision and not the decision of the district court. Bourgeois v. Louisiana

State Racing Comm'n, 2010-0573, p. 7 (La. App. 4 Cir. 11/12/10), 51 So.3d 851,

856. Parishes and municipalities are authorized to enact ordinances relative to

public health, housing, and environmental violations pursuant to La. R.S. 13:2575.

Here, the St. Bernard Code of Ordinances grants the BAA hearing officer the

power to order that code violations be remedied within a stipulated time period.

St. Bernard Code of Ordinances, Sec. 2.5-7(I). The hearing officer is also

authorized to levy fines and hearing costs, among other things. Id. The language in

the St. Bernard Code of Ordinances mirrors the language of La. R.S. 13:2575.

On the record before this Court, the Parish proved the alleged code

violations without contradiction. The order from the BAA, that is being

challenged, conforms with the authority granted the hearing officer. For these

reasons, the district court’s judgment affirming the BAA’s order is affirmed.