NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The city of Baton Rouge has been released from a 1980 federal court-backed agreement aimed at increasing the number of African Americans and women at Louisiana fire and police departments.
U.S. District Judge Lance Africk’s order is dated Monday. It notes that the original lawsuit was filed by the federal government against 33 Louisiana cities. Most were dismissed over the years. Baton Rouge’s dismissal leaves only Alexandria.
In documents filed in federal court in New Orleans, attorneys for the U.S. Justice Department and the city agree that the representation of African Americans and women among Baton Rouge police officers and firefighters “has improved significantly.”
Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome said in a news release Tuesday that the dismissal was welcome news.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.