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A Tullos resident and long-time prison official found himself on the other side of the bars last week when he was arrested for malfeasance in office.
Leroy Holliday, Sr., 55, and a regional warden for the LaSalle Management Corporation, was arrested by LaSalle Parish Sheriff’s investigators Friday, November 7, and booked into the parish jail.
According to Sheriff Scott Franklin, the investigation into Holliday’s illegal conduct has just begun.
“He was booked on one charge of malfeasance in office, but with all of the evidence we’ve been collecting it wouldn’t surprise me to see over 100 counts of malfeasance in office when this is over,” Franklin said.
Holliday, who works for the LaSalle Management Corporation, oversees prison operations for the LaSalle Correctional Center (LCC) in Urania, and three other minimum security prisons in Catahoula, Concordia, and Ouachita parishes.
He, along with all prison guards at LCC, is commissioned through the LaSalle Sheriff’s Department.
“This investigation began when our office received complaints from other employees at LCC about illegal conduct on the part of the regional warden,” Franklin said. “Currently, we are interviewing employees, past and present, regarding those allegations. We are also interviewing inmates at the facility as well.”
Although Franklin would not go into specifics about the case against Holliday, he did say all of the suspected illegal actions dealt with the use of inmates and prison employees for personal reasons.
“There is evidence to support the fact that he was using inmates for work and other functions that was illegal and he had directly influenced or facilitated the actions of various LCC employees for the same thing,” the sheriff said. “All evidence collected so far indicates that everything was done under his direction.”
As regional warden, Franklin explained that Holliday had access and control over all aspects of the prisons under his authority, including inmates and employees.
“What he had going here was a throwback from a by-gone era in Louisiana politics, involving political corruption from officials in places of authority,” Franklin said. “Basically, whatever he wanted done everyone did because they knew there would be consequences.”
Although LaSalle Management Corporation owns LCC, the LaSalle Sheriff’s Department is partnered with the company in the operation of LCC.
The sheriff, through the original contract for the facility, has the power to hire and fire employees at LCC. Holliday, however, is employed by the LaSalle Management Corporation.
“He was de-commissioned by me Friday upon his arrest,” Franklin said. “As far as his position with the LaSalle Management Corporation, you will have to talk with them concerning what their intentions are. All I know is he is not allowed back on the property of LCC, period.”
On Friday, Franklin and a team of investigators and deputies were at LCC all day performing the initial stages of their investigative work.
“This is a massive case that will require hundreds of hours of investigation,” the sheriff said. “It could be several weeks or even several months before this investigation is over.”
Holliday came to work for the LaSalle Management Corporation after many years of service with the Louisiana State Penitentiary of Angola. He’d also served a term as an alderman for the Town of Tullos where he resides.
“We went ahead and arrested him on the one count of malfeasance in office so that he would be under the bond obligation,” Franklin said. “He did bond out the same day he was arrested under a $5,000 bond.”
The sheriff said because the case involves someone that was commissioned through his office, other agencies will be involved in the investigation.
“We are working with other agencies and will probably turn this over to the Louisiana State Police in the coming days,” he said.
Franklin said all of the initial investigative work concludes that Holliday is the only person that will be facing charges in the elaborate corruption scheme.
“Nothing, and let me repeat this, nothing, has been produced to even suggest that other employees at LCC are involved,” the sheriff said. “Evidence shows that Warden Jeff Windham and other officials and employees at the facility are not involved in the illegal operation.”
The sheriff said he is very confident in Windham’s ability to manage the facility, along with other officials at the prison.
“Our investigation has revealed that they are very capable of running a very honest and fair prison at LCC,” he said. “This is the action of one rogue official who finally got caught.”
The sheriff said he personally met with all employees of LCC and encouraged them to come forward with any information they had concerning the illegal actions of Holliday.
“And they have and continue to do so,” he said. “We are also asking that anyone that has worked there in the past that has information regarding illegal conduct by Mr. Holliday to also come forward.”
Those with information are asked to call the sheriff’s office at 992-2151 and speak with Chief Deputy Jimmy Arbogast.
“I also want all of the employees at the facility and with the sheriff’s department to know that this type of illegal conduct will not be tolerated,” the sheriff said. “It doesn’t matter who you are, if you choose to participate in criminal activity of any kind, we will arrest you. As long as I’m sheriff, all of the employees at LCC will not operate under that kind of system again.”
One count of malfeasance in office carries a maximum sentence of five years with or without hard labor and a maximum fine of $5,000, or both. It is considered a felony under Louisiana law.
Franklin said right now, his office has secured evidence to support 40 charges of malfeasance in office against Holliday, but that number continues to grow.
“As I said before, it wouldn’t surprise me at all to have over 100 counts when we’re done,” he said.
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