New lawsuit at O.P.P. . It involves a broomstick and dog collar

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[embed]Orleans Parish Sheriff Michelle Woodfork is reopening an investigation into an alleged assault and rape that took place at the New Orleans jail under her predecessor, after a lawsuit filed this month described it in disturbing detail. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in New Orleans, alleged that on the night of Dec. 25, 2024, a man being held at the jail was beaten, stabbed and raped by a group of inmates and later placed in a makeshift dog collar and paraded through the unit, resulting in treatment for stab wounds and severe bruising at a local hospital. At no point during the Christmas night attack did Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office staff intervene, the lawsuit alleged.[/embed]

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According to the lawsuit, there was no guard stationed in the unit where the alleged attack happened. The only deputy supervising the unit that night was stationed in a control booth, where her job was to monitor two housing pods at once through surveillance video. The lawsuit alleged that the deputy left the control pod unattended at least twice for around 14 minutes, including during the alleged attack

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OPSO staff didn't re-enter the housing unit until the next morning, the lawsuit said.

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Over the last six years, federal monitors have said that the sheriff's office has backslid in its efforts to reach compliance with that consent decree. In 2024, the sheriff's office reported 735 incidents of inmate-on-inmate assault — the highest since 2018. “For all the progress made since the consent decree started, you still have a very, very violent jail,” said Adcock.

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