Orleans Parish Sheriff Indicted On 30 Counts Of Misconduct

On May 16, 2025, 10 incarcerated people escaped from a city jail in New Orleans, resulting in a multistate manhunt that didn’t end until October, when the last escapee was re-apprehended. On Wednesday, the sheriff and the chief financial officer overseeing the jail were indicted on crimes related to the escape, and they’re facing 30 and 20 criminal counts of misconduct in office, respectively.

According to Fox 8 New Orleans, Sheriff Susan Hutson of Orleans Parish was indicted on 14 counts of malfeasance in office, four counts of conspiracy to commit malfeasance in office, three counts of filing or maintaining false public records, three counts of conspiracy to commit filing or maintaining false public records, three counts of obstruction of justice, and three counts of conspiracy to commit obstruction of justice.

Hutson’s term as sheriff was set to expire in the coming days. She reportedly received only 17% of the vote during her bid for reelection last October, losing out on what would have been her second term. In a farewell address to staff on Tuesday, Hutson declared that the notorious jail escape was “not going to define me.” She said the escape had “completely overshadowed the hard work” her office had done, including the provision of quality medical care and nutrition.

“Folks don’t get their medication on the street. They don’t eat on the street,” Hutson said. “We get people in here, and we give that care that you need to help people break the cycle of crime. And so I couldn’t get that out there because of that, but it’s not going to define me.”

Still, according to the New York Times, Attorney General Liz Murrill said in a statement that, “While Sheriff Hutson did not personally open the doors of the jail for the escapees, her refusal to comply with basic legal requirements and to take even minimal precautions in the discharge of her duties directly contributed to and enabled the escape.” 

From the Times:

The escape and its aftermath prompted a debate in New Orleans, including among officials overseeing the jail, about the facility, with accounts of faulty locks, a camera system plagued by problems and insufficient staffing. A jail maintenance worker was accused of turning off the water supply to the toilet so that inmates could pull it from the wall.

“We are operating with outdated surveillance, aging infrastructure, blind spots in supervision and critical staffing shortages,” Sheriff Hutson said at a City Council hearing not long after the escape. “These vulnerabilities have been raised repeatedly in our funding requests, and now, the consequences are undeniable.”

Bianka Brown, the jail’s chief financial officer, was also indicted on 20 counts related to criminal misconduct. Her bond was set at $200,000, while Hutson’s was set at $300,000. Both women were required to surrender their passports and are prohibited from leaving the state.

Meanwhile, Former interim New Orleans police Supt. Michelle Woodfork, who was elected to serve as the new sheriff with 53% of the vote, is set to be sworn in on Monday.

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