Category: What’s New

Jarrell Jones guilty of brutally stabbing grandfather, friend to death in Marrero home

A Jefferson Parish jury on Thursday evening (May 6) found Jarrell Jones guilty of fatally stabbing his grandfather and another man in their Marrero home before setting the residence on fire. 

Jones, 37, is guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of his grandfather Larry Brown, 70, and Shelton Martin, 60, who lived in Brown’s residence in the 2000 block of Gladstone Drive. 

Between them, Brown and Martin suffered 68 stab wounds, many of which were defensive in nature. Brown, who just hours before he died called 911 to report that his grandson stole cash from him, suffered 47 of those wounds, including a fatal puncture to his heart. 

“The evidence in this case shows that he brutally and mercilessly attacked two old men in their home because he was mad that he was caught taking money,” Assistant District Attorney Zach Grate told jurors in closing argument Thursday. “That’s what their lives meant to him.” 

“This killing was personally motivated,” Assistant District Attorney Brendan Bowen told jurors Thursday. “That’s how you wind up with 68 stab wounds, because it was domestic.” 

Jones additionally was convicted of simple arson, obstruction of justice and theft of a motor vehicle. 

Jones murdered Brown and Martin and set the fires at some point between the night of June 6, 2020 and the early morning hours of June 7, 2020. Brown’s Chevrolet Trailblazer was missing, the detectives learned. 

The last time anyone had contact with the victims was at about 10 p.m., on June 6, 2020. On the morning of June 7, 2020, a family member of Brown’s contacted the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office and asked it to conduct a wellness check at the home. 

Deputies discovered the unlocked front door and evidence of a fire inside. They had to push the front door open because the bodies were on the foyer floor behind it. There was no sign of forced entry. 

Jones set fires at several locations in the house. None spread and were extinguished on their own. Blood was smeared on walls. Jones placed a pocket knife in the hand of a victim, with the blade against the palm, in an apparent attempt to stage the scene. 

Jones stayed at Brown’s residence, and the men often had a contentious relationship. Just hours before the murders, Brown accused Jones of stealing cash and contacted the Sheriff’s Office. Deputies escorted Jones from the residence but did not arrest him.  

When they learned of the murders, family members immediately suspected that Jones was responsible. Detectives watched security video footage from a nearby residence showing Brown’s Trailblazer being driven away. 

The autopsies showed that Brown and Martin had no smoke soot in their lungs, indicating they were dead when Jones set the fires. 

A U.S. Marshal Service fugitive task force arrested Jones on June 10, 2020, having tracked him as a passenger on a New Orleans-based Regional Transit Authority bus in Kenner. 

Jones had lacerations on his hands. These “slippage wounds” are commonly found on assailants’ hands, caused when blood-covered knives slip during the stabbings and cut their fingers or palms. 

Jones was linked to the crimes in part by cell phone geo-location technology, which helped detectives pinpoint his whereabouts. He was in the vicinity of the murders during the time they occurred, the evidence shows. He also was in the vicinity of the cell phone tower in Marrero near where the stolen Trailblazer was recorded by the license plate recognition system shortly after he stole it from Brown’s home. 

And, following the murders, Jones was in the vicinity of the 2900 block of Music Street in New Orleans, near a home owned by an individual with links to Jones and where the Trailblazer was later found. 

Investigators also found evidence of blood being cleaned from the inside of Brown’s Trailblazer. The blood was Brown’s, according to Sheriff’s Office DNA analysts. 

Jones denied killing the men. Concocting an alibi, he told a detective that he was with a woman when the murders occurred. Yet he had no other information to offer, such as her full name or where they met that night. During the trial, he admitted that he drove the Trailblazer away from his grandfather’s home and that he ditched it on Music Street. His attorney argued that the evidence was circumstantial and inadequate to prove he committed the murders. 

Jurors, who heard testimony from 21 state witnesses and from the defendant, deliberated about 1 ½ hours before returning with their unanimous verdict just before 6 p.m. 

Jones faces a mandatory life sentence in prison without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. Judge June Berry Darensburg of the 24th Judicial District Court set sentencing for June 8. 

Assistant District Attorneys Zach Grate, Brendan Bowen and Alexandra Herman prosecuted the case. 

 

Terrytown pastor Terry Reed guilty of sexually abusing teens

A Jefferson Parish jury deliberated less than an hour on Wednesday (May 6) in finding Terrytown pastor and convicted sex offender Terry Reed guilty of sexually abusing two young teens. 

Reed, 66, is guilty as charged of two counts of third-degree rape and two counts of molestation of a juvenile, jurors decided. 

Reed, who ministered from his North Marlin Court residence in Terrytown, mentored the victims who had troubled home lives. He allowed them to move in with him and used bible verses and scripture to manipulate, normalize and justify his sexual behavior with them.  

“He has preyed on these very, very troubled boys who don’t have a father figure in their lives,” Assistant District Attorney James Wascom told jurors in closing argument Wednesday. 

Reed “held himself out to be a saint” in the eyes of the two victims as well as his congregation, members of which testified on his behalf, Assistant District Attorney Eric Cusimano told jurors in closing argument. “He is the worst kind of predator in this community that we can have.”  

Reed already was a convicted sex offender before his arrest in the crimes for which he was convicted Wednesday. He pleaded guilty to indecent behavior with a juvenile in 1997, and to indecent behavior with a juvenile and molestation of a juvenile in 2017, jurors heard during this week’s trial. In the later crime, he told the juvenile he had to submit to certain acts “to fight off demons.” He received probation in both cases. 

Then, in April or May of 2021 during the Covid 19 pandemic, a 16-year-old who had a troubled relationship with his mother began visiting Reed’s home. Reed sexually abused the victim during those visits, before the victim moved into Reed’s home in August 2021. The abuse continued for about three years. At age 19, that victim disclosed the abuse, leading to Reed’s arrest in 2023. These crimes are the basis of the third-degree rape convictions. 

Upon learning of Reed’s arrest, a 29-year-old man reported that he, too, had been sexually abused by Reed when he moved into the pastor’s home in May of 2011, when he was 16 years old. Reed continued to sexually abuse the victim until the victim was 21 years old. Reed was charged with two counts of molestation of a juvenile for abuse that occurred before this victim was 17 years old. 

The victims deserve justice, Assistant DA Wascom told jurors in urging them to find Reed guilty as charged. But so, too, does Reed. “He deserves to be accountable for what he has been doing for over 30 years,” Wascom said. 

When arrested by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office in 2023, Reed readily admitted to a detective that he is a sex offender. But he asserted that diabetes and prostate cancer left him unable to perform sexually, and that he had not had sex in 10 years. He conversely said that his sexual relations with the teens occurred when they were 17, at the age of consent, meaning they were no longer juveniles and that no crime occurred. His defense attorney asserted the Sheriff’s Office inserted errors into its investigative reports, and the case lacked evidence beyond the statements provided by the victims. 

Judge Ray Steib of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Reed on June 18. 

Assistant District Attorneys James Wascom and Eric Cusimano prosecuted the case. 

Convicted of sexually abusing a child, Holiver Figueroa of Gretna sentenced to life plus 166 years

A Jefferson Parish judge on Friday (May 1) sentenced Holiver Figueroa to life plus 166 years in prison for his conviction of sexually abusing a child during a 6-year period. 

Figueroa, 38, was a Gretna resident when he abused the child, who was about 9 years old when he began grooming the victim with overtures of love.  

“This man was a father figure to that child for many, many years, until he was not,” Assistant District Attorney Joan Benge told jurors in opening statements on April 13. “He is a classic child predator.” 

The victim initially disclosed the abuse at Figueroa’s hands to a classmate but insisted that the classmate keep it a secret. The abuse finally came to light in March 2022. The victim, then aged 15, was visiting family in Hammond and began sleep-talking about being abused. 

Another teen at the sleepover used a mobile device to obtain an audio recording of the chatter, initially thinking it was humorous. Then the gravity of what was being said became apparent. 

Upon hearing it, the victim’s father brought the audio recording to the Gretna Police Department. Fearing other children could be in harm’s way, police immediately went to Figueroa’s home at 1 a.m., on March 22, 2022. Figueroa, who also used the name Oliver Domenguez, was arrested. 

The victim disclosed the abuse that began at age 9 or 10, with the last incident occurring just days before police were notified. Figueroa’s seminal DNA was recovered from the child’s bed sheets. 

Detectives also discovered hidden files in Figueroa’s cell phone, in which he stored as many as 1,500 nude images many involving the victim and a video of the defendant sexually abusing the child.   

In testimony at his trial, Figueroa accused the victim of lying and fabricating the rape assertions. 

On April 16, after hearing three days of testimony, jurors found Figueroa guilty as charged of first-degree rape, third-degree rape, sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13, indecent behavior with a juvenile under age 13, sexual battery and indecent behavior with a juvenile. 

During Friday’s sentencing hearing, 24th Judicial District Court Judge Donald “Chick” Foret denied a defense motion for a new trial and said he found the state’s witnesses to be “very credible.” Of Figueroa, Judge Foret said, “He had no tears for anybody until he got convicted.” 

Life in prison without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence is the mandatory punishment for first-degree rape under Louisiana law. Judge Foret also sentenced Figueroa to the maximum sentences for the other convictions: 

  • 25 years for third-degree rape, for the abuse that occurred when the victim was between the ages of 13 and 15; 
  • 99 years for sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13; 
  • 25 years for indecent behavior with a juvenile under age 13; 
  • 10 years for sexual battery of a juvenile for the abuse that occurred when the victim was between the ages of 13 and 15, and; 
  • Seven years for indecent behavior with a juvenile, for the abuse that occurred when the victim was between the ages of 13 and 15. 

Judge Foret then ran the sentences consecutively, or back-to-back, for a total of 166 years on top of the life sentence. 

“If I could give you more years, I would give you more years,” Foret told Figueroa. 

Additionally, Figueroa must register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and is prohibited from contacting the victim forever. 

Assistant District Attorneys LaShanda Webb and Joan Benge prosecuted the case. 

Jamal Harris guilty of murdering Marrero woman, her father

A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday (April 29) found Jamal Harris guilty of murdering a Marrero woman and her father after her dating app meeting turned bad. 

Harris, 41, who also used the name Jarmaal Harris, is guilty as charged of two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Jessica Troulliet, 35, and her father, Robert Templet, 56, on Oct. 3, 2020. 

A convicted felon who was on parole when he committed the murders, Harris met Troulliet at her Marrero home after they connected through a dating app. Troulliet was not impressed with Harris’ looks, and so she wanted to end the date as soon as it began. 

Templet joined his daughter as she gave Harris a ride to Marrero. From the back seat of Troulliet’s Mercury Mountaineer, Harris shot the woman and her father in the backs of their heads. A driver passing the parked Mercury Moutaineer called 911 believing the people were passed out in the vehicle at Fourth Street and Garden Road. Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies found that the victims had been shot and died. 

“He executed two innocent people because he got his feelings hurt that he isn’t sexy,” Assistant District Attorney Taylor Somerville said in closing argument, turning to Harris. “You took away a mother to three boys, a daughter, a nanny and a granddaughter. And you took away this family’s father, pawpaw, brother and friend.”

Detectives discovered that Troulliet’s cell phone was missing. They tracked the device’s last location to a residence on Mistletoe Street in New Orleans’ Hollygrove neighborhood, where Harris’ relatives lived. The detectives further linked Harris to the murders through his cell phone communications and geo-location technology. 

A U.S. Marshals fugitive task force arrested Harris on Oct. 21, 2020, at his cousin’s residence on Center Street in Avondale. Harris initially refused to leave the residence. When arrested, task force members found an assault-style rifle in the residence. 

In addition to the murders, Harris was convicted of obstruction of justice for taking Troulliet’s cell phone to impede the investigation and two counts of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Harris was prohibited from possessing firearms because of a 2007 conviction of armed robbery in Jefferson Parish. He was on parole for the armed robbery until October 2022. 

Harris waived a trial by jury, leaving it to 24th Judicial District Judge Donnie Rowan to weigh the evidence. Judge Rowan found Harris guilty of all charges and set the sentencing for May 8. 

Assistant District Attorneys Taylor Somerville and Shannon Swaim prosecuted the case. 

Warren Smith convicted of fatally shooting brother-in-law in Kenner

A Jefferson Parish jury on Wednesday (April 22) found Warren Smith guilty of shooting his brother-in-law three times, including twice in the back in Kenner two years ago.

Smith, 35, of Kenner, was convicted of manslaughter in the Aug. 4, 2024, death of Reginald Scott Jr., 43.

Both men lived in an apartment complex in the 4200 block of Chateau Boulevard. They had unresolved hostilities dating to 2011, when Smith’s sister, who was married to Scott, committed suicide. Smith believed Scott pushed his sister to take her own life.

Immediately after the shooting, Smith was heard saying, “Reg ain’t gonna mess with me no more. I shot him.” Smith then fled to Baton Rouge, where he was arrested several hours later by the East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office.

Smith purchased the 9mm semiautomatic pistol about two weeks before he shot Scott and “was waiting for any opportunity to kill his brother-in-law,” Assistant District Attorney Molly Love told jurors Wednesday in closing argument.

“This wasn’t self-defense,” ADA Love told jurors. “Warren wasn’t scared of Reginald when he stood over his body making sure he finished the job, making sure he wasn’t going to mess with him anymore.”

Two family members called the Kenner Police Department after the shooting, including Scott’s son, who found his mortally wounded father on the ground outside his apartment. Police found bloody footprints that led from Scott’s apartment to Smith’s apartment. The footprints were found on the carpeted stairs inside Smith’s apartment, leading to Smith’s bedroom.

Smith stood trial on a charge of second-degree murder. Jurors deliberated about three hours in finding him guilty of the lesser offense, which carries a punishment of up to 40 years in prison.

Judge Stephen Enright of the 24th Judicial District Court set sentencing for May 14.

Assistant District Attorneys Molly Love and Theresa King prosecuted the case.

Lance Green of Kenner guilty of sexually abusing two children

A Jefferson Parish jury on Wednesday night (March 25) found Lance M. Green guilty of sexually abusing two children in Kenner.

Green, 42, of Kenner, was convicted as charged of one count of first-degree rape, two counts of sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13 and two counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile under age 13.

Green, who was acquainted with both children, used “fear and intimidation” to control both victims, Assistant District Attorney Zach Grate told jurors Wednesday in closing argument. “This is why we call people like Lance Green ‘predators,” ADA Grate argued.

The Kenner Police Department opened the investigation in May 2020, after a 13-year-old victim revealed sexual abuse at Green’s hands for about one year. Green had babysat the victim. The victim realized after watching educational videos at school that what had been done to her was sexual abuse and informed a family member, who then brought the child to a hospital in Kenner.

Green was convicted of sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13 and Indecent behavior with a juvenile under age 13 for abusing this victim.

Following his arrest for abusing that victim, a 19-year-old victim disclosed sexual abuse by Green when aged 11 to 12. Green groomed the child by touching and progressed in severity over time, culminating with rape.

In connection with this victim, Green was convicted of first-degree rape, sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13 and indecent behavior with a juvenile under age 13.

The investigation uncovered evidence showing that Green searched the internet for pornography that included rape themes and minors.

Green denied abusing the children. His attorney argued that one of the victim’s accusations was inaccurate and the other’s accusations lacked credibility. Green also denied searching the internet for rape-themed pornography. His attorney argued that malware was responsible for the internet search evidence.

The jury deliberated about two hours before reaching its unanimous verdicts. Judge June Berry Darensburg of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Green on April 20. Green faces a mandatory life sentence in prison without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence for the first-degree rape charge.

Assistant District Attorneys Zach Grate and Cullen Kiker prosecuted the case.

Damon Bryant gets 515 years, Destin Smith gets 227 years in armed robbery spree and homicide

A Jefferson Parish judge on Tuesday (Feb. 10) sentenced a pair of West Bank half-bothers to hundreds of years in prison for their convictions for committing a string of armed robberies, and a shooting that left a Terrytown man dead.

Destin Smith, 26, of Algiers, and Damon Bryant, 28, of Avondale, were convicted by a jury on Jan. 31 of numerous charges in connection with the 2017 crime spree.

Judge Donnie Rowan of the 24th Judicial District Court sentenced Smith to 227 years in prison and Bryant to 515 years in prison.

“I have to tell you that what you two did in this parish and in other parishes, I mean, we might as well go back in time and call you Bonnie and Clyde, we might as well call you Dillinger, we might as well call you a whole bunch of names, because you have no regard for human life. You terrorized them. That’s what you did. You terrorized these people, you with a shotgun, you with a handgun.”

Smith was convicted of manslaughter in the death of James Thomas Jr., 36. A De Le Salle High School graduate and father of a young son who drove a delivery truck for UPS, Thomas was shot outside his Terrytown apartment when Smith tried to carjack him.

“He lived with integrity and purpose,” Thomas’ mother said Tuesday in victim-impact testimony during the sentencing hearing. “And he was taken from me. … We had just exchanged messages while I was on a cruise. His last words to me were, ‘When are you coming home?’ I didn’t know that would be our final conversation.”

Smith additionally was convicted of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, attempted armed robbery and obstruction of justice. The jury acquitted Smith of five counts of armed robbery.

Smith’s later crimes in part were carried out to raise money to post bail for his half-brother and co-defendant during the 5-day-long the trial, Damon Bryant.

Bryant, 28, of Avondale, was convicted of carjacking and five counts of armed robbery.

A look at the crime spree shows:

  • At about 1:10 a.m., on July 11, 2017, a 24-year-old woman was seated in her boyfriend’s 2011 Mercury Sable in the 900 block of East Monterey Court in Terrytown. As she scrolled through Facebook on her mobile device, two men physically removed her from the car and drove away in it. Several hours later, her boyfriend found his car at an apartment complex in the 2300 block of Park Place Drive – where a relative of Bryant and Smith lived and where Thomas was later shot and killed. Bryant’s DNA was recovered from the steering wheel, leading to his arrest three weeks later. He was convicted of carjacking as a result. Judge Rowan on Tuesday sentenced Bryant to 20 years in prison to be served at hard labor.
  • Late on the morning of July 20, 2017, an employee of a breakfast restaurant in the 500 block of Behrman Highway in Terrytown was cleaning behind the business when he noticed two suspicious men approaching. As the employee attempted to use his cell phone to call the manager inside, the suspects forced him at gunpoint to knock on the rear door. When the manager opened it, the suspects forced their way inside, robbed a 32-year-old woman and a 29-year-old woman and got away with more than $2,600. At trial, jurors acquitted Smith of two counts of armed robbery. They convicted Bryant of two counts of armed robbery. Bryant was sentenced Tuesday to 99 years in prison for each count, for a total of 198 years in prison to be served at hard labor.
  • On the night of July 27, 2017, a 27-year-old woman was getting out of her 2013 Nissan Versa at her home in the 2900 block of North Monterey Court in Terrytown when two suspects approached her intent on robbing her. She dropped her purse and car keys, and the suspects fled with them in her car. Jurors acquitted Smith of armed robbery and convicted Bryant of the charge. Bryant was sentenced to 99 years in prison for robbing this woman, to be served at hard labor.
  • Bryant immediately drove the stolen Versa across the Huey P. Long Bridge to a restaurant where he once worked in the 2900 block of South Clearview Parkway in Elmwood. The stolen car was picked up by the license place recognition system, according to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. They hopped a fence in the rear of the restaurant and at gunpoint forced two employees – a 42-year-old man and a 43-year-old man – into the office. They fled with more than $2,200 in cash. Bryant cut his right hand when hopping the fence and left blood droplets inside the business, including on the jacket worn by one of the victims – and into the stolen car when fleeing. Smith was charged with being Bryant’s accomplice, but jurors acquitted him. was convicted of two counts of armed robbery. On Tuesday, Bryant was sentenced to 99 years for each count, for a total of 198 years, to be served at hard labor.

A week after robbing the Elmwood restaurant, Bryant was arrested after he shot a man in Boutte, in St. Charles Parish, when attempting to rob him. Bryant spotted that man withdrawing a large amount of cash at a Jefferson Parish bank and then followed him to St. Charles Parish to attempt to rob him. He subsequently was linked to the Jefferson Parish crimes in part based on his DNA being recovered in the stolen Mercury Sable, the stolen Versa and inside the Elmwood restaurant.

After Bryant’s arrest, Smith continued the crime spree in Jefferson and Orleans parishes, in part to raise cash for Bryant’s bail and criminal defense. Smith carried out some of these crimes with his sister’s then-boyfriend, Devante J. Mays, 27, of New Orleans. Mays, who was charged separately, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit armed robbery and two counts of attempted armed robbery in August 2019 in exchange for a 10-year prison sentence.

A look at Smith’s ongoing crime spree shows:

  • On the morning of Aug. 12, 2017, James Thomas Jr. walked to his BMW parked near his apartment in the 2300 block of Park Place Drive. Standing next to his car, he encountered Smith, who was armed with a .20-gauge shotgun. During the carjacking attempt, Smith shot Thomas once in the left thigh. Smith fled to a relative’s apartment in the complex. Thomas died a short while later at a New Orleans hospital. “James was a big, gentle Teddy bear. He would give you the shirt off his back,” Thomas’ fiancée said in victim-impact testimony on Wednesday. Smith was charged with second-degree murder, but jurors convicted him of the lesser homicide charge of manslaughter. Smith was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison.
  • Hours later, on the night of Aug. 12, 2017, two employees were at a discount store in the 7400 block of the Westbank Expressway – a 39-year-old woman and a 21-year-old woman – when two gunmen approached the front door. The business had been closed for the day, so the doors were locked. The gunmen were unable to get inside. Smith was convicted of two counts of attempted armed robbery and was sentenced Tuesday to 49 years in prison for each count, for a total of 98 years in prison. Mays separately pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted armed robbery.
  • On Aug. 12 and Aug. 13, 2017, a man in New Orleans East, a discount store in the Lower 9th Ward, a woman and her cab driver in Algiers and two employees and a customer at a breakfast restaurant in Algiers were robbed. Jurors in the Jefferson Parish trial heard testimony about the crimes that were committed in Orleans Parish, which formed the basis for the conspiracy to commit armed robbery charge in the Jefferson Parish case. In the New Orleans East robbery, the victim reported having his 2008 Mazda CX9 stolen. That vehicle was later recovered near Smith’s residence on Bacchus Street in Algiers. In it, police recovered a spent .20-gauge shotgun shell that was ballistically matched to the shotgun used to kill James Thomas Jr., in Terrytown. These crimes are the basis for Smith’s being convicted of conspiracy to commit armed robbery. He was sentenced Tuesday to 49 years in prison. Mays previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit armed robbery. In the Orleans Parish cases, Smith and Mays also pleaded guilty in 2019 to committing nine counts of armed robbery and one count of aggravated battery in Criminal District Court. Smith received a 12-year sentence and Mays was sentenced to 15 years by a New Orleans judge.
  • Smith also was convicted of obstruction of justice for getting rid of the .20-gauge shotgun he used to kill Thomas. For this, he was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison.

New Orleans Police Department detectives who were investigating the spate of armed robberies arrested Smith and Mays in the Bacchus Street residence in Algiers on Aug. 14, 2017. Victims’ property from several of the robberies was recovered there, linking them to the crimes.

Assistant District Attorneys Taylor Somerville and Tommy Block prosecuted the case.

 

 

 

Lucien Bazley, convicted in Marrero manslaughter, sentenced to 60 years in prison

A Jefferson Parish judge on Thursday (Feb. 5) sentenced Lucien Bazley to 60 years in prison in finding that the Marrero man is a habitual offender. 

In his most recent felony conviction, Bazley, 50, was convicted by a jury in October of manslaughter in the Sept. 25, 2022, shooting of Wayne Martin. 

Martin was celebrating his 30th birthday at an Ames Boulevard lounge on the night he died. He was walking behind Bazley in an auto parts store parking lot across the street from the lounge when Bazley turned and shot him once in the right eye. Martin collapsed and died at the scene. 

Click here to read about the trial. 

Bazley, who asserted self-defense, had been charged with second-degree murder and of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in connection with Martin’s death. At the time he killed Martin, Bazley was on parole for a 2008 conviction of possession of cocaine. As such, he was legally barred from possessing firearms. 

During his first trial in June 2025, a jury was unable to reach a verdict on the murder charge, leading to a mistrial on that count. However, jurors found him guilty of the illegal possession of a firearm, for which he later was sentenced to 20 years in prison. 

He was retried on the murder charge in October. That second jury found him guilty of the lesser offense of manslaughter. 

Judge R. Christopher Cox III of the 24th Judicial District Court on Dec. 8, 2025 sentenced Bazley to the maximum 40 years in prison for manslaughter. On Thursday, Judge Cox vacated that sentence and resentenced Bazley to 60 years in prison in finding that the convict is a career criminal. Bazley’s prior felony convictions were for narcotics, in 2004 and 2008.  

Judge Cox ran the 60-year sentence concurrent with the 20 years Bazley received last year for the illegal possession of a firearm conviction. 

Former Assistant District Attorney Matthew Whitworth as well as Assistant District Attorneys Sarah Helmstetter and Rachel Warren prosecuted the case. 

Convicted of raping child, Mark Albarado Jr. sentenced to life in prison

A Jefferson Parish judge on Wednesday (Feb. 4) sentenced Mark Albarado Jr. to life in prison for his conviction of raping a juvenile.

Albarado, 50, of Marrero, was convicted by a jury on Jan. 14 of first-degree rape of a juvenile under age 13 and sexual battery of a juvenile under age 13.

“Mark, you will never be able to harm another child again,” the victim’s mother told Albarado in victim-impact testimony Wednesday.

At age 11, the victim initially disclosed the abuse to two step-siblings in March 2022, after one of the step-siblings watched a video about abuse. The victim disclosed that the abuse by Albarado occurred during the previous six years.

The victim’s mother learned of it the following day and notified the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office. During the investigation, DNA tied to Albarado’s lineage was found on a pair of the victim’s undergarment.

The victim said the first instance of abuse occurred at a campground in Tangipahoa Parish, and the remaining incidents happened at a Marrero residence. Albarado denied abusing the child.

For the first-degree rape, Judge Lee Faulkner of the 24th Judicial District Court sentenced Albarado to a mandatory life in prison without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence. For sexual battery, Judge Faulkner sentenced Albarado to 25 years in prison. The judge ran the sentences concurrently.

Assistant District Attorneys Theresa King and Erich Cathey prosecuted the case.

NOTE: This report was updated on Feb. 11, 2026, to specify that the defendant is Mark Albarado Jr.

 

Lucien Bazley guilty of manslaughter in Marrero shooting

A Jefferson Parish jury on Monday (Oct. 20) found Lucien Bazley guilty of manslaughter, rejecting his assertion that he was defending himself when he shot a man in the face in a Marrero parking lot.

Bazley, 50, was on parole when he killed Wayne Martin on the night of Sept. 25, 2022. Martin, who was celebrating his 30th birthday, was shot in the right eye, collapsed and died in an Ames Boulevard auto parts business parking lot. Moments earlier, Martin, his older sister and a host of others were celebrating the occasion in a lounge across the street from the homicide scene.

Jurors declined to find Bazley guilty as charged of second-degree murder, opting instead to convict him of the lesser charge of manslaughter. It carries a sentence of up to 40 years in prison.

Bazley told jurors that he had been wrongly suspected on the streets of killing a man who was associated with Martin. Bazley alleged that Martin was walking behind him when he brandished a firearm and prepared to shoot him.

The incident, which was recorded by a nearby business’s video security system, shows Bazley walking ahead of Martin and without provocation, he turned and shot Martin. Martin immediately collapsed.

Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies found no firearms on Martin’s body on the scene, undercutting Bazley’s self-defense claim. A social media video later surfaced showing Martin dancing inside the lounge and brandishing what appeared to be a firearm. The state argued that Bazley’s defense belies reason that if he was in fear for his life, he would not have turned his back on man he says had threatened him.

“He did not kill Wayne Martin in self-defense,” Assistant District Attorney Sarah Helmstetter told jurors Monday in closing argument. “He turned around, shot Wayne Martin in the face and walked off, for 21 seconds, like nothing happened.”

The video shows Bazley calmly walking away as bystanders fled for safety. Twenty-one seconds later, Bazley was shot three times by an unknown gunman. Bazley stumbled away to his car.

He drove to his girlfriend’s home on Gentry Road, where he resided with members of her family. The Sheriff’s Office SWAT team arrested him there the following morning. The SWAT deputies lay siege to the house for an hour before Bazley surrendered.

Deputies encountered Bazley on the night before he killed Martin, in the same auto parts store parking lot. Bazley called 911 to report that someone had shot his BMW while he was seated in the car. However, on the night he killed Martin, he did not call 911, neither to report the shooting nor to seek medical assistance.

Because of his 2008 conviction of possession of marijuana and possession of cocaine, Bazley was prohibited from possessing firearms. On the night of the homicide, he took his girlfriend’s revolver without her knowledge and returned to the shooting scene from the previous night. “He was going to get revenge, some way, somehow,” Assistant DA Helmstetter told jurors.

This was the second time Bazley faced a Jefferson Parish jury for killing Martin. In June, Bazley, who represented himself without an attorney, was convicted of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, for which he has since been sentenced to 20 years in prison.

That first jury was unable to reach a verdict on the second-degree murder charge, leading to a mistrial and this month’s retrial.

On Monday, the second jury deliberated just over two hours in finding Bazley guilty of manslaughter. Judge R. Christopher Cox III of the 24th Judicial District Court is scheduled to sentence Bazley on Nov. 13.

Assistant District Attorneys Matthew Whitworth, Sarah Helmstetter and Rachel Warren prosecuted the case.