A federal judge in Baton Rouge issued a temporary restraining order late Sunday blocking Louisiana from enforcing a new law that would abolish the elected Orleans Parish clerk of Criminal District Court and merge its duties into the civil clerk’s office, a change that would prevent clerk-elect Calvin Duncan from taking office. By Monday morning, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit had granted the state an emergency stay, allowing the law to take effect while the legal fight continues.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has signed into law legislation that eliminates the standalone elected office of clerk of Orleans Parish Criminal District Court and consolidates its responsibilities into the clerk of the parish’s Civil District Court.
The measure, known as Act 15 (Senate Bill 256), was signed on April 30, 2026—four days before Calvin Duncan, the clerk-elect, was scheduled to be inaugurated, according to the Center for Constitutional Rights and the Associated Press. (ccrjustice.org)
Duncan, a longtime criminal justice advocate, won the November 2025 election for the criminal court clerk’s post with about 68% of the vote, beating incumbent Darren Lombard, the Associated Press reported. (apnews.com)
Duncan’s background has drawn national attention. Records in the National Registry of Exonerations show that an Orleans Parish Criminal District Court judge vacated his murder conviction on August 3, 2021. (exonerationregistry.org) Other profiles and local reporting describe him as having spent roughly 28 years imprisoned before his release in 2011. (law.berkeley.edu)
On Sunday, U.S. District Judge John deGravelles of the Middle District of Louisiana granted Duncan’s request in part for emergency relief, temporarily blocking state officials from enforcing Act 15. A local report on WWL said the judge found the law likely violated due-process and voting rights protections and emphasized that the Louisiana Constitution requires the criminal clerk to be elected. (audacy.com) A press release from the Center for Constitutional Rights similarly said the court declared Act 15 unconstitutional and enjoined the governor and other officials from implementing the consolidation. (ccrjustice.org)
The restraining order allowed Duncan to report for work Monday morning, but the legal status of the office shifted again within hours. The Associated Press reported that the 5th Circuit granted the state’s request to freeze the federal judge’s order around mid-morning Monday, creating immediate uncertainty about who could exercise the clerk’s duties and whether the consolidation could proceed. (apnews.com) Additional local reporting also described the rapid back-and-forth in federal court. (lailluminator.com)
Supporters of the consolidation have argued it would make Orleans Parish align with other parishes by combining court-clerk functions and improving efficiency. (apnews.com) Duncan and allied voting-rights and civil-rights groups have described the law as an attempt to nullify the outcome of a local election in a majority-Black parish and to undermine a reform-minded elected official. (apnews.com)
The dispute over the clerk’s office has unfolded amid a broader set of state-level proposals affecting New Orleans courts. For example, Louisiana Illuminator has reported that separate bills debated this session would reduce the number of judges in Orleans Parish criminal and juvenile courts and alter appellate-court seats—measures supporters tie to restructuring and critics link to politics and local control. (lailluminator.com)
