[StBernard] Melancon Versus Romero

[Westley Annis]

< Repeatedly, from 1981 though June of 1985, Sea Shells Inc., a sand and
gravel company owned entirely by the Romero family, entered into numerous
illegal contracts with Iberia Parish Government. The Louisiana Code of
Governmental Ethics prohibits public servants and members of the public
servant's immediate family, or any legal entity in which he has a
controlling interest, from bidding or entering into any contract,
subcontract, or other transaction under the jurisdiction of the agency of
the public servant. In a 1986 ruling of the state's ethics board, father and
son were cited with violating the state ethics code, and Sea Shells Inc. was
ordered to desist from bidding or entering into contracts with Iberia
Parish. (A year earlier, Craig Romero had sold his shares of Sea Shells Inc.
to his siblings, Lynn Paul, Cindy Mae, Ross Anthony and Pamela Romero.) 

Subsequently in 1991 and 1992, the sand and gravel company once again
contracted with Iberia Parish Government, first selling shell to the Iberia
Parish Airport Authority, which is under the jurisdiction of Iberia Parish
Government, and in 1992, following Hurricane Andrew, entering into a service
contract with the parish for cleanup worth approximately $180,000. 

In 1995, Sea Shells Inc. agreed to pay a $10,000 fine after admitting to
violating state ethics laws by doing business with Iberia Parish while
Romero was parish president. The ethics board censured Romero and Sea Shells
for continuing the illegal practices, stating that in light of the previous
hearings, they "should have therefore been keenly aware of the restrictions
contained in the Ethics Code." 

Romero won't address all the charges in great detail. He says nearly all of
these occasions are examples of his family being attacked by opponents.
"That's all politics, and there's nothing to it," he says. "It goes back to
when I became parish president. There were strong factions of opposition
against my father, and I inherited that." 

Recently, Sea Shells Inc. received a $1 million federal contract for
Hurricane Rita debris removal work. The contract was disclosed under a state
law that requires legislators to file reports so the public can judge
whether legislators or their family members are benefiting from their
elected position. >

 

So John, are we suppose to choose the lesser of two evils?

 

Bob F.