It would be so easy to defuse the controversy if the Bossier Parish Police Jury would just do a few easy, simple things to follow the law.

Jurors apparently were not pleased with a recent post here—remarks reiterating which also were delivered during the public comment period at the Jan. 14 Jury meeting — that pointed out deficiencies in its compliance with the law governing the parish’s Library Board of Control. In at least five ways, the Jury violates the law in the composition and operation — really, non-operation — of the Board.

In response, the Jury dispatched Patrick Jackson, the 26th Judicial District assistant district attorney seconded to it for legal affairs, to defend it in print. The effort fell flat, as the rejoinder failed to address the Jury’s legally required actions and instead attempted to justify the Jury’s operation as the Board by citing past Board actions that jurors alleged were insufficient.

There doesn’t have to be such a contretemps. If the Jury wanted to put all of this behind it by following the letter of the law, it could keep the Board stocked entirely with jurors (even though no other known board in the state does this) and would merely have to do the following in addition:

Appoint members to the empty seats. By law, board members serve five-year, rotating terms. Because statute sets membership at five to seven members and most parishes choose the minimum, one member typically rotates off each year (and may be reappointed, as statute imposes no term limits). At present, theoretically Bossier’s has two vacancies. At the Nov. 15, 2023 meeting the jury attempted to appoint all 12 of its members to the Board, despite a claim at the Oct. 18 meeting that the ordinance creating the Board had been suspended, which is contrary to statute that a parish must have a board, with the mass juror appointment also contrary to statute due to excess numbers.

As best can be figured out from parish website information, the last known legal configuration of the board listed was Republican Juror Julianna Parks with a term expiring in 2024, Republican former Juror Bob Brotherton with a term expiring in 2025 (but who died prior to that), Democrat former Juror Charles Gray in 2026 (who lost reelection in 2023 but who can serve as a private citizen), Republican Juror Glenn Benton in 2027, and Republican Juror Doug Rimmer in 2028.

In other words, jurors Benton and Rimmer were appointed and still serve, as does private citizen Gray. Two slots are empty, as terms ran out. (Maybe. The Mar. 20, 2024 Jury minutes mention approving minutes of a Feb. 21, 2024 Board meeting, but these are not listed on the Board website. Possibly the Jury selected a replacement for Parks at this missing meeting, but could not have for Brotherton who still was alive at the time.)

So, appoint two members, and jurors, if they like. If they really want to go hardcore, wait until October to let Gray’s term expire, then appoint another juror in his place. It even can create two extra seats and put on two more, plus the president serves ex oficio, which makes eight with one nonvoting. But it can’t have all twelve.

Meet. Statute is very lenient on this, that a board by implication must meet only once a year. That’s because …

Select officers. One statutory duty is to select officers annually and …

Pass a budget. Another is to approve a budget for the upcoming fiscal year and send it to the Jury.

That’s it. All the Jury need do is register appointments, of themselves if it likes (although no more than seven voting members), then meet just once, maybe in October where, at this meeting, they could elect officers and spit out a budget, and then fold up tents for another year. A Jury motion for appointments, plus a quickie Board meeting, might take 10 minutes total, plus a few minutes to spit out notice of the Board meeting at least 24 hours prior to its meeting. If you want to rig a Board with all jurors and have it perform its statutory duty, it takes little effort to do it legally, yet the Jury can’t even bring itself to do that. Of course, better would be living up to the spirit of the law with non-jurors serving with monthly meetings, but if the Jury is involved, you can’t expect miracles.

As can be seen, it wouldn’t take much for the Jury to start following the law. What’s the holdup?