Here's the latest from the Louisiana Legislature

Bill would require unanimous jury decisions in felony cases

A Senate committee voted today to move to the full Senate a bill that would put before Louisiana voters a constitutional amendment to junk the state's unusual and long-standing allowance for non-unanimous jury verdicts in felony cases.

To get onto the ballot, Senate Bill 243 -- which is opposed by the state's powerful district attorneys -- would have to pass both the full House and the Senate with a two-thirds vote.

Louisiana is one of only two states -- Oregon is the other -- that allows people charged with felonies to be convicted when only 10 of 12 jurors agree on guilt.

Since juries convict most defendants, the law generally accrues to the benefit of the prosecution.

Ed Tarpley, former district attorney of Grant Parish and now a leading advocate for changing the law, told the committee that unanimity is implicit in the Sixth Amendment's right to trial.

"How can you say a person has been convicted and found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt when one or two of the jurors says, 'No, I have reasonable doubt?' " he asked.

Louisiana did not allow split jury decisions in its first decades of statehood. The change in the practice came in the late 1800s, as white Louisianians sought to re-assert their dominance in the post-Reconstruction period.

Pete Adams, executive director of the influential Louisiana District Attorneys Association, implored the committee to vote it down. Adams said there is no evidence Louisiana's law results in less reliable verdicts than in the rest of the country. And he predicted the change would result in many more hung juries and costly retrials.

"In today's society, getting 80 percent of people in any group to agree on any topic is a phenomenal task," he said. "Everyone's in their corner. More so than ever, people take their agendas into the courtroom. You're inviting jury nullification.'

Bill aims to shield assault victims from retaliatory lawsuit

Wealthy perpetrators of sexual misconduct often use defamation lawsuits to try to prevent rape victims from being able to move forward with assault claims, something lawmakers are trying to stop.

His proposal would require the delay of a slander lawsuit until all investigations and proceedings involving the assault claim are resolved.

"The reason people file these defamation cases is to bankrupt rape victims," Morrell said. "This is done to punish and silence rape victims."

The Senate voted 29-8 Monday to send Senate Bill 147 to the House. All Houma-Thibodaux area senators voted for the bill. They are Bret Allain, R-Franklin; Norby Chabert, R-Houma; Ed Price, D-Gonzales and Gary Smith, D-Norco.

Opponents said they support the intent of Morrell's legislation to help victims of sexual assault but worry the measure goes too far in impeding due process rights.

Anti-hazing measure advances

A bill that would give people more room to sue when someone dies from hazing is heading to the full Louisiana Senate for debate.

Sen. Dan Claitor's bill passed a Senate judiciary committee Tuesday. Senate Bill 91 would allow people to claim additional legal damages if a hazing death is determined to be caused by a reckless disregard for the victim's safety.

The Baton Rouge Republican says he thinks the threat of costly civil lawsuits will deter dangerous hazing activity.

The measure follows the indictment last week of four people in the death of a Louisiana State University student allegedly subjected to a hazing ritual.

Lawmakers this year are also scheduled to debate a bill that would strengthen criminal penalties for hazing.

Retired general pushes environmental bills

Retired Army Lt. Gen. Russel Honoré's advocacy group, the Green Army, has identified several areas where new laws could improve air and water quality, he said.

Too many Louisiana residents are suffering from asthma, cancer and other ailments caused by pollution, and too many fishing spots and other natural areas are being destroyed by the state's lax emissions rules, Honoré said in a speech Monday to the Baton Rouge Press Club.

Several bills have already been filed. One would require more testing of drinking water for substances like lead. Another would stiffen requirements on companies disposing of waste munitions and explosives.

A third would classify the aquifer under Baton Rouge as an area of critical concern, which could lead to industrial users like Exxon and Georgia-Pacific being forced to switch exclusively to river water.

Honoré also wants new legislation to plug abandoned oil wells and make it harder for owners to shove them off on the state. Louisiana must also improve its air quality monitoring and take steps to ensure that low-income, rural, indigenous and minority communities enjoy equal protection, he said.

Panel puts brakes on budget website

Lawmakers have delayed consideration of a transparency website amid concerns among Republican senators about the cost.

House Republican leaders had said during the special session earlier this month that providing detailed state spending data through the new website, called Louisiana Checkbook, was vital to talks to solve a projected $700 million state budget shortfall.

Louisiana already has a website, nicknamed LaTrac, that a nonprofit group in Washington, D.C., ranked in 2016 as the nation’s seventh best in providing spending data.

Expecting the new system to have a significant cost, Sen. Jim Fannin, R-Jonesboro, told the Senate Finance Committee Monday that money could be spent in other places given Louisiana’s budget problems.

"I suspect that taxpayers would not tell you that they’d like it over TOPS and health care,” he said.

Representatives of the Louisiana Supreme Court said at the hearing that it could cost more than $20 million to upgrade their systems to link to the website. State officials have said it would cost millions more to connect other agencies.

-- From wire reports