ELTON, La. — In a move that stunned residents, the Elton Town Council voted to lay off the entire police department, except for the police chief, citing ongoing financial issues, KLPC reported.
“They told me today they didn’t have enough money to pay for my department,” Police Chief Bruce Lemelle told KPLC. “I would be the only one working in the department.”
The decision followed a two-hour council meeting on Aug. 6 marked by budget disputes and proposed utility increases, according to the report. The layoffs are the latest development in a series of financial issues that have plagued the town, including unpaid federal payroll taxes, health insurance payments for former employees and a delayed audit that revealed material weaknesses in the town’s financial procedures.
Chief Lemelle questioned the town’s explanation.
“They say I spent $317,000 in seven months, ain’t no way I did that,” he said. “They’re telling me I don’t have enough funds to keep my department open, but we have other accounts with over $600,000.”
Assistant Chief Leric Istre, a 10-year veteran of the department, is among those being laid off.
“I’ve been here since 2015. I love being the assistant chief. I love the town, I love the people, I just don’t love the administration next door,” Istre said. “They’re low rating us that we don’t do our jobs when we do our jobs. They don’t like how we do our jobs. It’s just countless, countless backlash.”
Elton’s mayor, however, stated that Lemelle was warned about going over budget and did not provide information to the council as required by law, KLFY reported.
“We tried to put measures in place for over a year now to try to curtail expenditures in that department,” Mayor pro-temp Kay Hebert told KLFY. "...We implemented a resolution that was seemingly not adhered to.”
Hebert alleged that the council notified Lemelle when the money dedicated to payroll began to run dry but did not receive communication back from him.
Residents expressed concern over the lack of immediate police presence. With no local patrol officers on duty, the
Jefferson Davis Parish Sheriff’s Office will handle law enforcement calls in Elton.
The town has not yet outlined a long-term plan to restore police staffing.
