Court gives him two weeks to turn himself in…

William Roe, a former Plaquemines 25th Judicial Court Judge whose recent appeal was denied by the State Supreme Court, will have to turn himself in by December 20, to serve out his sentence for three counts of theft over $500.

At the hearing held on December 6, in the 25th Judicial District Court—the very bench Roe formerly presided over—the previous sentence was again made official following a lengthy appeals process.

In 2008, the charges were brought on Roe. In January of 2010, the Court, presided by ad hoc Judge Jerome Winsberg, sentenced Roe to three counts of theft over $500.

The information used to convict former Judge Roe on duplicate payments for travel reimbursements was discovered during a legislative audit. Ironically, that legislative auditor had been called in to investigate the account by Roe himself, for irregularities in Court fees.

Roe was permitted to remain free on bond pending his appeals, which ended resolutely on November 14 this year, with the Louisiana Supreme Court declining to even hear the case. No opinion is offered by the Supreme Court on why an individual case is declined.

Roe and his attorneys also had went before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, alleging there had been insufficient evidence to convict Roe of the thefts. However, the Appellate Court affirmed the 25th Judicial District Courts convictions and sentence on November 10, 2010.

The Court had sentenced Roe for three separate counts, each one carrying six months in parish prison, with three months suspended sentence, and all followed by 18 months of probation with fines and 240 community service hours attached to each sentence.

Each count carried a potential five year sentence.

Roe had served as a Plaquemines Parish Judge since 1990, until the charges were filed against him in 2008.