WDSU Investigates: Rape Case Files Accidentally Thrown in New Orleans Landfill

A Major Oversight: Sensitive Court Records Accidentally Discarded

Hundreds of sensitive criminal court records, including files related to rape and capital murder cases, were mistakenly thrown out and buried in the Gentilly Landfill by city employees. This alarming incident has raised serious concerns about the handling of critical legal documents and the need for better systems to prevent such a disaster from happening again.

Orleans Clerk of Court Darren Lombard described the situation as both preventable and deeply disturbing. He expressed his frustration with the lack of proper procedures that led to the loss of these important records. “It made me sick to my stomach to see that and knowing the reason why it's there and still reflecting and thinking about what could have been prevented by the use of technology in previous years,” said Lombard.

The documents were supposed to be securely stored in trailers located at the city of New Orleans’ Public Works yard. However, instead of remaining locked and protected, two trailers containing decades’ worth of case files were moved without notice, and the contents were discarded. According to Lombard, one of the staffers noticed that one of the containers had been moved and opened, prompting immediate action.

What his team found was alarming. “It looked like the entire container’s contents had been dumped in front of the container, which were exposed to the weather and on the street,” said Lombard. His team sifted through the documents and kept those that were together, separating them and compiling everything that was loose.

The containers, according to Lombard, weren’t small bins. These were full-size cargo trailers about 20 feet long and 10 feet wide, packed with sealed court files. “We're talking about criminal case files, some of which are capital cases, rape cases of that nature,” said Lombard. The retention policy is that these records should be kept permanently unless there is a valid reason to discard them, which requires authorization from the Secretary of State’s Office.

However, this process didn’t happen in this case. When Lombard’s team realized the records were missing, they began searching the landfill, not knowing what they'd find or if they'd find anything at all. “We were able to retrieve a significant amount,” said Lombard. “It was probably a 50-yard by 50-yard area that we searched through, and even had the facilities use their excavator to dig for these documents, and there was some cases where we were finding stuff as deep as 30 feet below the surface.”

Some boxes were still intact, while others were soaked, torn, and scattered. Lombard said they’ve recovered 65 containers and 15 additional bags of loose documents but fears some files are lost forever. “I’m not completely sure of how much was lost just yet, but we have a significant amount,” said Lombard. “I would venture to say that it's not everything.”

Lombard said no one from the city notified his office before removing the trailers. “No one seemed to know much. We couldn't get a supervisor out there,” said Lombard. “It was, all it would have taken was a simple phone call. Five minutes. But no one made the call."

This incident highlights the need for full digitization, a case management system that would allow scanned documents to be stored securely and accessed online. “We are just about to launch a case management system where all of these documents could be scanned in and we don't have to hold the physical copy of it,” said Lombard. “Had we had that in place, we wouldn't be having this discussion.”

Lombard also pointed out that funding has been a major obstacle in implementing such a system. “Now that the city has received some grant funding, all the stakeholders, including NOPD, the sheriff's office, the DA's office, the public defender's office, and our office, are going to go to this electronic data-sharing model.”

When asked whether criminal charges could be pursued, Lombard didn’t rule it out. “There is a possibility,” said Lombard. “Do I want to push for that? Probably not. If there was some malicious intent, absolutely. Human error? Not so much.”

Still, Lombard said he is demanding an investigation and transparency so this can’t happen again. “The people we represent, I think they need to know, as well as myself and other city officials, so we don't make this mistake again,” said Lombard.

Lombard said his team continues to sort and assess the damage. They're working with the secretary of state to document what was recovered and what was lost. The city, for now, is helping provide temporary secure storage for what was salvaged.