Louisiana judge caught on video saying the N-word resigns
A Louisiana judge says the N-word multiple times in a video that went viral last month has officially quit her job according to theGrio. Former Lafayette City Court judge Michelle Odinet‘s attorney Dane Ciolino released a resignation letter on her behalf to Louisiana Supreme Court Chief Justice John L. Weimer on Friday.
“After much reflection and prayer, and in order to facilitate healing within the community, I hereby resign as judge of the Lafayette City Court effective immediately,” Odinet wrote. “I am sending a copy of this letter to the Secretary of State and hope that a special election can be scheduled to fill the vacancy that my resignation creates.”
Odinet’s attorney was uncertain about whether or not his client still plans to practice law. “She has not discussed her future plans with me,” Ciolino told theGrio. A cell phone video of Odinet and some of her family members using the N-word to describe a Black man accused of trying to break into a vehicle in her driveway on Dec. 11 began circulating widely online the same weekend.
The video shows Odinet and members of her family watching home surveillance footage of the burglary suspect being tackled in her driveway.
“And mom’s yelling ‘N****r! N****r!’” a male is heard saying during the video, and a woman who was later identified as Odinet responded, “We have a n****r! It’s a n****r! Like a roach,” with a laugh.
The former judge previously blamed a “sedative,” for why she used the language in the video, and she had, “zero recollection of,” in a subsequent apology letter sent to reporters days later.
Her son Elijah Odinet was removed from Louisiana State University’s track team roster on Dec. 15. The former judge took “full responsibility” for her actions in her resignation letter.
“I take full responsibility for the hurtful words I used to describe the individual who burglarized the vehicles at my home,” Odinet wrote. “I am sorry for the pain that I have caused my community and ask for your forgiveness, as my words did not foster the public’s confidence and integrity for the judiciary.”
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