Louisiana man sentenced to 150 years in prison paroled
Published 6:50 am Thursday, April 28, 2022
- The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana heard arguments Tuesday in an ongoing case pitting families of students of Fifth Ward Elementary school against St John the Baptist Parish School Board.
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Michael Hood appeared before the state parole board on April 13 and was subsequently granted release by board members upon a stay in a transition program for a period of three months to 1 year, and then moving out of the state.
“The release of this defendant is yet another example of a policy at the executive level of state government gone completely off the rail,” Lambright said in a letter provided to the American Press.
Rogers’ body was found inside the store the morning after his shift the night before. Police reports said he had been bound by duct tape and stabbed more than 30 times in the head and back. Authorities said the motive for the killing had been robbery.
Authorities said the stabbing had been so vicious the blade of the knife used had broken off in Rogers’ head, an occurrence that was later “bragged about” by Hood and his accomplice, according to Lambright.
The sentence was part of a plea agreement with the state, and as such Hood agreed to waive all state and federal appeals, post-conviction and double jeopardy claims. In return, the state agreed to drop first-degree capital murder charges.
Upon learning of the parole board’s decision, Lambright expressed his frustration with what he considered repeated releases of violent offenders by the state with little regard to public safety.
In March, the state parole board granted the early release of Anthony Knox, who had served 24 years of a 40-year sentence for shooting his estranged wife in the parking lot of Walmart in Leesville. At his parole hearing, Knox continued to deny he had killed his wife despite the crime having been captured on the store’s surveillance cameras. Knox also disagreed with his diagnosis of schizophrenia, however the board voted unanimously to allow his release to the care of his sister out of state.
Lambright had objected to both Knox and Hood’s releases, and had submitted his objections to the parole board ahead of each hearing.
“I am very troubled and at a loss for a reasonable rationale to continue to release violent offenders in the state of Louisiana,” Lambright said.
