Governor pardons former parish president

Published 6:30 am Wednesday, December 13, 2017

Former Iberia Parish President Will Langlinais has been granted a pardon by Gov. John Bel Edwards after Edwards received a recommendation from the Louisiana Board of Pardons.

Langlinais was convicted on malfeasance charges on July 25, 2007, after the Legislative Auditor’s Office reported he brokered parish contracts without the Parish Council’s knowledge, offered unsubstantiated expense accounts and coerced employees to participate in his re-election campaign golf tournaments, among other findings. He resigned as parish president shortly after.

The Louisiana Board of Pardons took up Langlinais’ case at a July 19 meeting, where there was a 5-0 vote to grant the request and submit a recommendation for a pardon to Gov. John Bel Edwards.

According to the Louisiana Department of Corrections, Langlinais was granted the pardon on Nov. 3, although Langlinais received notification in the mail in late November.

“I’m very grateful for having received the pardon,” Langlinais said Tuesday afternoon. “To be honest, I’m appreciative of the many people that have supported me over the years. That support has continued and I’m very grateful.”

Langlinais previously sought a pardon from the Board of Pardons in 2010 after he completed the terms of his conviction, but it was denied unanimously by the board at the time.

In August 2007, Langlinais was sentenced to five years at hard labor, which was suspended, and five years of supervised probation with special probation conditions including six months of home incarceration, 480 hours of community service and ordered to pay $100,000 in restitution to Iberia Parish Government, The Daily Iberian reported at the time.

With the pardon, Langlinais’ previous conviction will be expunged from his record. It also will allow him to act as a public servant again, if he so chooses.

In 2014, Langlinais sought to be appointed by the city of New Iberia to serve on the port commission. However, after Mayor Hilda Curry made a request for an Attorney General’s Opinion, it was found that Langlinais could not serve on the board due to the conviction and would have to wait 15 years after the completion of his sentence or receive a governor’s pardon.

“One never knows what the future holds,” Langlinais said. “I just received this pardon recently, and to be quite honest I’m just excited about it. I’m thankful for the governor and the Board of Pardons, they voted unanimously to recommend the pardon not many people actually get a pardon even though it’s recommend. I’m very grateful.”