The white Louisiana judge who was caught on camera using the N-word has taken unpaid leave but is refusing to quit.
The leave stems from a video that surfaced earlier this week showing Lafayette Judge Michelle Odinet and her family reviewing a home video on Saturday of a suspected car burglar in their driveway. In the clip, a male voice is heard saying, “And mom’s yelling n—-r, n—-r,” before the female voice chimes in, laughing and saying, “We have a n—-r. It’s a n—-r, like a roach.” The woman heard in the video has been identified as Odinet.
Instead of denying that it was her using the racial slur, Odinet asked for “forgiveness and understanding,” as she had taken a sedative at the time and couldn’t recall being filmed. She also says that she and her family are dealing with the “emotional aftermath of this armed burglary,” though no one in the video appeared distraught as they laughed and continuously used the derogatory term. Robert Handy, a Black man, was ultimately arrested and charged with two counts of simple burglary for the incident.
The Lafayette chapter of the NAACP is just one organization calling for Odinet to resign or be terminated. Several Lafayette law firms are also seeking to have the judge removed from their clients’ cases in fear that they will not be handled fairly.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards believes Odinet should leave her position as judge.
“There’s no place for that kind of language, especially among members of the judiciary who have the most important role in administering justice in our state,” he stated.
As of now, it is unclear how long Odinet will remain on unpaid leave if she refuses to resign.
