Caswell will take district court bench Dec. 1

27th District Judicial Court Judge-elect Gerard Caswell will take the bench on Monday, Dec. 1.
He was elected in the Nov. 4 primary to fill the seat formerly held by Judge Ellis Daigle, who left the bench to run for St. Landry district attorney.
The seat has been held since February by interim Judge Marion Edwards of Orleans Parish, who was appointed to serve in that capacity by the Louisiana Supreme Court.
The court has appointed Caswell to succeed Edwards early.
Caswell and Judge-elect Jason Meche, who succeeds the late Donald Hebert, will be sworn in at a joint ceremony on Dec. 23 at 10:30 a.m. in the large, main courtroom in the parish courthouse.
A reception will follow at the Delta Grand.
District judges handle both civil and criminal dockets on a rotating basis.
Caswell’s division rotates to civil cases in December and January and back to criminal in February. Meche’s division will rotate to civil in January, when he takes the seat, and February and back to criminal in March.
Even though he has been appointed to take the bench on Dec. 1, his actual elected term does not start until Jan 1.
Other judges in the district are Alonzo Harris and James Doherty.