Judge throws out Edmonson benefits bill

Dist. Judge Janice Clark on Tuesday agreeD with the parties to the “Edmonson Act” suit and declared it unconstitutional.
The act pass on the last day of the legislative session this year gave a retirement fund increased to Louisiana State Police Superintendent Col. Mike Edmonson and another trooper.
, Louis Boquet.
State Sen. Dan Claitor of Baton Rouge in his suit claimed the law did not meet the one object rule nor was it germane to the original bill, which was about due process.
The judge -- and all of the defendants who elected not to defend the suit -- agreed the law was not constitutional.
Edmonson said there’s still work to be done to make sure his retirement benefits match what he’s paid into the system.
Edmonson, who some say will retire when Bobby Jindal leaves office next year, said right now he has no intention of going back to the legislature and would prefer the retirement system sort through what retirement benefits he’s entitled to.
Only the provision of the law, Act 859, that deals with the retirement benefits was deemed unconstitutional. The original provisions in the law that dealt with due process protections for law enforcement officers under investigation were not ruled unconstitutional.