Hey, Reddit! We’re reporters with The Current, Gulf States Newsroom and Verite News. Last month, we published a database reporting how sheriffs’ offices across Louisiana are spending millions of dollars in opioid settlement funds.
Louisiana is unique among states in that it directed virtually all of its opioid settlement dollars to local governments, with 20% carved out for sheriffs’ offices. But sheriffs, unlike parish governments, are not required to report how they are spending that money, making it difficult for the public to assess how they are choosing to spend money intended to abate the opioid epidemic.
We wanted to change that. So, our newsrooms teamed up with KFF Health News to contact every single sheriffs’ office in the state and ask them how they were spending opioid settlement dollars. Not every sheriff’s office got back to us, but most did. From there, we built our database — and categorized expenditures.
There are a lot of interesting findings. You can read the full story, which has a database of spending and a map showing how this money was spent by sheriff departments across the state, at our websites:
Let us know what you’re most curious about and we’ll do our best to explain it!
Ask us anything about what we found in the data, how we chose to evaluate and “rate” those expenditures, and what stood out to us in our reporting. We’ll be back here at noon on Friday, Sept. 18 to answer your questions.
EDIT: That's all the time we had today. Thanks for all the great questions!
Trevor Cody Hubbard-Fruge, 38, of St. Francisville, Louisiana, allegedly groomed a young girl for years before she became pregnant at 17.
He faces allegations involving strangulation of a pregnant woman and false imprisonment, along with other serious allegations. His children allegedly knew about the abuse, and one reportedly witnessed the strangulation incident. Yet none of his children will speak up.
His record reportedly spans three pages of domestic abuse allegations and includes prior strangulation, protective-order violations, and stalking charges.
Now, I’m concerned that his own children are manipulating and using her in attempts to get him released, while concerns remain about indirect contact despite a protective order.
When the people who know about the alleged abuse stay silent while the vulnerable person is pressured to protect the accused, who is protecting her?
Grooming and coercive control don’t necessarily stop when someone goes to jail.
Possible dumb question incoming. So I love Bernard’s honey. Normally, I get the small bear shaped jar. On my most recent grocery trip, they were out of the bear shaped container so I got the bigger 12 ounce container that’s cylindrical shaped. To my surprise it tasted totally different. Less pleasant than the bear shaped container does. More twangy / woody…maybe even nutty? Idk
Does anyone know if there has been a flavor change in all of their honey or did I just buy a bad (I know, honey doesn’t typically “go bad”) bottle? It had been a few months since I had the bear shaped container. Maybe the season change or time of year the honey was collected could’ve impacted the flavor????
Hopefully someone else who uses their honey knows what I’m talking about. I’m at a loss lol.
Jeff Landry has been all over the news trying to gaslight the people of Louisiana over his bad business deals lately. Don’t let him lie to you, we won’t see the revenue he’s yapping about because he gave it all away in tax breaks.
Never forget, we had ALL the leverage in this SpaceX deal. SpaceX themselves said Pecan Island is one of the few locations in the WORLD that this launch pad can go. Landry had every chance to get everything we NEED out of this deal, but he landed us with peanuts because he’s the worst businessman of all time.
The time to vote him out is coming closer than y’all think. Get ready.
I moved to Monroe 3 months ago from out of state to go to ULM. Lemme just say it: I love Monroe. I've never had a bad meal here (everything here is delicious), theres a lot of fun parks to visit, and whenever I get bored theres something fun to do either at ULM or off campus. IK Monroe doesn't have a good reputation, but I'd say the reputation it gets is a little harsh. Anyway I'm proud to be a Warhawk and proud to live in Monroe.
Idk if the pride flair refers to pride as in pride month or pride as in Louisiana pride, my bad if i got it wrong
Since 1923, Camellia Brand Beans has been a part of Louisiana’s rich culinary heritage. Founded in New Orleans by the Hayward family, the company became a household name, especially for its famous red kidney beans.
For generations, Camellia beans have been at the heart of one of New Orleans’ most beloved traditions—Monday red beans and rice.
Hi everyone! I live in Louisiana and my license is expiring. I am from Maryland and went to declare residency and get a Louisiana License the other day. I had all the correct documents, except the OMV is saying my birth certificate cannot be accepted because it isn’t “long form”. I did some research and the state of Maryland does not issue “long form” birth certificates to ANYONE. What I have is correct. I’m unsure what to do or where to go. I’ve tried calling express and state offices but they do not answer the phone. Any advice from anyone else who has gone through this? Thanks!!
I recently learned that the vast majority of Cajuns and Louisianans with French last names are overwhelmingly monolingual English speakers today. Why did Louisiana French disappear so quickly over just a few generations, whereas Quebec managed to preserve French as its primary language? What political, social, or historical factors caused such a dramatic difference in language survival between the two regions?
Our power grid is out 3x longer than Florida's, even excluding hurricanes. Why? Because the PSC was asked to set utility pole standards in 2019 and never adopted a single one. Companies profit off building new stuff, not maintaining the old.
As a former LPSC consultant, I built Service My Pole to fight back!
Upload a photo, get a 1-10 score, and put the worst poles on the public leaderboard.
I'm Chris Justin, the no party engineer running for Public Service Commissioner. Vote number 48 on your ballot.
Hello everyone ! Im unsure if this violates any rules or such (i didnt see any), but I wanted to ask.
Recently, Ive taken an interest in gumbo, which lead me down a cultural rabbit hole. My mother is white, and my father is mixed(half white, half black)- this obviously leaves me somewhere between 50/50-0/100(but I just say 75/25).
Anyway- I have wanted to become more educated and involved in the culture (obviously seeing as im pretty removed, not just by blood but other family circumstances).
That being said my question is basically, if/when I visit Louisiana, are there specific places or landmarks i should be aware of ? Id like to see history, but also meet people.
And about the gumbo question, does anyone know what exactly its history is ? Ive seen mixed thoughts, and would like to make some myself but I definitely dont want to mess it up.
Thanks in advance
Edit: Ive looked over a lot of your recommendations and they all seem super fun(or, well fun seems a little too light hearted but yknow). Im extremely grateful for the advice and im even more excited about planning a trip. Tysm !!
Only 1/3 of registered voters participated in the election that he won. May want to take that into consideration on this upcoming election instead of not voting.
Can education break the cycle of incarceration in Louisiana?
Louisiana has long struggled with high incarceration rates, but what happens when individuals leave prison and return to society?
Education can be the difference between a second chance and a return to incarceration. Yet access to literacy programs, vocational training, and higher education remains a challenge for many incarcerated individuals.
In this Louisiana Passport feature, we explore the importance of prison education, the barriers to rehabilitation, and why preparing individuals for life after prison benefits not only those incarcerated but entire communities.
The question remains: Are we preparing people for successful reentry, or simply preparing them to return to prison?
