Terrebonne Parish beefing security at government tower

Think about this, Conor
May 17, 2016
TPCG looks at property sales
May 17, 2016
Think about this, Conor
May 17, 2016
TPCG looks at property sales
May 17, 2016

New security measures at the Terrebonne Parish Government Tower have raised concerns about citizen privacy.


Citizens entering the building in Houma must now sign in and provide identification to receive a visitor’s pass from a Houma Police Department officer stationed downstairs. Another officer is stationed upstairs near the Terrebonne Parish Council meeting room.

The sign-in policy is a precursor to more technological measures coming soon, according to Terrebonne Parish Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness Director Earl Eues. Eues said the parish has ordered package scanners and metal detectors to be placed on the first and second floor of the building. He said the new policy helps the parish keep track of who is entering and leaving the facility in real time.

“It is a government building, and with the issues that are going around the country, it was time to put in some type of security measure so that not just anyone could walk into the building. That’s not only for the protection of the employees there, but it’s also for the protection of the citizens that utilize that building,” he said.


Concerned citizen Lucretia McBride has taken issue with the new measures and voiced her opinion during last Wednesday’s Terrebonne Parish Council meeting. She pointed out that those signing in must write down their driver’s license numbers, and the information is in a binder left out in the open. McBride said leaving that information accessible by anyone in the building opens up citizens to identity theft, all in the name of a measure that she does not believe will help in an actual emergency.

“The driver’s license numbers themselves on a piece of paper, knowing those in real-time of a person that’s in there taking care of government business is not going to make anybody safer. All it’s going to do is give somebody a chance to run a criminal check on you later,” McBride said.

Terrebonne Parish employees entering the tower for work do not have to sign in, instead using a parish identification card to bypass the process. According to Eues, the sign-in measure will help responders know who is in the building at the time of an emergency. Eues said the plan is not finalized, but he thinks the sign-in process is only temporary and will be scrapped once the X-ray scanners and metal detectors are implemented.


McBride also questioned the process through which the new measures came down, as there was no public discussion or council vote on the matter. Instead, parish administration developed the new plans. According to Parish Attorney Julius Hebert, the parish president can change security policy when the parish does not have an ordinance concerning security at government buildings. McBride said she will suggest to the council and administration to start from scratch and involve the public in developing the new policies.

“This needs to go up to the council, and it needs to be opened for public comment. So, if anybody has any concerns or want to share, they have an opportunity to do so,” she said.

Eues said last month the parish is considering modeling an enabling ordinance, but that one had not yet been drafted.


Terrebonne also instituted new measures in January that banned purses, cell phones and briefcases from the parish courthouse and sheriff’s office. However, the parish has scaled back the security measures in the wake of public complaints. Sheriff Jerry Larpenter said Monday citizens can now enter the courthouse with those goods, subject to certain restrictions. •

Government Tower