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December 13, 2017
U.S. District Judge James J. Brady died Saturday night after what has been referred to as a brief illness.
Brady, who served on the federal bench in the Middle District of Louisiana, presided over the Terrebonne Parish NAACP’s case against the state’s governor and its attorney general, which alleges that the at-large form of election used to choose state judges in Terrebonne Parish violates the U.S. Voting Rights Act and the U.S. Constitution.
Gov. John Bel Edwards, who inherited his status as a defendant in the case from former Gov. Bobby Jindal, issued a statement Saturday after learning of Brady’s passing.
“Donna and I are heartbroken over the passing of Judge James Brady,” Edwards said. “He was Louisiana to his core, and an avid supporter of LSU. Like many people around the state, we were lucky to call him a friend. Judge Brady dedicated his life to public service, and despite his many accomplishments, he was as good and humble a man I have ever met. Most importantly, he represented honesty, fairness and integrity on the federal bench in Louisiana, and his wisdom in the courtroom will be sorely missed. We ask all Louisianans to join their prayers to ours for his wife, Karen, and his children, Sean and Missy, during this very difficult time.”
Brady heard eight days of testimony earlier this year and issued a scathing decision. He asked the NAACP’s lawyers to file a plan that could be used to cure the violation. He invited Edwards and Attorney General Jeff Landry to do so as well. The defendants sought to have the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeal hear their objections on the ruling but a three-judge panel refused to do so. Appearances are for now that Landry will continue to fight. Edwards’ executive counsel, Thibodaux attorney Matthew Block, is seeking to work with lawmakers to see if a compromise bill can be filed, noting as does Landry that whatever solution might come from the state would have to be achieved through legislation.
“We wish to express our condolences to Judge Brady’s family,” said Terrebonne NAACP President Jerome Boykin.
Leah Aden of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, the lead attorney representing the plaintiffs, issued a statement Saturday night.
“Plaintiffs and their legal team extend their deepest condolences to Judge Brady’s family, colleagues, and friends,” Aden said. “His passing is a great loss to the State of Louisiana, the United States, and certainly the federal judiciary.”
Brady was the Middle District’s senior judge and as such a replacement will not have to be named for him. Attorneys familiar with the operation of federal courts said his cases will be assigned to one of the district’s three sitting jurists, Chief Judge Brian Jackson, Judge Shelly Dick and Judge John DeGravelles. All three are appointees of former President Barack Obama.
