Lafourche District Attorney nets four drug convictions

Four defendants were convicted of narcotics offenses in separate jury trials last week, the Lafourche Parish District Attorney’s Office announced.

“We have always taken a hard stance against drug dealers in Lafourche Parish,” said District Attorney Camille A. Morvant, II. “It’s a good week when we can convince juries to convict four different drug offenders, in addition to the number of additional guilty pleas we obtained in other drug cases.”

Robert, Roussell, 30, of Cut Off, was convicted in absentia on charges of distribution of cocaine and Xanax after he absconded from his jury trial Wednesday.

In state District Judge Jerome J. Barbera’s courtroom Thursday, a jury found Roussell guilty of selling four rocks of crack cocaine to an undercover narcotics officer on Jan. 18, 2002, and with later selling the same officer 13 Xanax pills, also known as Alprazolam, on March 6, 2002.

Members of the Lafourche Parish Drug Task Force investigated both cases, the district attorney said.

Roussell was free on bond pending the outcome of the trial, Morvant said in a news release. The Cut Off man did appear during jury selection and shortly before opening statements began, the district attorney noted. At some point, Roussell left the proceedings and did not return, according to the release.

“The Task Force did a great job making a strong case against the defendant,” said Assistant District Attorney Joe Soignet, who along with Jennifer Richard presented the State’s case. “It could have been difficult for our witnesses to identify a suspect for the jury when he was no longer present, but the undercover officer was the consummate professional. He was able to convince the jury that the man that they saw during jury selection was the same man he had brought cocaine and xanax from in 2002.”

Once the guilty verdicts on both counts were read, a bench warrant for Roussell’s arrest was issued; no bond was set on the warrant, Morvant said.

Roussell faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison on each count.

In state District Judge A. Bruce Simpson’s courtroom late Thursday, a jury convicted Juan Verrette, 40, of Cut Off, of possession of cocaine.

Verrette was arrested March 2, 2003, outside a South Lafourche nightclub after deputies found cocaine in his vehicle following a Mardi Gras parade. Originally charged with possession with intent to distribute, the jury found Verrette guilty of a lesser offense, according to the District Attorney’s Office. Possession of cocaine, a felony, carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

With two prior drug convictions in addition to other felonies on his record, Morvant said Verrette will be sentenced as a multiple offender. He is also facing new charges resulting from alleged narcotics trafficking which occurred after his March 2003 arrest.

“A felony conviction in this case was important,” said Assistant District Attorney Steven Miller, who prosecuted the case along with Rene’ Gautreaux. “Because of his long felony record, and the possibility of getting convictions on the pending charges, this puts us in the position to put a major drug dealer away for a long time.”

A third trial, argued before state District Judge F. Hugh Larose, ended early when Donovan Jones, 22, of Thibodaux, pled guilty to two counts of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute.

He entered the plea shortly after a jury had been selected Tuesday afternoon, the news release noted.

Larose sentenced Jones to serve 15 years at hard labor.