Injustice Of The Peace

The Louisiana Supreme Court disqualified a justice of the peace from exercising any judicial function.

The Advocate reported

A Baton Rouge judge on Friday denied bail for the local justice of the peace and former Baton Rouge police officer facing allegations of horrific domestic abuse that lasted more than a decade. 

Moses Evans, 55, was arrested earlier this month and accused of brutally abusing his now ex-girlfriend and her children, causing severe injuries and permanent disfigurement — until the woman ran from their shared house in July 2018. He’s now being held without bond. 

Evans’ arrest came after his ex-girlfriend reported to law enforcement last month that he had recently slapped and punched their two biological children during unsupervised visitation. A judge had awarded Evans joint custody of the children despite allegations having surfaced in multiple court filings several months earlier about his abusive treatment of his family members.

The mother said the number of times Evans had assaulted her throughout their relationship “is too many to count,” according to court documents. She said the assaults involved him striking her with “any number of objects including rocks, flashlights, wrenches, screwdrivers, hammers, jumper cables, rakes, hoes and anything else that was within reach when he went into a rage.”

She said Evans didn’t let the children “go to school, socialize or nothing.”

She asked the court to grant her sole custody in light of the allegations.

Evans denied the abuse, claiming his ex-girlfriend provided insufficient evidence and arguing she shouldn’t be awarded sole custody, court documents show. He referred to having home-schooled the children. 

Evans was ultimately granted joint custody. He was allowed unsupervised visitation after completing anger management classes.

Now he’s is being held without bond after a ruling Friday from 19th Judicial District Judge Bonnie Jackson, according to East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore III. Jackson ruled Evans poses a potential threat to his family. 

Evans was elected justice of the peace as a Democrat in his north Baton Rouge district in 2008 and then reelected in 2014. His current term is set to expire in 2020. He retired from the Baton Rouge Police Department as a corporal in 1993.

(Mike Frisch)