📺 WAFB-TV Files Lawsuit for Release of Avoyelles Jail Video 📅

A Baton Rouge television station has filed a lawsuit seeking the release of a jail surveillance video connected to a 2022 incident in Avoyelles Parish involving a Louisiana State Police trooper.

According to court records filed in the 19th Judicial District Court, WAFB-TV is asking a judge to order Louisiana State Police to produce video footage and related documents from an April 2022 incident at the Avoyelles Parish jail. The video reportedly shows an encounter between Trooper Matthew Clair and a handcuffed man during the booking process.

State Police records indicate the individual was handcuffed in front at the time of the incident. Trooper Clair has stated that the man was charging toward him and that force was necessary to stop the situation. A jail surveillance camera captured the encounter.

Louisiana State Police leadership has declined to release the footage, citing privacy concerns and internal investigative rules. The agency has stated that the trooper’s privacy interests outweigh the public’s right to view the video.

The incident was reviewed internally by a five-member Louisiana State Police review board in 2022. Records show the board was divided, with three members finding the use of force justified and two members concluding it was excessive. At the time, then-Superintendent Col. Lamar Davis determined the actions were excessive and imposed a 40-hour unpaid suspension.

After Col. Robert Hodges later assumed leadership of the agency, Trooper Clair appealed the discipline. Records show the suspension was reduced to a nondisciplinary letter of counseling.

State Police documents further indicate that Trooper Clair, who joined the agency in 2006, had not received updated training on current techniques prior to the 2022 incident.

WAFB’s court petition states the station made multiple public-records requests beginning April 10, 2025, followed by additional requests in May, June, and July. The requests sought the jail video, internal affairs records, and disciplinary documentation related to the incident.

Initially, State Police informed the station that reviewing the records could take up to 45 days. Later, the agency responded that there were "no responsive records," according to the filing. In July, State Police formally denied the request for the video, stating it was part of an internal investigation that concluded with nondisciplinary action and citing State Police Commission Rule 12.9.

The lawsuit argues the requested records are public and that State Police has not identified a specific statutory exemption allowing the footage to be withheld or destroyed. The petition asks the judge to review the records privately and order their release if they are determined to be public under Louisiana law.

WAFB is represented in the case by attorney Scott Sternberg of Sternberg, Naccari & White.

The matter remains pending before the court.