In second corruption case, in second parish, insurer Berkley balks at paying legal fees of accused

In second corruption case, in second parish, insurer Berkley balks at paying legal fees of accused officials


Berkley Insurance Co. is asking a federal judge to find it is not responsible for the attorneys' fees of St. James Parish President Timmy Roussel and two other parish officials indicted on malfeasance counts in the fall of 2016.

Berkley Insurance, which provided liability coverage for the parish and its officials at the time, alleges it is not responsible for the nearly three years of legal fees because parish officials filed their claims for reimbursement too late.

Roussel had been facing six counts of malfeasance in office over accusations he directed parish workers to do work on private property.

But, on July 15, a state appellate court in Gretna threw out the charges after finding prosecutors violated grand jury secrecy rules in the lead-up to the September 2016 indictments.

Read more: https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/article_e4d60258-b22e-11e9-97f8-0ba027a09778.html