Prosecutors to determine whether to try driver

Published 12:00 am Friday, January 17, 2003

By LEONARD GRAY

LAPLACE – If the driver who struck and killed St. John the Baptist Parish code enforcement officer Edmond “Skipper” Songy Jr. is prosecuted, court proceedings will be handled in the 29th Judicial District Court in Hahnville.

“We are looking at it to make a determination, hopefully within the next week,” Assistant District Attorney Kurt Sins said.

At issue is whether the driver of the vehicle which struck Songy, identified as Stewart J. Juneau, 47, of 921 Canal St., New Orleans, is guilty of gross criminal negligence. Songy, 60, of Greenwood Drive in LaPlace, died on July 9 while diverting traffic on Interstate 10 away from another fatality accident ahead of his position near the Belle Terre Boulevard interchange.

The district attorney’s office in St. John the Baptist Parish recused itself, as in the case of a crime against any law enforcement person, to preserve the defendant’s right to a fair trial. District Attorney John Crum said it was a common practice as a matter of procedure in the interests of justice.

The case moved to the Louisiana Attorney General’s office, which then asked District Attorney Harry Morel Jr. to take the case. Morel’s office agreed to review the case and take further action if justified.

Louisiana law defines criminal negligence when “there is such disregard of the interest of theirs that the offender’s conduct amounts to a gross deviation below the standard of care expected to be maintained by a reasonably careful man under like circumstances.”

A civil damages lawsuit was filed Nov. 20 in New Orleans Civil District Court by Destrehan attorney Robert Ates, on behalf of Sybil Songy, against Juneau and his insurer, State Farm Fire & Casualty.

Songy, according to Chief Criminal Deputy Harold Klibert was wearing a reflective vest with his uniform at the time of the accident, as he stood next to his marked police unit with the lights flashing. A green 1997 Chevrolet Suburban, driven by Juneau, struck and killed Songy.

Shortly after the accident, Juneau was cited with careless operation of a motor vehicle and failure to obey directions of a police officer. No additional charges have yet been filed.

Investigators centered on Juneau’s possible use of a cellular phone at the time of the accident. Juneau told investigators he had been on a cell phone earlier, but had already completed his call by the time he reached the accident site.

An investigator’s report said he found Juneau’s cell phone and discovered the last call received was at 9:32 a.m. and lasted for two and half minutes. He also found a half-eaten peach on the floorboard.

Upon checking with the sheriff’s office dispatcher, the investigator determined the first 911 calls on the Songy crash came in at 9:44 a.m.

However, he also determined the cell phone’s clock was 10 minutes and 45 seconds slow and concluded Juneau “may have been talking on his cellular phone at the time of the crash.”

The report suggested the half-eaten peach’s freshness indicated Juneau may also have been eating it at the time of impact, adding to his distraction.