A federal judge expressed skepticism today over the legal arguments made by groups seeking to stop New Orleans from removing prominent Confederate monuments from the city’s landscape.
The Associated Press reports U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier heard the pleas of lawyers for preservationists and a local chapter of the Sons of Confederate Veterans seeking to halt the city from moving ahead with plans to take down statues of Confederate leaders.
Throughout the hearing Barbier appeared to question the merit of legal arguments brought by the plaintiffs’ lawyers, who argued federal laws and constitutional rights would be violated by the removal of the monuments.
Barbier made no decision but said he would issue a ruling soon. In December, the City Council voted 6-1 to remove statues of Confederate Gens. Robert E. Lee and P.G.T. Beauregard, as well as Confederate President Jefferson Davis and a monument honoring the Battle of Liberty Place.
As first reported by Daily Report this morning, a Baton Rouge company that was hired by the City of New Orleans to remove the Confederate monuments is backing out of the job, after its employees received death threats and other area businesses threatened to cancel existing contracts with the firm.
In a letter to the City of New Orleans dated Tuesday, Baton Rouge attorney Roy Maughan Jr. says his client, H&O Investments, is “unable to perform the tasks originally assigned in association with the removal of the monuments for the City of New Orleans.”
The letter says the offices of H&O, which is owned by David Mahler, have received numerous telephone complaints, including death threats directed to Mahler and his staff. Mahler’s wife has also received threatening calls at the couple’s residence, the letter adds.
It is unclear what the scope of H&O’s contract entails. New Orleans city officials have refused to disclose details.
Rebecca Dietz, a city attorney, mentioned the death threats to the contractor during today’s hearing. Dietz said the city is now looking for another contractor to do the work.
