By KEVIN CHIRI
Slidell news bureau
SLIDELL – St. Tammany Sheriff Randy Smith acknowledged this week that the term “hate group” in referencing the Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany (CCST) was a phrase he would probably change if he had waited a split second more before hitting the send button on his computer.
But he also believes there are two sides to the story that has garnered immediate public attention and has now created tension between the two sides that had previously seemed friendly.
Smith drew a rapid and passionate response from CCST President Rick Franzo when news leaked out that his e-mail to employees at the Sheriff’s Office included a remark that called CCST a “hate group.”
The e-mail followed a public recommendation by the organization that suggested citizens vote “no” on a Dec. 10 millage renewal that provided 20 percent of the Sheriff’s Office operating budget.
After the e-mail went public, CCST filed an official complaint with the Louisiana Board of Ethics. Smith followed with a Facebook post where he stood his ground and said CCST had attacked him on Social Media by calling Smith a “liar, accusing me of not upholding some of my campaign promises, and attacking the integrity of the STPSO.”
Now, Franzo said his group has discussed their next step in the controversy, which could occur if Smith does not publicly apologize. Franzo said it could include anything from a lawsuit to filing a criminal charge with the FBI, even though it is not clear what that charge would be for.
The lawsuit is being mentioned by Franzo since he said the group believes their reputation was tarnished by Smith’s comment.
However, even while the sheriff now agrees “they are not the literal version of a hate group,” according to Public Information Officer Daniel Seuzeneau, the Sheriff’s Office PIO said that members of the Concerned Citizens organization have put constant pressure on Smith since the new sheriff was inaugurated in July—including personal attacks through Social Media.
Seuzeneau said he believes it has been the steady flow of criticism, questions, requests for endless amounts of information and a request for dozens of investigations that led Smith to use the term “hate group.”
“Obviously Randy Smith doesn’t think CCST is literally a hate group,” Seuzeneau said. “It was a poor choice of words, but some members of the group have annoyed him through so many Social Media attacks on the Sheriff’s Office, and even some family members of employees here. Randy is a real person and writes his own e-mails without being checked by anyone else, so you heard what he was feeling, especially after they decided to recommend the public vote ‘no’ against the millage.”
Only days after the e-mail was public a complaint charge against the Sheriff’s Office was filed with the Louisiana Board of Ethics by CCST. Now they are saying that the only way to keep the group from taking further action, likely in the way of a lawsuit, will be for Smith to publicly apologize.
“The comments by the sheriff were fundamentally reckless and absolutely unfounded,” Franzo said. “We are a group that works for good government and to watch how public dollars are spent. To call us a hate group went beyond the boundaries. It was hurtful to me personally and to the organization. It was embarrassing to us and certainly is something that has hurt our reputation in the public eye.”
Seuzeneau said the sheriff positively wants to settle the difference between the two groups and move forward.
“We truly want a good working relationship with them,” he said. “But there are two sides to this situation and that’s what led to the comment.”
Some discussions have been had that could lead to a private meeting between CCST and Smith with a third party mediating the situation, although no firm plans have been settled on yet.
CCST held meetings early in December with various organizations, including the Sheriff’s Office, to review the seven different millages and fee requests on the Dec. 10 ballot.
Franzo initially was critical of the fact that Smith did not show up for the scheduled meeting between the two groups and told this newspaper that their group was disappointed the sheriff sent two captains to the meeting “who could not answer all of our tough questions.”
Franzo did not explain that the two Sheriff’s Office representatives, Seuzeneau and Capt. Danny Culpepper, told the CCST reps that Smith had to unexpectedly attend a meeting with Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards, who decided to come to St. Tammany Parish on short notice.
“I don’t care what political party you are in, if the governor or president would suddenly come to St. Tammany Parish and the sheriff gets invited to meet them, he is obligated to attend,” Seuzeneau said.
When CCST reps weren’t given all the answers to financial questions they asked they sent Seuzeneau and Culpepper back with a multitude of requests for more information. Seuzeneau said it would have taken dozens of hours to get all that info to CCST, but he stopped the work on it after seeing Social Media attacks on the Sheriff’s Office by CCST members for Smith not attending the meeting.
“It was obvious they had made up their minds about the millage,” Seuzeneau said.
CCST did recommend a “no” vote on the millage, although it still ended up passing by a 58 to 42 percent margin.
Franzo said it is the turnabout by Smith that has so shocked the group since they had previously gotten along very well. Even though CCST was not allowed to take a public position on the election, most political observers believe that CCST members working individually behind the scenes were helpful for Smith to win the election last November against longtime incumbent Jack Strain.
Franzo not only agrees with that statement, but thinks CCST was instrumental in Smith’s victory.
“Quite honestly I don’t think Randy would have won the election without CCST,” he said. Smith defeated Strain in a 52 to 48 percent victory.
The Concerned Citizens group came on the scene in 2011 to fight a planned waste transfer station that was coming to the Interstate 12 interchange in Lacombe. After the group succeeded in getting the station moved to a more obscure location they began to gain members, taking on bigger issues in the parish and had a hand in the changing of several top parish officials, not to mention their assistance in cases that led to jail time for some of those St. Tammany officials.