Greater Baton Rouge Business Report: Failing to learn from Glasper's history

Byron Sharper needed a history lesson before he nominated Darrell Glasper for the BREC board. Unfortunately, the Metro Council (specifically Carter, Greco, Kelly, Sharper, Skyring, Walker and Tassin) also has a short memory, and gave Glasper the appointment over much more competent and respected nominees.

I spoke to Councilman Sharper about his appointee. He said, "I stand by Darrell. He has always been fair and upfront with me. He has helped me with several things in my district. I do have several concerns, and plan to meet with Darrell and Mark Thornton, too."

Glasper wasted no time stirring up trouble at the BREC board. Sources tell us he is shopping around for a prospect to replace Superintendent Mark Thornton. Glasper denies it. Thornton got crossways with Ted Hicks, Glasper's good friend, who wanted to move the zoo to property Hicks had on O'Neal Lane. At last week's commission meeting, Glasper proposed hiring a "project manager" to oversee the multi-million dollar construction programs at BREC. While the idea of a project manager is not unusual, Thornton told the board they didn't need one, explaining it would waste tax dollars.

My other concern is I don't trust Glasper. My sources tell me that once again, Glasper's good friend, Ted Hicks of Nottingham Construction, is going to be in the mix somehow. The commission did approve taking proposals for "project manager," and it passed 5-4 down racial lines with all of the black members voting with Glasper.

I explored The Advocate's library archives of articles about Glasper and his history. I think you will be enlightened, stunned, disgusted and even outraged. After reading these few clips, one has to ask, is this the best candidate our community can find to sit on the BREC board? Didn't we learn anything from our history with Glasper?

The following are a few quotes and excerpts from past Advocate articles:

Sept. 23, 1994 -- During acrimonious debate Thursday over an occupancy permit for the Belle of Baton Rouge casino, Metro Councilman Darrell Glasper called on constituents to take gamblers' cars. "You're going to get your permit, but you're going to put me in jail because I'm going to tell the brothers to get them," an angry Glasper shouted. "You bring those expensive cars down here because we need them." Glasper walked out of a special council meeting after his heated speech.

May 3, 1994 -- Metro Councilman Darrell Glasper's computer company tried to land a multimillion-dollar deal with a riverboat casino last year while the city was making key decisions on riverboat gambling. Glasper, president and half-owner of Bobcat Computers, said he had nothing to do with the proposed contract that his business partner, Richard Catalon, sent to developer Charles Lambert.... Glasper said he found that state law prohibits elected officials from doing business with casino companies. Glasper said he advised Catalon, Bobcat's vice president, and the proposal was dropped. The proposal by Glasper's firm called for Lambert's casino venture to pay Bobcat $300,000 a year and to give it 2% stock ownership in exchange for a variety of services.... Glasper refused to answer when asked if Catalon ever told Glasper that he had sent the contract proposal to Lambert.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Feb. 22, 1990 -- An angry Metro Councilman Darrell Glasper said Wednesday that an amendment to the city-parish's ethics code he proposed to a council committee would not have drawn so much fire if it had not been designed to solve a black man's problem. Glasper had asked the Finance and Executive Committee to approve reducing to six months its general three-year ban on former city-parish employees doing work with the local government. "Because the individual in question is a minority, I feel we're going to turn our head," Glasper said. Metro Councilmen Jay Dardenne and Doug Welborn both took exception. "I strongly resent the implication that the motion was based on race," Welborn said.

June 10, 1989 -- Metro Councilman Darrell Glasper put his own mother's name on a list of 10 people he recommended for jobs in the city-parish's summer youth employment program, the councilman acknowledged Friday. The state statute prohibiting nepotism says that "no member of the immediate family of a member of a governing authority or the chief executive of a governmental entity shall be employed by the governmental entity." Glasper said he did not know it would be illegal.

Rep. Jack Smith is a disgrace

How can a legislator stand at the podium in the final hours of the session and intentionally mislead his colleagues in order to pass a bill? Just ask Rep. Jack Smith, D-Stephensville.

Rep. Smith presented a simple bill for a hotline for helping alcoholics and strongly denied that the changes made would allow for the sale of daiquiris in 6,000 convenience stores. He also told his colleagues that the amendments had nothing to do with Rep. Troy Hebert's original daiquiri bill, which was killed.

"This will not allow the selling of daiquiris at Circle Ks or supermarkets," Smith said. "This is not Hebert's bill."

While it may not have technically the same as Hebert's bill, he was splitting hairs, and he knew it. Almost immediately after the 73-23 vote happened, lawmakers hurried to recall House Bill 755 after learning they had been fooled.

Smith was later joking on the floor about "stretching the truth." Rep. Danny Martiny also kidded with Smith about his slick move. "He's hooked up to a lie detector in the back and we're not sure he's going to make it."

Is lying by our elected officials in the State Capitol to pass bills that funny? A Democratic legislator said to me about Smith's actions: "I was disheartened by the lack of integrity. It was an affront to the legislative process and trust we put in our colleagues. I was not pleased."

I learned that the House of Representatives has the authority to deal with behavior of members during a session that causes ill repute to the integrity of the body. They can expel a member. The sad truth is nothing will happen to Smith, but the bar for respectability for all legislators just got lowered.