The 32-year-old mother of an Acadiana High student arrested last week for posting a video on social media of two children fighting at the school will not be prosecuted. 15th Judicial District Attorney Keith Stutes says he has reviewed the case, and is not accepting the charges. Legal analyst Franz Borghardt believes the decision by the DA’s office is fair and just.
“There’s a number of reasons why a prosecuting agency may refuse charges. They don’t think the facts meet the crime or maybe they just aren’t interested in prosecuting it,” said Franz.
Borghardt says now that Maegan Adkins-Barras doesn’t have to worry about prosecution, she could consider a civil suit against the Scott Police Department for the arrest.
“She can take a deep breath and think about whether or not they violated her rights and then move forward,” said Borghardt.
The charge of Unlawful Posting of Criminal Activity for Notoriety and Publicity is a relatively new law and has not been constitutionally challenged. Borghardt says the DA’s decision sets a precedent on whether law enforcement will make future arrests for the crime.
“It invites a constitutional challenge, that again, when you’ve got real crimes plaguing your city, violent crimes, domestic crimes, drug crimes, you just don’t want to fool around with this kind of stuff. It’s just a waste of energy,” said Borghardt.
