The trial began Monday for two former Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies accused of using unjustified deadly force when they shot and killed a man who was sitting inside an SUV during a confrontation in Marrero two years ago.
Johnaton Louis, 37, and Isaac Hughes, 31, are charged with manslaughter in the death of 34-year-old Daniel Vallee. They face a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison if convicted.
Louis and Hughes are thought to be the first Jefferson Parish deputies to face criminal charges for killing someone.
Authorities allege the two deputies fired 27 times at the unarmed Vallee when he honked his vehicle’s horn after refusing to exit the SUV.
Noise complaint
Sheriff's Office deputies first encountered Vallee about 2:15 a.m. Feb. 16, 2022, when they were dispatched to the 500 block of Wilson Street in Marrero to investigate a noise complaint, authorities said. They found Vallee sitting in an SUV that he’d borrowed from a friend, according to his relatives.
Five deputies positioned themselves around the parked vehicle, with Hughes standing in front and Louis on the passenger side, according to authorities. The deputies asked Vallee several times to get out of the SUV during the 12-minute confrontation, but Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office officials said he refused.
Vallee held his hands up while talking to the deputies through his partially open driver’s side window, but would occasionally drop them out of sight, according to authorities. He started the vehicle once but cut it off when asked to by the deputies.
Vallee, however, started the engine a second time, causing several of the deputies to draw their weapons, sheriff’s officials have said. Vallee, whose hands were raised again, dropped them and accidentally hit the SUV’s horn, and Hughes opened fire first, according to authorities.
Once the gunfire began, Louis opened fire, as well, according to authorities. Hughes shot a total of 18 rounds while Louis fired nine. Vallee was hit multiple times and pronounced dead at the scene.
After reviewing the video recorded by the deputies’ body worn cameras, the sheriff’s office fired Louis and Hughes five days later, arrested them and booked the pair with manslaughter.
“I’ll tell you that their perception was that their life was in danger at that point in time. Unfortunately, the use of force in this situation was not justified," Sheriff Joseph Lopinto said when he announced their arrests in 2022.
Questions of self-defense
Relatives of both Hughes and Louis watched from the gallery Monday in the courtroom of Jefferson Parish District Court Judge Christopher Cox as prosecutors and defense attorneys began questioning potential jurors about themselves, their relatives, their jobs and any relevant life experiences that may influence their ability to take part in the proceedings.
Assistant District Attorneys Douglas Rushton and Rachel Africk are expected to argue that Vallee's killing didn't fit the state's definition of a justifiable homicide: a killing committed in self-defense by someone who reasonably believes that he's in imminent danger of losing his life or believes that the killing is necessary to save himself from great bodily.
The state's witness list includes Florida use-of-force expert W. Ken Katsaris, who reviewed the case and found that Louis and Hughes were not in imminent danger and there was no justifiable reason to use deadly force, court records said.
Hughes is being represented by defense attorney John Fuller. Louis is being represented by Frank DeSalvo.
Attorney and Loyola University Law Professor Dane Ciolino is not involved with the case but said Louis and Hughes' primary defense will likely be the opposite.
"They're going to say the shooting was justified because they believed their own lives were in danger," Ciolino said.
The defense may also introduce a fallback position, he said, planting the seed that instead of manslaughter, the case better fits the definition of negligent homicide, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
"This was just a tragic mistake and thus should be nothing worse than negligent homicide," Ciolino said.
Matters of race
It's yet to be seen how race may play a factor in the trial. Vallee is White while Louis and Hughes are Black.
Vallee was the first person fatally shot by the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office after the department began using body-worn cameras in December 2021.
Critics, including community activist and lawyer Michelle Charles, had long called for the agency to begin using the cameras, accusing the sheriff's office of history of excessive, deadly force, particularly against Black residents.
"The first case from which the community benefits from body cameras also resulted in the arrests of two Black deputies. The irony is not lost on me," said Charles shortly after the deputies' arrests.
Ciolino said race will undoubtedly play a role in jury selection.
"One of the old maxims is that you want a jury that looks like your client, so I would expect that the defense is hoping for African American jurors," he said.
Jury selection was completed Monday evening. Opening statements are expected to being Tuesday morning. Rushton told potential jurors the trial could last through the week.