Changes

==Career==

==Career==

===Race for Louisiana State Senate===

===Race for Louisiana State Senate===

On October 19, 1991, Self ran as a [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] for the District 37 seat in the Louisiana State Senate, which encompasses [[Caddo Parish, Louisiana|Caddo]] and Bossier parishes. The position opened when Sydney B. Nelson, also a Shreveport attorney, retired after three terms in the office. In the nonpartisan blanket primary, another Democrat, Gregory J. Barro of Shreveport, led the field with 11,224 votes (34 percent). [[Republican Party|Republican]] Ronald Bradford "Ron" Fayard (October 1, 1946 &ndash; March 7, 2011), a [[Mississippi]] native,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=ronald-bradford-fayard&pid=149165509&fhid=11119|title=Ronald Bradford Fayard obituary|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|date=March 11, 2011|accessdate=March 11, 2011}}</ref> real estate broker, and civic leader<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.realproguide.com/USA/Louisiana/Bossier/Bossier-City/|title=Real Estate Guide Directory in Bossier City|publisher=realproguide.com|accessdate=April 24, 2010}}</ref> from Bossier City, trailed with 10,228 votes (31 percent). Self finished a strong third with 29 percent of the vote. A second Republican candidate, Shreveport attorney Leroy Havard Scott, Jr. (1922-2003), a former member of the Louisiana Republican State Central Committee, held the remaining 5.5 percent of the ballots cast.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://staticresults.sos.la.gov/10191991/10191991_Legislative.html|title=Louisiana election returns|date=October 19, 1991|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State|accessdate=September 28, 2014}}</ref> Barro subsequently defeated Fayard in the [[general election]].  

On October 19, 1991, Self ran as a [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] for the District 37 seat in the Louisiana State Senate, which encompasses Caddo and Bossier parishes. The position opened when Sydney B. Nelson, also a Shreveport attorney, retired after three terms in the office. In the nonpartisan blanket primary, another Democrat, Gregory J. Barro of Shreveport, led the field with 11,224 votes (34 percent). [[Republican Party|Republican]] Ronald Bradford "Ron" Fayard (October 1, 1946 &ndash; March 7, 2011), a [[Mississippi]] native,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/shreveporttimes/obituary.aspx?n=ronald-bradford-fayard&pid=149165509&fhid=11119|title=Ronald Bradford Fayard obituary|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|date=March 11, 2011|accessdate=March 11, 2011}}</ref> real estate broker, and civic leader<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.realproguide.com/USA/Louisiana/Bossier/Bossier-City/|title=Real Estate Guide Directory in Bossier City|publisher=realproguide.com|accessdate=April 24, 2010}}</ref> from Bossier City, trailed with 10,228 votes (31 percent). Self finished a strong third with 29 percent of the vote. A second Republican candidate, Shreveport attorney Leroy Havard Scott, Jr. (1922-2003), a former member of the Louisiana Republican State Central Committee, held the remaining 5.5 percent of the ballots cast.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://staticresults.sos.la.gov/10191991/10191991_Legislative.html|title=Louisiana election returns|date=October 19, 1991|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State|accessdate=September 28, 2014}}</ref> Barro subsequently defeated Fayard in the [[general election]].  

===Judicial record===

===Judicial record===

Early in 2009, Judge Self sentenced three employees of the since disbanded Hope Youth Ranch, a rehabiliiation facility north of [[Minden, Luouisiana|Minden]] in connection with the death of 12-year-old Alexander Michael "Alex" Harris (1992-2005) of Haughton.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=HARRIS&GSfn=Alex&GSbyrel=all&GSdy=2005&GSdyrel=in&GSst=20&GScntry=4&GSob=n&GRid=91234332&df=all&|title=Alexander Michael Harris|publisher=Findagrave.com|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref> Anthony Lamar Combs (born June 1967) of Homer, Kelton Kyle Greenard (born June 1979) of Minden, and Arthur Henderson, II, of Cotton Valley received sentences of five years imprisonment at hard labor on two counts of [[negligent homicide]] and cruelty to a juvenile. All but three years were suspended, and both counts ran concurrently to avoid the defense's claim of [[double jeopardy]] under the [[Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifth Amendment]]. Harris died of hyperthermia while on a disciplinary run at the ranch. The three were also was ordered to perform four hundred hours of community service upon release along with two years of probation and the payment of a $1,500 fine plus court costs. “I’ve heard no remorse, and I’m going to make you put someone else above yourself." Self told the defendants in their trial by judge in October 2008. At the sentencing, Judge Self said that his "court takes very seriously its role in this matter. I had to look at the totality of the circumstances. We’re not just looking at acts, but omissions. I can’t change the events of that day, and I can’t bring Alex back," The case was prosecuted by former state Senator Jack Montgomery of Minden, who said he believed that the Harris family was satisfied with the sentence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kcwd.com/gj/2009/briefs-2009-01-29.html|title=Three sentenced in HYR death|publisher=''The Homer (Louisiana) Guardian-Journal''|author=Michelle Bates|date=January 29, 2009|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref>

Early in 2009, Judge Self sentenced three employees of the since disbanded Hope Youth Ranch, a rehabiliiation facility north of [[Minden, Luouisiana|Minden]] in connection with the death of 12-year-old Alexander Michael "Alex" Harris (1992-2005) of Haughton.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=HARRIS&GSfn=Alex&GSbyrel=all&GSdy=2005&GSdyrel=in&GSst=20&GScntry=4&GSob=n&GRid=91234332&df=all&|title=Alexander Michael Harris|publisher=Findagrave.com|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref> Anthony Lamar Combs (born June 1967) of Homer, Kelton Kyle Greenard (born June 1979) of Minden, and Arthur Henderson, II, of Cotton Valley received sentences of five years imprisonment at hard labor on two counts of [[negligent homicide]] and cruelty to a juvenile. All but three years were suspended, and both counts ran concurrently to avoid the defense's claim of [[double jeopardy]] under the [[Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fifth Amendment]]. Harris died of hyperthermia while on a disciplinary run at the ranch. The three were also was ordered to perform four hundred hours of community service upon release along with two years of probation and the payment of a $1,500 fine plus court costs. “I’ve heard no remorse, and I’m going to make you put someone else above yourself." Self told the defendants in their trial by judge in October 2008. At the sentencing, Judge Self said that his "court takes very seriously its role in this matter. I had to look at the totality of the circumstances. We’re not just looking at acts, but omissions. I can’t change the events of that day, and I can’t bring Alex back," The case was prosecuted by former state Senator Jack Montgomery of Minden, who said he believed that the Harris family was satisfied with the sentence.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kcwd.com/gj/2009/briefs-2009-01-29.html|title=Three sentenced in HYR death|publisher=''The Homer (Louisiana) Guardian-Journal''|author=Michelle Bates|date=January 29, 2009|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref>

In 2011, Judge Self upheld the 90-day suspension of Phillip Vernon, a Bossier City police officer who escorted the Bossier-Webster assistant district attorney, Charles Sherburne "Sherb" Sentell, III (born July 1966) of [[Minden]], a maternal great-nephew of former Governor [[Robert F. Kennon]], to jail after another officer in 2009 arrested Sentell for having manhandled Sentell's wife at a [[casino]]. Vernon accused Sentell of hurling profanity at him and threatening the officer's job during the trip to jail. Thereafter, Vernon was dismissed from the force after an internal police investigation concluded that Sentell did not make the threat. The municipal civil service board overturned Vernon's dismissal but upheld the suspension, and Judge Self concurred with that finding.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ktbs.com/news/judge-won-t-clear-officer-s-record/article_81e0475c-b6a0-5b5e-8087-c6df684fc2b8.html|title=Judge Won't Clear Officer's Record|publisher=KTBS-TV|date=January 4, 2011|accessdate=June 10, 2017}}</ref>

In 2011, Judge Self upheld the 90-day suspension of Phillip Vernon, a Bossier City police officer who escorted to jail the Bossier-Webster assistant district attorney, Charles Sherburne "Sherb" Sentell, III (born July 1966) of [[Minden, Louisiana|Minden]], a maternal great-nephew of former Governor [[Robert F. Kennon]], after another officer in 2009 arrested Sentell for having manhandled Sentell's wife at a [[casino]]. Vernon accused Sentell of hurling profanity at him and threatening the officer's job during the trip to jail. Thereafter, Vernon was dismissed from the force after an internal police investigation concluded that Sentell did not make the threat. The municipal civil service board overturned Vernon's dismissal but upheld the suspension, and Judge Self concurred with that finding.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ktbs.com/news/judge-won-t-clear-officer-s-record/article_81e0475c-b6a0-5b5e-8087-c6df684fc2b8.html|title=Judge Won't Clear Officer's Record|publisher=KTBS-TV|date=January 4, 2011|accessdate=June 10, 2017}}</ref>

In 2013, Judge Self handled a case of workplace violence turned deadly when a 54-year-old fired maintenance man, Robert Earl Walter, was tried in the 26th Judicial District Court for the murder in the second degree of April Ann Thomas Fulghum (1979-2012) Greenwood in south Caddo Parish, a married mother of two children<ref>{{cite web|url=https://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Fulghum&GSfn=April&GSbyrel=all&GSdyrel=all&GSob=n&GRid=98657858&df=all&|title=April Ann Thomas Fulghum|publisher=Findagrave.com|accessdate=June 11, 2017}]</ref> who was shot to death in her office at a Bossier City apartment complex on October 10, 2012. Police said that Walter fled the scene of the crime in a pickup truck but soon surrendered to Shreveport police.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ksla.com/story/21591247/fired-maintenance-man-found-fit-to-stand-trial-in-deadly-apartment-shooting|title=Fired maintenance man found fit to stand trial in deadly apartment shooting|publisher=KSLA-TV|date=June 20, 2013|author=Carolyn Roy|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref> He was convicted by a unanimous jury verdict of second degree murder, was sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor without the possibility of probation, parole, or suspended sentence, and failed in his appeal before the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit. Walter had based his challenge on allegedly insufficient evidence of second-degree murder and proposed that the charge against him should have been manslaughter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cases.justia.com/louisiana/second-circuit-court-of-appeal/2014-49-051-ka.pdf?ts=1403719827|title=''State of Louisiana v. Robert Earl Walter|publisher=Justia.com|date=June 25, 2014|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref>

In 2013, Judge Self handled a case of workplace violence turned deadly when a 54-year-old fired maintenance man, Robert Earl Walter, was tried in the 26th Judicial District Court for the murder in the second degree of April Ann Thomas Fulghum (1979-2012of Greenwood in south Caddo Parish, a married mother of two children<ref>{{cite web|url=https://findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Fulghum&GSfn=April&GSbyrel=all&GSdyrel=all&GSob=n&GRid=98657858&df=all&|title=April Ann Thomas Fulghum|publisher=Findagrave.com|accessdate=June 11, 2017}]</ref> who was shot to death in her office at a Bossier City apartment complex on October 10, 2012. Police said that Walter fled the scene of the crime in a pickup truck but soon surrendered to Shreveport police.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ksla.com/story/21591247/fired-maintenance-man-found-fit-to-stand-trial-in-deadly-apartment-shooting|title=Fired maintenance man found fit to stand trial in deadly apartment shooting|publisher=KSLA-TV|date=June 20, 2013|author=Carolyn Roy|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref> He was convicted by a unanimous jury verdict of second degree murder, was sentenced to life imprisonment at hard labor without the possibility of probation, parole, or suspended sentence, and failed in his appeal before the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the Second Circuit. Walter had based his challenge on allegedly insufficient evidence of second-degree murder and proposed that the charge against him should have been manslaughter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cases.justia.com/louisiana/second-circuit-court-of-appeal/2014-49-051-ka.pdf?ts=1403719827|title=''State of Louisiana v. Robert Earl Walter|publisher=Justia.com|date=June 25, 2014|accessdate=June 11, 2017}}</ref>

 

 

In 2017,  [[plaintiff]]s James Wheat and Danny Brinson after their arrests in Bossier City for violating a state statute forbidding panhandling, filled a [[class action]] lawsuit in the [[United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana]] against Bossier Parish Sheriff Julian Curtis Whittington and all judges of the 26th Judicial District Court, including Chief Judge Self. The two men allege that Bossier Parish unjustly jails defendants who cannot pay for [[bail]] or a required $40 fee to the office of the [[public defender]]. Nor does Bossier Parish permit defendants to seek a lowering of the bail amount, which is  automatically set by the court. The suit claims that the parish has for years violated a "bedrock principle of our legal system that a person cannot be detained or imprisoned solely for their inability to pay a fee. Such an [[incarceration]] violates the [[substantive due process]] and [[Equal Protection Clause|equal protection]] clauses of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]].”<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2017/03/21/lawsuit-claims-violation-constitutional-rights-impoverished/99467604/|title=Lawsuit: Bossier Parish routinely violates rights of poor|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|author=Sarah Crawford|date=March 21, 2017|accessdate=June 10, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=

In 2017,  [[plaintiff]]s James Wheat and Danny Brinson after their arrests in Bossier City for violating a state statute forbidding panhandling, filled a [[class action]] lawsuit in the [[United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana]] against Bossier Parish Sheriff Julian Curtis Whittington and all judges of the 26th Judicial District Court, including Chief Judge Self. The two men allege that Bossier Parish unjustly jails defendants who cannot pay for [[bail]] or a required $40 fee to the office of the [[public defender]]. Nor does Bossier Parish permit defendants to seek a lowering of the bail amount, which is  automatically set by the court. The suit claims that the parish has for years violated a "bedrock principle of our legal system that a person cannot be detained or imprisoned solely for their inability to pay a fee. Such an [[incarceration]] violates the [[substantive due process]] and [[Equal Protection Clause|equal protection]] clauses of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]].”<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.shreveporttimes.com/story/news/2017/03/21/lawsuit-claims-violation-constitutional-rights-impoverished/99467604/|title=Lawsuit: Bossier Parish routinely violates rights of poor|publisher=''The Shreveport Times''|author=Sarah Crawford|date=March 21, 2017|accessdate=June 10, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=