State v. Higginbotham

Ijn February 2009, a Tensas Parish grand jury returned a 44-count indictment charging Higginbotham with 21 counts of felony theft, 18 counts of malfeasance in office, 4 counts of public salary deduction and one count of unauthorized use of a movable.

During a conference in chambers on the day of trial, the prosecutor dismissed all but three counts of the indictment. The three remaining counts were malfeasance in office, felony theft, and public contract fraud (the latter amended from the one *18court of original charge of malfeasance in office).

In this case, the delayed, tortuous pretrial…