Jeff Boggs, who hosts the daily politically-charged Teche Matters show on Coastal Broadcasting of Lafourche’s KANE-AM New Iberia, LA has been arrested on nine charges after allegedly interfering with an investigation and threatening deputies according to an Iberia Parish Sheriff report. Boggs denies many of the accusations and threatens that a civil rights violation lawsuit may be filed as a result.
According to Iberia Parish Sheriff Captain Ryan Turner, deputies responded to a disturbance call at a bar on Main Street in downtown New Iberia 11/12 at 11:16 pm. Deputies say when they arrived, Boggs approached them and began questioning their presence there. Deputies say when they asked him to leave he became “belligerent” and appeared to be intoxicated and began cursing at deputies.
Boggs says the incident happened on the sidewalk along Main Street and claims that he was a “casual observer who saw a deputy doing something wrong” and that deputies were harassing people on the sidewalk, reports KATC-TV.
However, the stories from Boggs and the deputies differ drastically in each of their accounts of what happened next. Deputies say they then witnessed Boggs pull out his cell phone and say that he called Iberia Sheriff Louis Ackal claiming his deputies were not doing anything. Boggs, however claims this is when deputies knocked the phone out of his hand. Both agree he was then arrested.
Boggs claims this incident was caused by recent criticism he aired on his radio show about Sheriff Ackal. Boggs says the criticism centered on the sheriff retracting statements made regarding the Billeaud murder cold case in The Daily Iberian in early October. Boggs claims since then he has felt that deputies have been “keeping an eye” on him. Boggs claims that he has addressed concern about being a “target” with Sheriff Ackal. The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office denies that Boggs is being targeted.
“I realize that I put myself in that position when I questioned the deputy about what he was doing,” admits Boggs.
Deputies say they arrested Boggs for one count each of disturbing the peace by intoxication, remaining after forbidden and obstruction of public passage. During the arrest, deputies say Boggs then stated that he could not be arrested as a member of the press and threatened the deputies’ jobs.
Boggs also claims that deputies then “beat the crap out of me” while handcuffed.
KATC has since learned that Boggs has been convicted of driving while intoxicated four times. The charges span from February 1996 to January 2000 in Lafourche, St. Charles and Terrebonne Parishes. He also plead guilty to a charge of leaving the scene of an accident after it was reduced from a hit and run charge in January 1999 in Lafourche Parish.
Boggs tells KATC that a civil rights violation lawsuit may be filed as a result of the incident. Despite Boggs’ claims, the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Deputies maintains the events as indicated in their report.
RBR-TVBR observation: As with any politically-charged show in markets of any size, talkers can be targeted sometimes by local politicians and police. However, in this case, it looks like Boggs approached the police, not the other way around. His previous convictions may not help any civil rights violation case, either.
