Epperson Demands UDC Remove Confederate Monument Within the Year

Detail: Caddo Parish Confederate monument

The attack on the Caddo Parish Confederate monument continues.  This post updates his latest shenanigans and attempts to pull recent events together into one post for anyone just getting up to speed on this nonsense.

Caddo Commissioner Ken Epperson is apparently not content to abide by the decision of the Long Range Planning Committee of June 9 which decided to form a subcommittee to address his protest against the Confederate Monument standing outside the Caddo Parish Courthouse.

Last week Mr. Epperson slipped an item on the agenda for the Work Session held yesterday which said "Item relative to the removal of Confederate States Monument from the Caddo Parish courthouse property."

CPC Agenda July 5, 2016, page 4

No other explanation was given which left little room for public comment should anyone have wanted to address it in the comments portion of the meeting.  Most of us thought the matter had been settled when Mr. Epperson agreed to the citizens subcommittee on June 9.

After the June 9 meeting, on June 22, Mr. Epperson published a column in The Shreveport Times which consisted primarily of the text of a 2002 title search of the courthouse property which found no title ever conveyed.  In the words of historian Gary Joiner: "They're squatters."

KTBS reporter Gerry May investigated the title issue and reported on June 27:

Epperson cites a title search that was done in 2002 to determine ownership of the courthouse land.  

While the title company wrote, "our records do not disclose a deed," it went on to say "acquisitive prescription would have long since prevailed over any flaw in the dedication of the subject tract." 

And what is "acquisitive prescription?" 

"It's a method of obtaining title to property by use and possession over a certain period of time," explains Caddo Parish Attorney Donna Frazier.

So, we can conclude that the parish does have rights to the land on which the courthouse sits, but here is where Mr. Epperson finds fault: in 1903 the Caddo Parish Police Jury, predecessor of the Caddo Commission, donated a part of that land to the United Daughters of the Confederacy as well as $1,000 to construct a monument to the Confederate dead.  The grant gave them use of the land in perpetuity and it has not been contested in over 100 years.

Here is a copy of the original minutes making that donation.  These minutes can be found on microfilm in the Shreve Memorial Library:

Caddo Parish Police Jury Minutes, 1903

According to esteemed local attorney Arthur Carmody, the land upon which the monument sits belongs to the Daughters of the Confederacy.  Mr. Carmody had a guest column in The Shreveport Times this week in which he says:

There is a pertinent legal doctrine called estoppel which squarely fits this case. It means that when one party acts, and the second party accepts that act and relies upon the representations of the first party, that the first party cannot later repudiate those acts to the detriment of the second party.

Clearly, what Mr. Epperson is attempting to do is contradict and repudiate the actions of his predecessor by which he and the Commission are bound. 

There are further arguments which support the continued honored place of the monument on Texas Street. That relates to the good faith possession of this site by the UDC for some 115 years without any adverse claim of possession or ownership by any other person or party.

In the meeting yesterday, July 5, it turns out Mr. Epperson introduced a resolution to demand the United Daughters of the Confederacy remove the monument within the year:

"I hereby move that the Legal Department of the Parish of Caddo notify the owners of the Confederate monument located on the Texas Street side of the Caddo Parish Courthouse via certified correspondence, giving them a period of (1) one year to remove said structure from the Caddo Parish Courthouse grounds. The Period of time designated for removal shall be effective September 1, 2016, and ending on August 31, 2017. 

This action is based upon the opinion rendered by United Title of Louisiana, Inc., dated March 27, 2002, addressed to Mr. Dannye W. Malone, Esq. the Parish of Caddo attorney.

This proposal is dated June 23; Epperson's proposal was sent to committee.

Victoria Shirley of KSLA news reported on the meeting yesterday in which she says, "Epperson claims the way land was donated wasn't legal because it wasn't done in the way land donations would be handled in present day".

That kind of logic boggles the mind.  Think of all the deals that aren't legal under that premise, to include even the Louisiana Purchase which was in essence done on a handshake and outside of Congress.  It wouldn't pass Constitutional muster today.

Mr. Epperson is getting desperate.

Not to mix apples and oranges, but with shootings in our streets on a daily basis, it would seem he could pick a more worthy cause.  At the June 9 meeting, when one citizen suggested he worry instead about repairing roads, Mr. Epperson boasted that they have $21 million dollars in the roads fund. So why do we still have roads that rattle your undercarriage like cattle trails and with pothole large enough to plant trees in?

In the end, the citizens that spoke at the June 9 meeting, and from what I can tell, the meeting on July 5, are opposed to any action removing the monument.  Most of us realize that the monument has no racial overtones as Mr. Epperson contends, and creates no real division anywhere; in fact, most people don't even pay attention to it.  The only division it incites is that of the race-baiters like Mr. Epperson and his crony Ardis Cash.

Yet, Mr. Epperson wants to continue to waste our taxpayer dollars beating this dead horse.  The United Daughters of the Confederacy own the land, own the monument, and have said they are not going to move it.

That should be the end of the story, but I have a feeling it won't be.

If you'd like to write a letter to Mr. Epperson in support of the monument or perhaps suggesting other avenues in which he should direct his focus, his address is:

Kenneth Epperson
Caddo Parish Commission
P. O. Box 29436
Shreveport, LA  71149

Meanwhile, lets keep an eye on the upcoming agenda items should he decide to sneak in another maneuver.



Previously:
Caddo Parish Monument Under Attack (May 19)
Report From the Caddo Parish Commission Meeting in Which Commissioner Epperson Blasts "Jake-Leg Bloggers" (June 9)
Epperson's Continued Attack on the Caddo Parish Confederate Monument (June 22)
The Caddo Parish Courthouse Remains a Thing of Beauty (July 2)


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The Caddo Parish Courthouse Remains an Impressive Thing of Beauty

Photo by Amanda Currier

As Caddo Parish Commissioner Ken Epperson slips another Confederate monument removal item on the agenda for the Work Session on Tuesday, perhaps this is a good time to note an article in the Louisiana Bar Association Journal this month which profiles historic courthouses throughout the state.

I drive by the courthouse fairly often and have been inside many times, but seldom have taken the time to learn about the history of the building or to appreciate the beauty of its art and architecture.

(I'm going to quote heavily from the LBA journal which quotes heavily from the official Caddo Parish website. No plagiarism is intended and I'll link you back to sources.)

The Caddo Parish courthouse was designed by Shreveport-born architect Edward F. Neild who was apparently a very busy man who designed many well known local buildings including the Louisiana State Exhibit Building at the Louisiana State Fairgrounds, the Overton Brooks VA Medical Center, the gymnasium and Northwestern State University, and many buildings on the Louisiana Tech campus. Beyond the Louisiana borders, Neild designed the Truman library in Independence, Missouri and was a consulting architect on the rehabilitation of the White House during Truman's administration. He also designed two of the Japanese relocation camps in Arkansas during WWII.

(Photo courtesy of Caddo.org: Historic Courthouse)

For the Caddo Parish Courthouse, which dates back to 1926, Neild used pink and gray Tennessee
marble on the floors with a Belgian black marble border. The walls are Rosetta marble and Art Deco flourishes can be seen throughout the foyer especially, and in the exterior ornaments, carving, and large lamps on each side of the entrance.

Like many buildings around here, the courthouse also has its share of haunted stories.  The seventh floor still has the ominous jail cells that once held prisoners and the eighth floor was where the condemned were hung. KTBS reporter Devon Patton took a tour in 2014 and filed this story:

One the eeriest places in the courthouse include the abandoned jail that sits on the 7th floor. Above the jail is the place where the hangman used to execute criminals. We found the latch where the floor would drop the person from the 8th floor to their death.

Interestingly, and perhaps Commissioner Epperson should read this, the article in the Louisiana Bar Association magazine notes the Confederate monument standing on the north side of the courthouse and the oddity that the land it stands on does not belong to the parish but to the Daughters of the Confederacy:

On the Texas Street side of the courthouse, a Confederate Veterans Reunion Monument honors those who died fighting for the Confederacy.Unbeknownst to many, this small tract of land within the perimeter of the courthouse property is actually private property owned by the Daughters of the Confederacy and not to the Parish.

As it has been noted many times, the small plot of land upon which the monument stands was donated to the Daughters of the Confederacy in 1903 along with a donation of $1,000 for the commission of the monument.  It is theirs for use in perpetuity.

As Commissioner Epperson has escalated his push for removal of the monument, a recent story by Gerry May of KTBS news indicates that this could create far more problems than Epperson may be willing to bear:

(Photo courtesy of Caddo.org: Historic courthouse)

In a recent guest column in the Shreveport Times, Epperson wrote, "The Confederate monument is placed illegally on Caddo Parish's property and should be removed immediately by the owners." 

Epperson cites a title search that was done in 2002 to determine ownership of the courthouse land. While the title company wrote, "our records do not disclose a deed," it went on to say "acquisitive prescription would have long since prevailed over any flaw in the dedication of the subject tract." 

And what is "acquisitive prescription?" 

"It's a method of obtaining title to property by use and possession over a certain period of time," explains Caddo Parish Attorney Donna Frazier. It's something that goes back to frontier days. If you stayed on a piece of land for 30 years, you became owner.  

And to that, noted historian Gary Joiner says of the parish, "They're squatters."

The Caddo Parish courthouse opened in 1927 and while the metal detectors and the heavy security were never in Neild's plan, the beauty of his design remains.

Both inside and outside, the Caddo Parish courthouse is worth taking a moment to stop and admire.  And no nasty push by any politician with an agenda can spoil that!





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Epperson's Continued Attack on the Confederate Monument

Commissioner Ken Epperson and Lady Justice

Caddo Commission member Ken Epperson has a guest column in The Shreveport Times today - as of this writing it isn't on the website that I can find, but it is in the print edition.

You may recall that Mr. Epperson is attempting to have the Confederate Monument removed that stands in front of the courthouse on land given to the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1903.  I attended the Caddo Commission committee meeting when this was discussed and wrote about it here.  You can watch the video of that meeting here.  If you just want to skip to Mr. Epperson's wandering, profanity laced tirade at the end, it starts at about 1:20 in the video.

In today's column, Mr. Epperson still contends that the monument is located on Caddo Parish Courthouse property, ignoring the 1903 donation by the Caddo Parish Police Jury in which the land was given to the UDC.  He writes:

"This should settle the issue, the Confederate monument is placed illegally on Caddo Parish's property and should be removed immediately by the owners. I am not looking to suppress history only to put it in it's proper place."

He contends that the debate about the monument so far has been "lots of rhetoric, most of which is not factual, but just emotional and misleading comments by the proponents of keeping the monument in place."

Only two people spoke to move the monument at the Committee meeting, beside Mr. Epperson.  Two dozen spoke to keep it.

The bulk of his article is the text of a title search done in 2002 which actually found no deed whatsoever on the property.  Apparently Caddo Parish doesn't even own it.

Historian Gary Joiner noted at the Caddo Commission committee meeting that any attempt to move the monument would likely be tied up in courts for years as ownership of the land is debated and it would open "a can of worms."  He suggests if anyone owns the land it would be the heirs of Indian interpreter Larkin Edwards who was given large chunks of land by the Caddo Indians.

In related news, Mr. Epperson had his portrait removed from the wall of the courthouse, stating that its presence there indicates that he agrees with everything that goes on there.  He wants his picture and name replaced with that of Lady Justice, a request which was honored this week. Before and after pictures can be seen here:

Ken Epperson’s is serving his 20th year as Commissioner in Caddo Parish. This morning his photo was removed from the Caddo Parish Courthouse, at his request. Commissioner Epperson says, “My picture up there now represents that I agree with everything that goes on on that particular ground and I do not.” Epperson gave an ultimatum before having his picture replaced with Lady Justice, asking for the confederate monument outside of the courthouse to be removed or remove his photo from inside the courthouse. Officials chose the latter and removed Epperson’s photo this morning. 

The Caddo Parish Commission Long Range Special Projects Committee will form a sub-committee at a later date to debate the monument issue.

Meanwhile, Mr. Epperson will remain on the Caddo Commmission, apparently now representing the voice of justice.


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Report from the Caddo Parish Commission Committee Meeting on the Confederate Monument in Which Ken Epperson Blasts "Jake-Leg Bloggers"

The Caddo Parish Commission Special Projects Committee met this afternoon to discuss the issue of removing the Confederate monument that sits on the north side of the Caddo Parish courthouse.

 Proposed Ordinance No. 5587 put forth by Commissioner Ken Epperson intends to provide a $300,000 appropriation to remove the Confederate monument and replace it with a monument honoring the USS Golet.  That there is already a memorial to the USS Golet at the American Legion Post 14 on Cross Lake is apparently of no concern.

The monument stands on a plat of land donated by the Caddo Parish Police Jury to the United Daughters of the Confederacy for use in perpetuity back in 1903. The land was never officially deeded to them, likely because back in those days people did business on a handshake and your good word.

The monument was constructed with a $1000 donation by the Police Jury and funds raised by the UDC.

The issue of moving the monument has been raised before (at least two of those times by Epperson), and always the legal issues over who owns the land opens "a can of worms" as it was referred to today.  No doubt if it ever comes to pass that the monument be moved, it will be tied up in the courts for years and cost thousands of dollars, the beneficiary of which will only be the lawyers.

The meeting room was packed this afternoon with numerous interested citizens who wanted to share their thoughts with the Commission. Almost twenty-five people walked up to the podium to share their thoughts and only two of those supported Epperson's proposal.

Esteemed local attorney and historian Art Carmody was the first to address the Committee and noted several legal defects in the proposal and affirmed that in his opinion, the property on which the monument stands belongs to the UDC.  He pointed out that the proposal as written does not specify what would happen to the monument, whether it would be moved, dismantled, or fall at the hands of a wrecking ball.

The speakers that followed all reiterated the same idea: you can't erase or sanitize history and that to allow removal of this monument opens a slippery slope for the future.  Where does it end?

Notable comments were given by Retired Army Maj. Ron Chatelain who is recognized as the most decorated living war veteran in the State of Louisiana. Ron is a personal friend of mine and is one of the kindest, most gentle men I've ever known.  He thanked the military veterans on the Committee for their service and he pointed out that all races fought for the South during the Civil War.  With emotion quivering in his voice, he also cited the depiction of the muse Clio on the statue to represent the sacrifices and work of women at home.  Chatelain suggested that Shreveport would be recognized as a more progressive city by leaving the monument where it is as a sign that as a community we can unify and work together.

Lane Callaway of the Shreveport Historic Preservation Commission made the point that if the monument is moved it would lose its listing on the National Register.  Part of its historic significance is the site upon which it sits -- Shreveport was the last place that the Confederate flag flew over a public building after the Civil War and the beginning of Reconstruction.  The site itself is therefore historic.  Local professor, author, and professional historian Gary Joiner affirmed this.

Former Shreveport Times writer and military historian John Andrew Prime also noted that Reconstruction began here and pointed out that Union monuments in the north are also under attack.

Benjamin Arnold suggested that balance is the answer.  He suggested that if the Commission wants to create balance they should build a monument on the other side of the courthouse which celebrates civil rights heroes or other black heroes. He proposed citizen contributions for this project with matching funds by the Commission which would make the community more invested in the project.  "Our nation was founded on compromise," he said, and suggested that we need to find a way to do that.

Several speakers called for those who are intent on inciting racial division in our city to remove themselves from office.

Only two people spoke in favor of moving the monument: attorney Henry Walker (who in a previous meeting called the statue just a bunch of concrete) suggested that we dismantle the statue, removing the four busts and placing them in Greenwood Cemetery. It will be "a place of prominence," he said. Oh, and the female figure too, he said, referring to Clio. It was not without notice that Mr. Walker received no applause at the end of his comments.

The other speaker in favor of removal was community activist Artis Cash who insisted, "that monument represents traitors to United States!"  He said that "for people to come here with their melodious voices and talk about how great this was is just wrong!"  He rambled on for his three minutes and said we should "honor some real heroes" in its place.

At the conclusion of his speech, Mr. Cash turned to the crowd and said, "Now y'all clap for ME now."  Nobody did, and a few offered "Boo" in return, prompting him to call them "unchristian."  Childish.

Mr. Cash's speech inflamed SCV member John Long who spoke after him and was furious that Cash called Confederate soldiers "traitors."  "My family members weren't traitors!"  he passionately insisted.  "If you want to talk about traitors, let's talk about Abraham Lincoln," and then went on to quote the Emancipation Proclamation at length noting that Lincoln failed to free slaves where he had the power to.

The high emotion prompted one audience member who had not intended to speak to approach the podium after all.  Andrew Stevenson suggested that the statue should be treated as a tourist site and that we have much bigger problems to deal with such as the steadily climbing murder rate and street violence. "Reverends need to go to their congregations and tell them to quit killing each other," and

Ken Epperson

suggested that the Ten Commandments should be at the courthouse and that we need to "bring God back" into our community, an observation which earned him much applause.

After the public input session, Committee members had 7 minutes to express their thoughts and most it seemed were opposed to moving the monument citing concerns about the cost, other more important issues, and a need for compromise.  Many cited the need for unity rather than division.  Matthew Linn suggested that the vacant top floor of the courthouse be used as a civil rights museum.

Things got interesting when Mr. Epperson had his say.  In a profanity laced tirade, he blasted "jake-leg bloggers" for blowing the issue up and making it all about race, which was "Bullcrap" he said repeatedly.  In a grammatical mess of English he insisted, "Hell, I never said nothing about race." Then he called for members of each military branch to raise their hands. He called next for the Daughters of the Confederacy, then the United Daughters of the Confederacy to raise their hands, apparently not aware that its the same group.  Then he called for the members of Chapter 237 UDC to raise their hands, and the same people put up their hands.

Epperson called for various SCV members to raise their hands as well and then he recited the Pledge of Allegiance.  Following that bizarre turn, Epperson then read the military Oath of Enlistment although he left out the "so help me God" phrase which he said wasn't on his copy because his was the "official version."

When Epperson's time ran out, he asked for an extension then complained that the three additional minutes given him was not enough.  In his additional three minutes Epperson talked about the merit of a USS Golet monument, again apparently not satisfied with the existing one at the American Legion post.

In the end, the Committee elected to table the motion for now and to form a subcommittee of community leaders and historians to discuss, share ideas, and present suggestions to the Commission at a later date.

Although he does not represent my district, as a Shreveport resident, I'm embarrassed for Mr. Epperson's behavior today. Between his profanity laced tirade, apparent attempt at intimidation by calling out groups, and general bully-ish behavior, and then Artis Cash attacking the crowd and accusing them of not being Christians, it's clear our level of government has reached a new low.

Thank goodness for the level heads in that room: Commissioner Chavez was gracious, calm, level-headed and sensible.

Personally, I don't know what the motivation behind Epperson's desire to get rid of the monument are.  Most people today addressed the issue of race although he insists that isn't it.  He said the brouhaha over the monuments in NOLA have nothing to do with it either. I find it hard to believe that he has such a burning desire to memorialize the Golet though.  This "jake-legged blogger" just isn't buying it.

Added:  
KSLA News coverage and video.