“Part 1: Dysfunction & Sexual Harassment Claims Plague NOLA’s DDD Rangers”
The same day WDSU Channel 6 News reported claims of sexual harassment & retaliation at the New Orleans police crime lab, “The NOLA Tabloid” was reporting on the same issues plaguing the New Orleans Downtown Development District’s Ranger program.
You may see them walking downtown, the public safety Rangers wear a blue & white uniform emblazoned with colorful DDD patches. The Rangers are part of the DDD’s “enhanced security” services provided to businesses, residents, tourists, and workers in the CBD. The taxpayer-funded program initially engaged solely in a hospitality role assisting tourists with directions, recommendations, and safety escorts. Now, the Rangers are the DDD’s answer in dealing with such quality of life issues as homeless outreach, aggressive panhandlers, loiterers, illegal vendors, and the mentally ill.
According to current and former Rangers, who “The NOLA Tabloid” will not identify, the program is dysfunctional and dogged by claims of sexual harassment & retaliation. In October of 2018, an unnamed female Ranger alleged that a male supervisor sexually harassed her on the job, a claim he hotly denied. The woman said that, while they were on patrol, the supervisor began chatting with some male tourists and engaged in a conversation in front of her about where they could find prostitutes and erotic massage parlors that give "happy endings." The Downtown Development District ultimately suspended him for one week without pay, allowing him to maintain employment and his supervisory position. Some think that it was simply a ploy by the woman to claim sexual harassment in order to deflect management’s criticism over her substandard job performance.
The possible rush to judgement by the DDD in summarily suspending the supervisor and damaging his reputation may have just fueled hostilities on the job. Since his return from suspension, he had been involved in two separate self-defense incidents on Canal Street in which a homeless man was slapped in the face and a bicyclist was punched in the back of the head. Both incidents were found to be justified by responding detailed NOPD officers hired by the DDD.
The female Ranger who said that she was harassed has since been accidentally struck by a car on duty while crossing the street and continues to maintain a poor job performance. Some Rangers allege that she purposely avoids panhandlers & loiterers and instead sits in hotel lobbies for extended periods of time rather than out patrolling.
According to the unnamed Rangers, she is constantly texting on her personal cell phone and not paying attention to her surroundings and that is how she was hit by a car, which resulted in a workers’ compensation claim being filed.
In February of 2019, the DDD fired two other Rangers who sat in a hotel lobby for two-hours of their eight-hour shift. It was only after an annoyed hotel manager filmed a video of the duo goofing off and complained to the DDD that any disciplinary action was taken. Some claim that this is common practice for many Rangers to sit down on the job and input phony service data, while DDD supervisors and upper management willfully turn a blind-eye in order to maintain the program is a success.
Continue to follow “The NOLA Tabloid” for Part 2 of this exclusive series examining the DDD’s Ranger program.
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