Prosecutor defends SMSO handling of murder cause

Ken Grissom
ken.grissom@techetoday.com

If an innocent man has had his head on the block for more than a dozen years, it’s largely because he “lawyered up” at the outset and declined to give his side of the story, says the parish’s chief prosecutor.
Assistant District Attorney Chester Cedars disputes the notion, as reported in Teche News last week, that the case against Timothy Roberts in the 2002 shotgun slaying of 31-year-old Scott Latiolais was littered with exculpatory evidence from the beginning.
Another man, Marshall J. Alexander Jr., has been indicted and arrested in the Latiolais murder.
A lot of the information that led to Alexander’s indictment was not initially made available to investigators, Cedars said.
It was a classic drug-deal-gone-wrong with two of the suspects, Alexander and Julius Charles of Opelousas, pointing the finger at the defendant, Roberts, who did not cooperate with investigators.
“The defendant lawyered-up,” Cedars said. “The state had no knowledge of his version of the events.”
Regarding the physical evidence – specifically gunpowder residue – that now appears to be damning Alexander and not Roberts, Cedars said the technology now making this possible was not available 12 years ago.
The victim’s fingernail scrapings were processed, he said. They just don’t reveal anything.
Cedars agrees, as the victim’s father, Thomas Latiolais, has publicly stated, that the original investigation was flawed. But the prosecutor disputes Latiolais’ contention that the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office has continued to drag its feet in the case.
“This happened before Ronny Theriot was in office,” Cedars said. “The people involved are long gone.”
Cedars gave Theriot credit for being willing to let the Louisiana State Police take over the case.
“He said let’s put some fresh eyes on it,” Cedars said. “A lot of sheriffs would never have done that.”
He also gives SMSO detective John Bruce credit for digging up much of the “exculpatory testimony” in the form of utterances by various of the witnesses.
Scott Latiolais was killed with a shotgun blast to the back in the parking lot of the old Las’s Restaurant in Henderson between 11 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. on March 28, 2002. Roberts and Alexander were both arrested. Alexander was charged as an accessory, and he turned state’s witness.
He and other witnesses stalled the case for years by repeatedly failing to show up in court.