ORLEANS DA SAYS HE MAY HAVE TO SHUT DOWN
The Orleans Parish District Attorney said if he can't get $842,000 by January, he will have to close his office with more than 3,000 criminal cases pending.

"If we want to bring those people to justice, we have to have a district attorney's office," Jordan said by phone on a radio call-in program in New Orleans.

Jordan said he has set up three folding tables at the Royal Sonesta Hotel on Bourbon Street across the hall from a makeshift police station.

"We've made some progress. We have three telephones now."

He said his priority is dealing with looters.

Jordan said much of the evidence at the district attorney's office was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters, but he believes with the help of the National Archives, he can salvage a "substantial portion" of them.

After laying off 57 nonessential staff members, Jordan said he has 11 staff members and 79 prosecutors remaining.

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Sounds like they need a telethon. Who could be the celebrity spokeperson? OJ? Michael Jackson? Baretta? Oh, wait, that would be for California.

[This message was edited by John Bradley on 10-24-05 at .]