LOUISIANA
Former St. Charles District Attorney Harry Morel plead guilty Wednesday to harassing and trying to prevent a female witness from testifying before a federal grand jury that was looking into allegations that Morel allegedly solicited sex from defendants and their families, according to officials.
Morel, age 73, pled guilty to obstruction of justice.
According to court records, Morel was elected prosecutor of St. Charles Parish, Louisiana from on or about January 1, 1979 until May 31, 2012.
Thereafter, he became an assistant district attorney in the Office of the District Attorney for St. Charles Parish and remained in that position until January 11, 2013.
As District Attorney and as an Assistant District Attorney for St. Charles Parish, Morel was responsible for prosecuting individuals charged with criminal and traffic offenses. Morel had the authority and discretion to, among other things, make bail recommendations, make sentence recommendations and bring dismiss or reduce charges.
Morel admitted that he harassed Individual “A” and attempted to prevent and dissuade a person identified as “Individual A” from attending or testifying before a federal grand jury, by telling Individual A to “get rid of” and to “destroy” the evidence of a meeting they had and to deny the inappropriate nature of the meeting to law enforcement officials.
Furthermore, based on Individual “A”‘s representations, Morel believed there would be a federal Grand Jury investigation, and as a result asked her to conceal information that would have likely led to her being a witness before that body.
Morel also admitted that on other occasions, between 2007 and 2009, he solicited sex from people who were defendants or who had family members who were defendants in the St. Charles Parish criminal justice system.
While soliciting sex from these individuals, Morel used the office of the District Attorney to provide benefits to these other individuals, including falsifying community service reports.
Morel faces up to three years in prison, a fine of $250,000 and one year of supervised release following any term of imprisonment.
Morel acknowledges that federal prosecutors will recommend that the court impose the maximum sentence of three years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Kurt D. Engelhardt set sentencing for August 17, 2016.
U.S. Attorney Kenneth Polite noted that the investigation has not implicated any other former or current employees of the St. Charles Parish District Attorney’s Office.