Louisiana judge says criminals including convicted sex attacker accused of RAPE can skip community service if they get a COVID vaccine

 A Louisiana judge is allowing convicted criminals to skip community service if they get their COVID vaccine - including one defendant originally charged with rape.   

Judge Fred Crifasi is allowing individuals on probation to skip their community service hours if they get the coronavirus vaccine, according to court records obtained by WBRZ, a local affiliate of ABC

Judge Fred Crifasi is permitting offenders sentenced to between four and 33 hours community service by his 19th Judicial District Court to opt out if they get the jab, according to court records obtained by WBRZ, a local affiliate of ABC. 

Papers seen by the TV station included details of one unnamed suspect originally charged with second-degree rape. 

Those allegations were later downgraded to misdemeanor sexual battery charges, with paperwork explaining how the criminal was given the option of a vaccine over community service during a probation review.

It said: 'Defendant owes 33 hrs of CSW (community service work), court will allow proof of vaccine in lieu of remaining CSW hours.' 

Another piece of documentation showed a second criminal being offered the vaccine option, although further details of their conviction were not shared.  It is unclear how many people have taken up Crifasi's vaccine offer. 

Judge Crifasi's decision comes as the state sees one of its highest surges in COVID-19 cases and continues to have one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country.

East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore supported Judge Crifasi's offer and said it's not uncommon for judges to offer alternatives to community service like getting vaccinated.

'Judges do innovative things like this all the time. For example, you have probably seen or heard in the past the judge would allow your donation of blood instead of community service work or instead of payment of the fine. If a judge is going to make this offer, I think it's a reasonable one.'

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At least two offenders have been given the offer, including one who was accused of rape

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East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore supported Judge Crifasi's offer and said it's not uncommon for judges to offer alternatives to community service like getting vaccinated

Some in East Baton Rouge don't want to give Judge Crifasi's offer a shot.

Jarrett Ambeau, a local defense attorney, said, 'I don't think the government is necessarily the right entity to be involved in me injecting something into my body. Judge Crifasi himself, individually, is incredibly fair. The point is when a government actor steps in to ask you to do something like, 'Will I suffer for not doing it?' And that is the question.'

District Attorney Moore said that offenders who don't want the vaccine could simply refuse it, adding, 'These judges in these circumstances are being totally reasonable, but I do understand that someone may think that way. And if that's the case, don't get vaccinated.'

Inmates in state prisons are also being given an incentive to get inoculated, the Department of Corrections told WBRZ. Inmates getting the shot are given $5 in 'canteen credit.' About 68 percent of inmates were fully vaccinated as of Tuesday, which is double the state's overall vaccination rate of 36.6percent.  

In an Alabama town in 2015, Judge Marvin Wiggins drew both condemnation and praise when he allowed offenders to donate a pint of blood in lieu of community service. According to a New York Times article written at the time, the Southern Poverty Law Center filed an ethics complaint against Judge Wiggins after his motion, saying he had committed 'a violation of bodily integrity.'

The option of giving blood in lieu of community service or paying a fine was more common in the mid-20th century, specifically during wartime. Following the Pearl Harbor attack, judges in Honolulu ordered people convicted of traffic violations to give blood or offered blood donations as an alternative to a fine, as detailed in 'Flesh and Blood,' a history of blood transfusions and organ transplantation by Susan Lederer, a professor of medical history now at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

However, the tradition ended in the 1970s when fears about the spread of hepatitis led to a nearly all-volunteer blood donation system. 

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Inmates in state prisons are also being given an incentive to get inoculated, the Department of Corrections told WBRZ. Inmates getting the shot are given $5 in 'canteen credit'

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The above map from the Louisiana Department of Health shows the most vulnerable parishes in Louisiana

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The decision comes as the state sees the second highest single-day increase in Covid cases since January 6, reporting 6,797 on Tuesday, according to the CDC

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Louisiana has one of the country's lowest vaccination rates, as seen in the above CDC map. The state has 36.6percent of its population fully vaccinated

According to the Louisiana Department of Health, the state saw 6,797 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday – the second highest single-day increase since January 6, when 6,882 cases were reported. Also on Tuesday, 1,390 people were hospitalized with Covid-29 across the state, an increase of 169 from the previous day and the largest single-day increase since March 2020.

Governor John Bel Edwards said in a statement that he would be recommending that everyone, even those fully vaccinated, start wearing masks indoors again.

He said, 'To see this current rise in Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations is becoming increasingly scary. We reported nearly 6,800 cases today in addition to the nearly 8,000 that were reported from the weekend. 

'And today, there are close to 1,400 Covid patients hospitalized statewide – approximately 90 percent of whom are unvaccinated. This is the largest single daily increase since March of last year. As I said recently, this surge is on us, and that means it is up to each of us to do our part to bring it to an end. It's within our power. Getting vaccinated is the best way to stay safe and healthy during this pandemic.'

According to statistics from Our World in Data, Alabama has the lowest vaccination rate in the country with 34.1 percent of their population inoculated and Louisiana sits toward the bottom of the list with 36.6 percent of their population. Vermont is the state with the highest vaccination rate, with 67.4 percent of their population having completed their shots.

Last week, however, the state saw a spike in the number of residents getting the shot with over 58,000 getting their first doses, a 153 percent increase from the previous week, according to CDC data. 

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the Department of Corrections announced that it is suspending prisoner visitation and volunteering effective immediately, through August 16, due to the spike in cases, according to KATC, a local affiliate of ABC.

In place of in-person visitation, inmates will be offered two free phones calls per week and video calling is still available for free.