[StBernard] Plaintiffs wrap up case in Katrina flood trial

[Westley Annis]

Plaintiffs wrap up case in Katrina flood trial
By CAIN BURDEAU , 05.01.09, 10:43 AM EDT 
  


Plaintiffs in a pivotal lawsuit against the Army Corps of Engineers over
flooding during Hurricane Katrina wrapped up their case Thursday, capping
nine days of testimony at a federal trial.

Their suit charges that the corps' failure to maintain a 1960s channel
called the Mississippi River-Gulf Outlet turned the 76-mile shipping route
into a "hurricane highway" during Katrina and caused widespread flooding of
eastern New Orleans, the Lower 9th Ward and St. Bernard Parish.

The trial could last two more weeks as the Corps of Engineers makes its
case. The corps is expected to call several corps officials and independent
experts.

The last witness for the plaintiffs was Henry "Junior" Rodriguez Jr., a
longtime and provocative St. Bernard Parish politician. Rodriguez was the
president of St. Bernard Parish when Katrina hit Louisiana on Aug. 29, 2005,
killing more than 1,500 people.

Before stepping down from the witness box, U.S. District Judge Stanwood
Duval Jr. allowed Rodriguez to make a final statement. And the politician -
a looming figure with his black and brown cowboy garb, big belt buckles,
walking cane and blunt language - spoke with emotion.

"What it took Mother Nature to put together in 1,000 years, the corps
destroyed it in 40 years," Rodriguez said, referring to the channel's
destruction of marsh and swamp forest.

"I'll be totally honest with you," Rodriguez said. "I think, today, that the
corps and the steamboat association should be indicted for murder. That's
how I feel about the whole thing."

"Thank you, sir," Duval said.

The Corps of Engineers referred questions to the Department of Justice.
Charles Miller, a Justice Department spokesman, said "we would have no
comment in regard to" Rodriguez's statement.

Shipping industry leaders - including Sean Duffy, the president of the Gulf
States Maritime Association, formerly known as the Steamship Association of
Louisiana - did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment.
Shippers, along with Louisiana politicians like former U.S. Sen. Allen
Ellender and former U.S Rep. F. Edward Hebert, backed the construction of
the MRGO.

The plaintiffs encompass five individuals and one business. Each claimant is
seeking between $300,000 and $400,000 in damages. If these plaintiffs are
victorious, more than 120,000 other individuals, businesses and government
entities could have a better shot at claiming billions of dollars in
damages.

The corps argued it was immune from liability since the channel is part of
New Orleans' flood control system, but a judge allowed the case to move
forward since the plaintiffs claim the shipping channel was a navigation
project.

The corps also has said the channel had no effect on storm surge.

Work on the channel began in the late 1950s, but scientists say construction
of the channel destroyed about 18,000 acres of marsh and 1,500 acres of
cypress swamps. And the channel itself was never popular with ships; few
used it before Katrina. Larger vessels continued using the Mississippi River
instead since a bigger lock to the outlet was never built.

The corps, which has acknowledged the area's flood risk, is in the process
of closing the channel with rocks. The agency is also building a $1.3
billion floodgate.