SERVING ASCENSION, ASSUMPTION & ST. JAMES PARISHES

Assumption Parish Man Pleads Guilty to Burglary and Escape Charges

          On November 29, 2017, Calvin Weatherford Jr. of 932 Bayou Dr. Pierre Part, LA., age 32, pled guilty to the charges of Simple Burglary of an Inhabited Dwelling (2 counts) and Simple Escape. Weatherford was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Thomas Daigle, and presiding over this matter was the Honorable Judge Jason Verdigets. This guilty plea was the result of a plea agreement with prosecutors following two separate 2016 burglaries and a jailhouse escape. 

          On October 27, 2016, deputies with the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office responded to a residence located on Mabile St. in Pierre Part in reference to a possible burglary. Upon arrival, deputies confirmed that it appeared as if the residence had been burglarized. Detectives were contacted and upon their arrival, canvassed the area and collected potential evidence. Several miscellaneous items were taken from the residence.  

          On November 1, 2016, deputies responded to a residence along Bayou Dr. a short distance away from the first burglary in reference to a second burglary that had just occurred. Upon arrival, detectives were notified and interviewed the homeowners who advised that upon arriving at the residence and attempting to go inside, a white male subject was attempting to hold the door shut. The homeowners forced their way inside and engaged in a physical altercation with the suspect, before he fled the area. While fleeing the residence, the suspect made some statements that assisted detectives in identifying him. While fleeing the area, the suspect dropped a baseball cap near the residence. The baseball cap was collected as evidence and sent to the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab for DNA analysis. Several days later, detectives were able to positively identify the suspect in this burglary as Weatherford. 

          A warrant of arrest was issued for Weatherford, and he was subsequently booked into the Assumption Parish Jail after surrendering to detectives. Detectives interviewed Weatherford who confessed to committing both burglaries. 

          During the early morning hours of July 12, 2017, while incarcerated after being arrested for the burglaries and a probation violation, Weatherford, who was working a laundry detail at the Assumption Parish Jail, scaled a security fence and successfully escaped the facility. Weatherford was subsequently located and arrested at the residence of a relative in Point Coupee Parish. 

          Upon entering a guilty plea to the above-mentioned charges, as per the plea agreement with prosecutors, Judge Verdigets ordered that Weatherford be committed to the Louisiana Department of Corrections for a total of 15 years at hard labor with credit for time served. On the charge of Simple Burglary of an Inhabited Dwelling, Judge Verdigets ordered that Weatherford be sentenced to 10 years at hard labor with the Louisiana Department of Corrections with credit for time served on each count, to run concurrent with one another. On the charge of Simple Escape, Judge Verdigets ordered that Weatherford be sentenced to 5 years at hard labor with the Louisiana Department of Corrections with credit for time served. It was further ordered that the sentence for the escape charge is to run consecutive to the sentence for the burglary charges.