Harry Connick Jr.’s Father Dies at 97 in Louisiana

The daddy of singer-actor Harry Connick Jr. has died in Louisiana, based on the Related Press.

Harry Connick Sr. handed away peacefully in his New Orleans dwelling Thursday, the AP reported, though his explanation for dying was not disclosed. He was surrounded by his spouse, Londa and two kids, daughter Suzanna and his well-known son Harry.

Connick Sr. was the New Orleans District Lawyer for 3 a long time, profitable his first election in 1973 and unseating incumbent prosecutor Jim Garrison. He stayed as town’s D.A. for a few years, getting reelected 4 occasions by creating biracial help among the many metropolis’s politically highly effective African American base.

After his retirement in 2003, Connick Sr. confronted harsh criticism for allegedly hiding proof that might have tipped the scales in favor of a number of defendants, who later had their convictions overturned.

In a single case, John Thompson was exonerated for a homicide he didn’t commit after 14 years on Louisiana’s Demise Row.

Thompson filed a lawsuit in state courtroom towards the New Orleans D.A.’s Workplace, accusing Connick Sr. of withholding key proof that may have discovered him harmless at trial. The choose awarded Thompson $14 million, however the U.S. Supreme Courtroom later overturned the choice by a 5-4 vote.

In 2014, Connick Sr. once more got here below scrutiny when a choose tossed out the 1990 homicide conviction of Reginald Adams.

Adams was launched from jail after serving 34 years. His attorneys proved that Connick Sr. saved very important proof below wraps throughout his trial.

Later, Adams sued the D.A.’s Workplace, agreeing to a $1.25 million settlement.

Over time, Connick Sr. saved silent about his controversial reign as D.A., however he lastly defended his legacy in a 2012 interview with The Occasions-Picayune.

He was 97.