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LULING- Frustration is mounting for the family of a man from Baton Rouge killed by a hit-and-run driver on the Luling bridge near New Orleans last month.
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The driver, who has been identified, has not been arrested.
Brady Ortego, of Baton Rouge, was working on the bridge when the driver crashed through the work site on January 14. The driver apparently walked away from the crash scene, leaving behind the heavily damaged vehicle.
For the last month, Ortego's wife, Adele Domingue Ortego, has been dealing with the unimaginable pain of losing her husband and also concern the driver identified as causing the deadly crash is free.
"This man was an amazing man who didn't deserve this," Domingue Ortego said. "He has an army of people who love him, and we can't say goodbye because we are so caught up in this, and the lack of justice, that we have not been able to do him the service he deserves."
Ortego was installing cameras on the Luling Bridge when an out-of-control driver crashed into the worksite. Ortego was thrown over the bridge and into the Mississippi River. His body has not been found. The driver of the mangled vehicle got out of the truck and walked down the bridge after the truck he was driving was disabled.
State Police were able to identify the driver, but have not made an arrest, raising serious questions about why he's still free.
State Police released a statement to the WBRZ Investigative Unit about why there hasn't been an arrest:
"LSP is continuing to investigate the hit and run crash that occurred on the Interstate 310 Hale Boggs Bridge on January 14th, 2021. At the conclusion of the investigation, Troopers will present physical evidence as well as findings from the scene to the St. Charles Parish District Attorney for consultation of criminal charges. The investigation is ongoing and there is no additional information available at this time."
The WBRZ Investigative Unit, following leads from sources, found the vehicle involved in the deadly crash was recently released to the owner. WBRZ recorded video of the truck parked at a home, covered with a tarp in Reserve. WBRZ sources said the vehicle was released back to the owner after it was processed for evidence. DNA was taken from a blood-stained airbag and proved to be a match to the person presumed to be driving the vehicle at the time of the deadly crash.
"We have to go to bed every night and wake up every morning and there's no justice," Domingue Ortego said. "The person responsible is out there living his life and has not even had a slap on the wrist."
Domingue Ortego said she is speaking up on her husband's behalf and her faith in the justice system is fading with each passing day.
"Brady is probably the most loving individual that anyone could ever meet," Domingue Ortego said. "He would give anyone the last shirt off his back and the last dollar in his pocket even if he needed it. He's never met a human that he didn't love."
The WBRZ Investigative Unit asked the St. Charles Parish District Attorney for a comment but hasn't heard back.
BATON ROUGE - Fresh out of jail from two arrests in different parishes for using excessive force, Trooper Jacob Brown appeared in Baton Rouge Thursday morning with bold requests for the State Police Commission.
Brown and his attorney asked the commission to have him reinstated, and they wanted an investigation launched into the leaks that have been coming from Louisiana State Police. Ultimately, the commission denied their request by not even entertaining it.
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Brown's attorney, Scott Wolleson, has not been happy with the reporting by the WBRZ Investigative Unit involving his clients.
"Mr. Brown was arrested Monday, and before we reached the jail WBRZ was already reporting the arrest," Wolleson said. "Christopher Hollingsworth was suspended and received notice he was going to be terminated. I was involved in that. As we know there were 17 seconds of audio released to WBRZ that has now been quoted in national news around the country."
Hollingsworth was also exposed by WBRZ after he admitted to beating Ronald Greene to death in the Monroe area. Initially, state troopers had told Greene's family he died in a fender bender following a chase.
Brown is charged in three different excessive force incidents that occurred over the past two years. The WBRZ Investigative Unit exposed this week that training academy documents suggested that he should have been kicked out for lying twice. Brown graduated the 2015 academy. His father was the former Chief of Staff for Louisiana State Police before he retired last year. Brown refused to answer questions about the excessive force incidents he was involved in as he exited the hearing.
"He did not pass the smell test," Belinda Brown with the Louisiana United International, Inc. said. "How did he become an officer?"
Arrest documents obtained by WBRZ show the lies Brown told in the academy have now spilled over into his work. Brown's most recent arrest records show he was untruthful with a story he told about a handcuffed subject. The arrest warrant noted the force that he used was unnecessary.
State Police Colonel Lamar Davis weighed in.
"We received some information and a complaint," Colonel Davis said, "Based upon that, we went through the investigation which led to the arrests of those troopers."
Four troopers, including Brown, were arrested Monday for those excessive force incidents. They occurred between 2019 and 2020.
"In this position, you don't set out to investigate any of your personnel or make arrests of any of your personnel," Davis said. "That's one of the toughest things I've ever had to do."
Davis said he wants the public to know that, while he's in charge, restoring the public's trust is his priority.
"We have great people, and we are out there doing the right thing," Davis said. "If they are not, we will hold them accountable."
State Police administration told the commission Thursday that Trooper Jacob Brown had exhausted all of his paid administrative leave hours. The commission allowed Brown to begin using his annual leave which amounts to nearly six months of pay as the investigation into his actions continues.