The Lisburn Press

About the Book

With the simple power of a man betrayed by his government, former Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Brown paints an unflinching portrait of his six-year ordeal fighting criminal charges brought against him by the Justice Department.

This book is “my account of the struggle I faced in opposing the federal government’s effort to unjustly convict me of false criminal charges.” So begins this powerful book in which Jim Brown documents bow the Justice Department fabricated charges against him.

For thirty-two years, Jim Brown was one of Louisiana’s most popular and well-respected public officials. His world changed dramatically in 1999, when just four weeks before his re-election as Insurance Commissioner, he was blind-sided with a fifty-six count indictment involving insurance fraud. Jim brown was overwhelming re-elected, and was cleared of over 90% of the charges against him. This extraordinary memoir is his personal account of his fight against the Justice Department in an effort to clear his name.

With passion, conviction and dead-aim honesty, Brown exposes the hypocrisies of those who are supposed to protect. With astonishing candor, we read of Brown being forced to go through one of the most secret trials in American history. Some of the low points include:

• He was the first public official in this country to be indicted just a few weeks before his re-election.
• He was the first public official in this country to be put under a gag order, unable to speak out in his defense.
• His trial was one of the most secret in U.S. history. Even the jury in his case was selected behind closed doors with the press and even his family barred from the courtroom. He was tried by an anonymous jury.
• He was not allowed to have key evidence, handwritten notes taken by an FBI agent, that would have cleared him. In addition, he was not allowed to cross-examine the agent about this important evidence.

With unrivaled flair for anecdote and a deep understanding of Louisiana politics, Brown describes a fascinating cast of characters that were elected to lead Louisiana during the last thirty years. Written with eloquence, this book will become a classic of how one individual was unjustly prosecuted and persecuted by the federal judicial system.

About the Author

Jim Brown has been one of the most enduring public officials in Louisiana over the past thirty-two years. He wrote many of the laws that govern Louisiana today as a state senator. He served for eight years as the Secretary of State where he was named as the most effective official in that position in the state’s history. He spent twelve years as Commissioner of Insurance where he received international recognition as one of the country’s top regulators. He has taught Louisiana history at both Tulane University and Louisiana State University, and has written and been published extensively about Louisiana political life. He is the father of four children, and lives in Baton Rouge, Louisiana with his wife, Gladys.

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The diary entries in the pages that follow are my account of the six-year struggle I faced in opposing the federal government’s effort to unjustly convict me of false criminal charges. But the book tells much more, including stories about my public and political life over the past forty years. This is neither an autobiography nor a comprehensive history of my public life. It is more of a personal narrative; thoughts I recorded each day as events unfolded. I talk about how my family and I responded to the pressures of the false charges; how an incumbent public official could be reelected after he was blindsided by a 56-count indictment just a few weeks before the election; what I went through in building the Louisiana Insurance Department virtually from scratch, and why insurance companies worldwide have been attracted to Louisiana. I also talk about the trial itself, and the devastating effect it had on my family and me. I discuss the aftermath of the trial, including the appeals process, and the massive commitment of time and money I made, trying to keep from going to jail while hoping to win my appeal.

I believe that experience—mistakes made and lessons learned—sets the foundation for future decisions. I have always felt that one can learn a lot from past events. That’s why, for many years, I have kept a diary of my daily activities. My notations were originally intended for my own reference and remembrance, with no thought of publication. I reread random sections of my journal from time to time, reinforcing past decisions or sometimes second-guessing them. It has just made good sense for me to look back, with an eye to the future. As Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” My journal has been an invaluable aid in remembering the events that transpired over the past seven years. (Seven years! Who could have imagined that a fairly routine insurance decision would have consumed me for so long a period of time).

This is my first book, but I have always enjoyed putting words to paper. One of my University of North Carolina roommates, Jonathan Yardley, was the editor of the student newspaper The Daily Tarheel. He talked me into writing a weekly column on university life; that was my first published work.

For years I have jotted down anecdotes and observations of political life in Louisiana. In the late 1980s, I turned this material into a series of lectures on twentieth-century Louisiana political history, and I taught courses at both Tulane University in New Orleans and Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. Some of that history is included in this book as background.

But in the end, this book is my personal narrative of what my family and I went through as I warded off the unjust, false charges brought against me.

I am a survivor!

I can only hope that few other American citizens have to go through what I endured during the past seven years.

The call came in around 10:30 A.M. from Brad Myers, a contract attorney for the insurance department.

“Jim, I’m over at the federal courthouse, and I have bad news. You were just indicted. Fifty-six counts.”

I sat there stunned, in my office chair staring blankly at the wall. At first, the full impact didn’t register. Then it started to sink in.

“Tell me what you know, Brad. What am I charged with?”

He quickly summarized a series of allegations that included conspiracy, insurance fraud, witness tampering, and making false statements to federal officials, all related to Cascade Insurance Company.

“You’ve got to be kidding!” I protested. “The biggest crook in America doesn’t get 56 counts. What on earth are they trying to do to me?”

“I’m getting a copy of the charges now,” Brad said. “It’s massive, 47 pages. I’ll try to have it over to you in the next hour.”

The election date for insurance commissioner was only a month away. Brad is a former federal prosecutor, so I felt he would know.

“Have you ever heard of a statewide elected official being charged like this right before an election?” I asked.

“Never,” said Brad. “It just doesn’t happen. I’m sorry.”

I hung up the phone and resumed staring at the wall. I was so shaken by the bad news, I hadn’t even asked who else was charged.

Allan Pursnell, one of my deputy commissioners, walked in with additional news. “I just got a call from the Associated Press. They found out about the charges and want your reaction.” Allan told me that five other people had been indicted with me— former governor Edwin Edwards, former district judge Foxy Sanders, Shreveport attorney Ron Weems, receiverships director Bob Bourgeois, and David Disiere of Shreveport, an insurance executive and owner of Cascade Insurance Company.

I told Allan I needed some time before talking to the AP. I wanted to call my wife Gladys. And I wasn’t about to give a statement until I could collect my wits, think it through, and try to make some sense of what had just happened to me.

I had just been indicted!

Purchasing Jim Brown's New Book, Justice Denied

JUSTICE DENIED is now available in all bookstores. It also can be purchased by calling toll free 225.925.8429. The book can be ordered online.

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