Rodney J. Strain, Bribery, Louisiana 2022

NEW ORLEANS – Former St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Rodney J. Strain, also known as Jack Strain, has been sentenced to 120 months imprisonment for soliciting and receiving bribes in Louisiana. The 56-year-old Abita Springs man was convicted of violating Title 18, United States Code, Section 666(a)(1)(B) for his role in the privatization and operation of a work release program in Slidell, Louisiana between 2013 and 2016.

According to court documents, Strain had the authority to decide whether the parish-run work release programs would be operated by the Sheriff’s Office or private entities. In early 2013, Strain decided to privatize a work release program in Slidell, Louisiana.

Strain discussed the plan with his associates, David Hanson and Clifford “Skip” Keen, who were Captains with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Office. However, state law prohibited Hanson and Keen from owning and operating the Slidell work release program while remaining employed at STPSO.

Strain, Hanson, and Keen discussed ways to conceal their scheme, agreeing to make Keen’s adult son (J.K.) and Hanson’s adult daughter (B.H.) owners of the Slidell work release program. They understood that J.K. and B.H. would funnel much of the profits to Hanson and Keen.

As part of the sentence, Judge Jane Triche Milazzo ordered a $10,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment fee. Strain was also ordered to serve his federal sentence concurrently with the sentence he is currently serving based on his conviction in the 22nd Judicial District.

Strain, who was the Sheriff of St. Tammany Parish from about 1996 to 2016, had the authority to decide which private entities would be granted the right to operate the work release programs. He was sentenced on [August/20/2022], in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.

MANDATORY FACTS:

1. Defendant/respondent REAL full name: Rodney J. Strain a/k/a Jack Strain
2. Exact criminal charges: Soliciting and receiving bribes (Violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 666(a)(1)(B))
3. City and state: New Orleans, Louisiana
4. EXACT DATE with month/day/year (sentencing): August 20, 2022
5. Sentence or outcome: 120 months imprisonment, $10,000 fine, 3 years of supervised release, and a $100 special assessment fee
6. Dollar amounts where applicable: $10,000 fine.

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