Was a Louisiana city marshal's office a Safe Haven location for an infant?

Plain-English summary

In 2005, the Louisiana Attorney General concluded that the Lafayette City Marshal's office was not a “designated emergency care facility” under the Safe Haven provision it considered. A child-abuse-prevention organization had treated the marshal's office as a police station, one of the listed facility types. The AG rejected that classification for this office.

The opinion relied on the statutory list and the ordinary meaning of “police station.” It said a marshal's office was not separately listed and, on the facts supplied, the Lafayette office did not book or interrogate arrestees or keep detainee records in the manner the AG associated with a police station. This is a historical interpretation of the 2005 definition, not a guide to current infant surrender locations.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2005. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Did the 2005 Safe Haven definition name marshal offices? A: No. The AG said marshal offices were not in the statute's list of designated emergency-care facilities.

Did the AG treat the Lafayette marshal office as a police station? A: No. It relied on the office's lack of booking, interrogation, and detainee-record functions to reject that classification.

Which facility types did the quoted law include?
A: The opinion quoted hospitals, public health units, emergency medical providers, medical clinics, fire and police stations, pregnancy crisis centers, and child advocacy centers.

Background and statutory framework

Marshal Earl Picard asked whether his office qualified after receiving correspondence classifying it as a police station. The AG quoted LA Ch.C. Art. 1150(2)'s list of facilities and explained why the term “police station” did not encompass this marshal's office. Its conclusion was that “a marshal’s office is not a ‘designated emergency care facility’” as used in that provision.

Citations

• LA Ch.C. Art. 1150(2) (facility definition quoted in the opinion).

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/05-0042

Original opinion text

July 26, 2005
OPINION NUMBER 05-0042
107 – SHERIFFS, CONSTABLES & MARSHALS

Mr. Earl J. Picard
A marshal’s office is not considered a designated emergency
Marshal, City Court of Lafayette care facility as defined under Louisiana’s Safe Haven law pursuant to LA. Ch.C 1149 et. sq.
Post Office Drawer 3344
Lafayette, Louisiana 70502-3344

Dear Mr. Picard:

You have requested an Attorney General’s opinion regarding Louisiana’s Safe Haven Law pursuant to LA Ch.C. Art. 1149 et. seq. You have indicated that you are in receipt of correspondence from Prevent Child Abuse Louisiana in which it has considered the Lafayette Marshal’s office a police station, therefore determining the marshal’s office to be “designated emergency care facility” under LA Ch.C. art 1150(2).

Your question regarding the Louisiana’s Safe Haven Law is:

Whether the Lafayette City Marshal’s office would be considered a “Designated Emergency Care Facility” as defined under LA Ch.C. Art. 1150(2)?

LA Ch.C. Art. 1150(2) defines what an emergency care facility means. This statute states:

…[A] “designated emergency care facility” means any hospital, licensed in the State of Louisiana, any public health unit, any emergency medical provider, any medical clinic, any fire station, any police station, any pregnancy crisis center, or any child advocacy center.

In order to determine the meaning police station, as used in the above statute, one must look to the established rules of statutory construction. In general, statutory interpretation begins "as [it] must, with the language of the statute." Bailey v. United States, 516 U.S. 137, 116 S.Ct. 501, 506, 133 L.Ed.2d 472 (1995). Where a statute is clear and unambiguous, and its application does not lead to absurd results, the law shall be applied as written and no further interpretation may be made in search of the intent of the legislature. LA C.C. Art. 9. Moreover, "the plain meaning of legislation should be conclusive, except in the 'rare cases in which the literal application of a statute will produce a result demonstrably at odds with the intentions of its drafters' [in which case] the intention of the drafters, rather than the strict language controls." State v. Benoit,

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Opinion No. 05-0042
Mr. Earl J. Picard
Marshal, City Court of Lafayette
Page 2

817 So.2d 11(5/14/02). LA. R.S. 1:3 provides that words and phrases shall be read with their context and shall be construed according to the common and approved usage of the language. LA. C.C. Art. 11 further requires that a word be given its generally prevailing meaning.

In the statute, as stated above, a marshal’s office was not listed or defined as a “designated emergency care facility” where a parent could relinquish their infant without fear of criminal prosecution. If the Louisiana Legislature intended a marshal’s office to be included within that definition the legislature would have stated so specifically. A marshal’s office is not considered to be what is generally accepted by the public as a police station, such as a municipal police station or a sheriff’s office. Some case law has shed light on what is considered a “police station.” In State v. Edwards, 232 La. 577, 604; 94 so.2d 674, 683 (La 1957) the court referred to “a person under arrest being taken to the nearest police station to be then and there booked, the record whereof is always to be kept there open to the public for inspection.” Also State v. Belton, 525 So.2d 77 (La. App. 3rd cir. 1988) in this instance the court referred to a police station as a location where interrogations take place. Since the Lafayette Marshal’s office does not have an interrogation room, you do not book individuals at your office, and no records are kept for public inspection regarding detainees, or persons arrested, it does not seem logical to conclude that your office would be considered a police station.

In conclusion, it is our opinion that a marshal’s office is not a “designated emergency care facility as used in LA Ch.C. Art. 1150(2).

I believe the above addresses your concerns. Should you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office.

Yours very truly,

CHARLES C. FOTI, JR.
ATTORNEY GENERAL

BY: ________
MICHAEL CREIGHTON
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL

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Opinion No. 05-0042
Mr. Earl J. Picard
Marshal, City Court of Lafayette
Page 3

Opinion Number 05-0042

Syllabus

107 – SHERIFFS, CONSTABLES & MARSHALS

A marshal’s office is not considered a designated emergency care facility as defined under Louisiana’s Safe Haven law pursuant to LA. Ch.C 1149 et. sq.

Mr. Earl J. Picard
Marshal, City Court of Lafayette
Post Office Drawer 3344
Lafayette, Louisiana 70502-3344

Date Received:

Date Released: July 26, 2005

MICHAEL CREIGHTON
ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL