Leesville Mayor Rick Allen has faced public scrutiny since the news of a 2020 lawsuit settlement broke in April.

Five years ago, the Leesville City Council unanimously approved a $299,000 lawsuit settlement without informing the public about the contents of the suit. In March 2020, a complaint was jointly filed against Allen; Patti Larney, city administrator; former city supervisors Jim Doulin James, golf course manager, and Christopher Fox, assistant project manager and project manager; and the City of Leesville by former Leesville employees Amanda Stoots and Robyn Bassett.

Stoots and Bassett’s complaint pertained to a succession of harassment, discrimination and conspired retaliation between mid-2017 and 2019, according to the lawsuit documents, which were sent to the American Press anonymously. It also cited “constant discrimination” based on their gender.

Suit Contents

The 32-page suit claims that Allen pursued a year-long consensual romantic and sexual relationship with Stoots, which began in September 2018.

Stoots said during the relationship with Allen, she experienced severe and prolonged sexual harassment from her then-supervisor, Fox. Months after she complained to Allen about Fox’s sexual harassment, Fox was fired for “insubordination” after a second woman submitted a sexual harassment claim against Fox.

In October 2019, Allen ended the relationship with Stoots and immediately became “highly critical of Ms. Stoots’ job performance,” the suit states. Stoots had received several promotions, but a month after Allen ended their relationship, she was demoted to assistant project manager. Fox was then rehired to replace her, and the harassment began again.

She was demoted one more time before being fired in December 2019.

The Leesville municipal website lists Fox as the director of public works.

Bassett, who began working at the Leesville Municipal Golf course in 2016, said she faced sexual, homophobic and racial harassment from then-supervisor Doulin, as well as her subordinates. Additionally, Bassett said she experienced retaliation from Larney for reporting the harassment to human resources. After being reassigned and “carefully scrutinized,” Bassett was fired in 2019 due to “insubordination and failure to show up for work,” even though she was told not to come into work because it was raining, suit documents state.

The suit also cited gender-based pay discrimination against both women.

The city paid $299,000 to settle the case, according to the settlement agreement; $112,125 to Bassett and $186,875 to Stoots.

Controversy

A small group gathered to protest before the city council meeting on April 14, KALB reported. They called for transparency, accountability and the resignation of Allen after learning of the lawsuit, condemning the use of city dollars to settle a suit that involved Allen’s relationship with a subordinate without informing the public.

The American Press reached out to Allen’s office multiple times for comment on the suit and protest, but did not receive a response.

Allen – who also serves as the president of the Louisiana Municipal Association – is the third in a series of Louisiana mayors to receive backlash after controversies involving sex. This pattern began last year.

Former DeRidder Mayor Misty Claton Roberts, 42, was indicted on counts of felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile and contributing to the delinquency of juveniles – when an individual over the age of 17 has sexual intercourse with a minor that is 13 to 16 years old – in 2024. This indictment was amended in April to include a third charge of felony indecent behavior with a juvenile.

The Louisiana State Police Special Victims Unit received a request from the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office to investigate a complaint against Clanton in July. That month, she resigned from office. In August, she was arrested and booked into the Beauregard Parish Detention Center on higher charges of third-degree rape and contributing to the delinquency of juveniles. She was later released on bond.

On the other side of the state in Washington Parish, Bogalusa Mayor Tyrin Truong, 25, was arrested by LSP during a drug trafficking investigation conducted by the LSP Narcotics/Violent Crime Task Force. According to a LSP release, the task force began working with the 22nd Judicial District Court District Attorney’s Office, the Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill’s Office, and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality in April 2024.

The investigation revealed that a drug trafficking organization (DTO) operating in the Bogalusa area was distributing controlled substances, including opioids, high-grade cannabis, THC products and MDMA. Investigation also discovered that the DTO used drug sale profits to purchase firearms.

Truong was booked into the Washington Parish Jail on the counts of transactions involving proceeds from drug offenses, unauthorized use of a movable and soliciting for prostitutes on January 7. He was later released on a $150,000 bond and returned to work the next day.

He has not yet been formally charged.