Court meeting could result in compromise on Orleans jail

NEW ORLEANS – The battle over control of the troubled New Orleans jail may be coming to an end.

Tuesday morning testimony has been canceled in the federal court case over whether Sheriff Marlin Gusman should continue to run the jail. Gusman has scheduled a morning news conference and a congressional supporter of the sheriff says a compromise has been reached that will avoid a federal takeover.

Details may be forthcoming at a status conference set for the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Lance Africk. In April, lawyers for the U.S. Justice Department and inmate advocates asked Africk to appoint a federal "receiver" to run the lockup. They cited Gusman's slow progress in implementing reforms required in a 2012 lawsuit settlement. Gusman blamed the problems on a lack of funding from the city.