Attorney General says group of Kenner City Councilmembers violated open meetings law with letter

KENNER, La. (WVUE) - Attorney General Liz Murrill’s office has informed Kenner city leadership that it believes a group of Kenner city councilmembers violated Louisiana’s open meetings law.

The investigation stemmed from an ongoing dispute over who will represent Kenner in its lone spot on the New Orleans Aviation Board and how that process works.

Kenner City Councilmembers George Branigan and Kristi McKinney both requested Murrill’s legal opinion after a majority of the council sent a letter to Mayor Helena Moreno informing her of their nominee choices.

A majority of the council (Councilmembers Joe Stagni, Tom Willmott, Joey LaHatte and Danny Riehm) sent Moreno a letter on Aug. 25 informing them of their three nominees to fill the position.

Per an inter-city agreement, Moreno then chose Barry Ranshi to fill the Kenner seat. The New Orleans City Council signed off.

However, the letter came after an Aug. 21 Kenner City Council meeting where the council majority approved the list, but Mayor Mike Glaser’s signaled he would veto.

Murrill’s letter to the city’s elected leaders states that Glaser followed through “on or about” Aug. 23.

On Sept. 3, the Kenner City Council failed to override Glaser’s veto.

Murrill’s letter reads in part:

“The Letter to the New Orleans Mayor was not the product of deliberation or action taken at a meeting open to the public. No notice of any meeting at which the Council deliberated upon or decided to issue the Letter was posted or otherwise provided to the public. The public was not afforded an opportunity to observe the deliberations or to provide input before the Council acted.”

Murrill notes that the letter is rendered “voidable.”

The Moreno administration had accepted the letter.

In a Sept. 4 letter to Stagni, Moreno’s Executive Counsel Adam Swensek pointed to the inter-city agreement.

He said the Kenner City Council recommended the nominees, without noting the Kenner Mayor’s approval.

Fox 8 has reached out to the Moreno administration for comment on the letter and the status of Ranshi’s position.

A spokesperson for the Kenner city administration released a statement reading:

“The City has just received this correspondence and is currently reviewing it with the appropriate parties. We are evaluating the matter and our available courses of action. At this time, it would be premature to comment further until that review is complete.”

McKinney released a statement reading:

“I appreciate the Attorney General’s Office reviewing this matter and confirming that Louisiana’s Open Meetings Law was violated.

My concern from the beginning has been about the process, not the individuals involved. The public deserves transparency, accountability, and confidence that its elected officials are conducting business openly and in accordance with the law."

Stagni referred Fox 8 to a Sept. 29 letter to Murrill, reading in part:

“There was no open meetings law violation with the August 25, 2026 letter to the New Orleans Mayor. There was no meeting to sign the letter, no new information contained in the letter, no new names recommended and no deliberations. The letter simply conveyed the information inside the resolution debated four days earlier at an open public meeting.”

Stagni said the issue is resolved, and pointed to Moreno’s selection.

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