Lawyers for former New Orleans Police Department officer Jeffrey Vappie have asked to be removed from his case, citing his inability to pay them.
The motion was made by attorneys Shaun Clarke and Harry Rosenberg.
Vappie is charged alongside former Mayor LaToya Cantrell in a wide-ranging indictment centering on travel by the two and an alleged effort to cover it up.
The federal government alleges that Vappie and Cantrell were in a relationship.
A magistrate judge granted the withdrawal request and assigned Vappie a court-appointed public defender.
To avoid delaying the October trial set, the court appointed Vappie’s previous lawyer, Shaun Clarke, to represent him.
The only difference now is that instead of Vappie paying Clarke, the federal government is covering his legal fees.
Vappie and Cantrell have both pleaded not guilty and are set to stand trial in October.
More on indictment:
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell was indicted in August 2025 by a grand jury.
Cantrell is facing charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, conspiracy to obstruct justice, false statements, obstruction of justice and false declaration before a grand jury.
Former New Orleans Police Department officer Jeffrey Vappie is facing new allegations in Cantrell’s indictment.
The indictment alleges that in October 2021, Cantrell and Vappie developed a personal relationship and hid that relationship to maximize their time together.
Cantrell and Vappie are accused of exploiting their public positions to develop and implement a scheme to defraud the city of New Orleans.
They are accused of engaging in personal activities while Vappie was paid to be on her security detail.
Vappie often traveled with the mayor on trips paid for by the city. In total, Vappie’s trips cost the city of New Orleans more than $70,000, which is separate from Cantrell’s travel amounts, according to the indictment.
Cantrell and Vappie are also accused of using encrypted messages to hide their relationship through the app WhatsApp.
Both are accused of deleting photos and messages, making false statements about their relationship to federal law enforcement agents, and testifying falsely under oath.
In 2021, Vappie was accused of going on trips with Cantrell 14 times between 2021 and 2024.
Vappie is also accused of spending time alone with Cantrell in the Pontalba apartment that Cantrell stayed in.
When the grand jury investigation began in 2023, the indictment alleges both Cantrell and Vappie lied about their relationship, specifically about gifts they gave each other.
Vappie and Cantrell are also accused of exchanging more than 15,000 messages and pictures. Both are accused of deleting the messages they exchanged.
Cantrell is also accused of concealing documents and records in an effort to hide information from the grand jury.
The federal government is asking Cantrell and Vappie to forfeit any property related to the allegations against them and may seek a money judgment.
Cantrell becomes the first sitting mayor to face federal charges in the city’s history.
Timeline of investigation:
In September 2022, the Metropolitan Crime Commission issued a report shedding light on Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s use of the then-city-owned Pontalba apartment.
The MCC issued photos of her entering the apartment, attending gym classes in the French Quarter, and sitting on the balcony.
The report accused the mayor of living at the apartment full-time.
In November 2022, it came to light that one of the mayor’s officers on her security detail, Jeffrey Vappie, was accused of having a relationship with the mayor while also working on her detail.
An investigation was launched by the PIB into the allegations and Vappie was later taken off the mayor’s detail.
Vappie’s timecards would become the center of a PIB investigation. His timecards showed him routinely working more than 16-hour shifts while serving on the mayor’s security team.
Leaked audio from the PIB investigation showed Vappie being grilled on staying at the Pontalba apartments at the same time as the mayor.
A divorce filing from Vappie’s wife alleged that their possible relationship started in 2021.
The PIB’s investigation concluded that Vappie violated NOPD’s professionalism rules and duties, as well as timecard infractions.
A federal judge ruled that the PIB’s investigation violated the consent decree due to the way it was handled.
Some of those violations include:
- Failing to accurately and completely record all allegations against Vappie.
- Failing to give meaningful consideration to circumstantial evidence available to the PIB investigators that could have suggested to a reasonable person that Vappie charged the NOPD for time not worked.
- Failing to take reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of its investigatory materials.
In response to this federal ruling, NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick sent Judge Morgan a remedial plan. She promised to improve PIB training and be more transparent with investigations with monitors during the process.
Following the PIB investigation and federal ruling, Vappie was reassigned to the mayor’s security team in January 2023.
Vappie continued on the mayor’s detail until April 25, 2024, when new photos surfaced of Mayor Cantrell and Vappie eating lunch in the French Quarter.
The MCC pressed for an investigation into whether or not the lunch was paid for by the city.
The pictures showed Cantrell and Vappie drinking wine during the lunch. The MCC also questioned whether or not Vappie was on the clock.
In June 2024, it was confirmed that Vappie would be resigning from the NOPD effective June 29.
He had been with the department since 1997.
READ MORE:Former NOPD officer assigned public defender after lawyers withdraw
