Destrehan attorney Tim Marcel overwhelmingly defeated incumbent Judge Michele Morel in the Nov. 4 election to become division “E” judge in the 29th Judicial District that serves St. Charles Parish.
An audibly exhausted Marcel ultimately characterized the results Wednesday morning in one word: “relief.”
Marcel received nearly 61 percent of the votes. The two had faced off for the seat in 2012, with Morel narrowly defeating Marcel by 168 votes. In this election, Marcel won by a commanding 4,171 votes.
“I am truly humbled by the confidence of the people,” Marcel said.
Morel came under fire in the final weeks of the election for a recusal she filed that inadvertently made the name and address of a juvenile victim of an alleged sex crime a public record. Morel said she accepted responsibility, but asserted that it was the duty of the clerk of court to remove the sensitive information from court filings. Clerk of Court Lance Marino responded in a statement that his office has “no obligation or authority to review or correct … judges’ errors,” but that the office “acted quickly to protect the privacy of the juvenile.”
Marcel secured victory despite the fact that several mailers sent by the Morel camp touted Marcel’s past arrests for driving while under the influence. However, most voters were aware of the issue when it was brought up in the 2012 election.
“Anyone can turn their life around, and I serve as a perfect example of that,” Marcel wrote in a letter.
Supporters of Marcel regularly attacked the Morel camp for running a negative campaign. Marcel said many of the people he spoke to while campaigning were “really put off by the negativity.”
Marcel received high-profile endorsements from other elected parish officials, including Marino, District Attorney Joel T. Chaisson and Sheriff Greg Champagne.
Early-voting results favored Marcel nearly three-to-one.
Marcel said, however, that he didn’t place too much confidence in those numbers early on based on how early voting ultimately worked against him in the last election.
“I guess I was a little gun shy based on what happened in early voting last time,” Marcel said. “To win early voting was huge–it has become a big factor for every candidate in every campaign.”
Marcel and his family watched the results come in primarily from his office on Paul Maillard Road, but later joined an election night party being held at the River Room at the Esperanza Ballroom in Luling.
“I look forward to starting this chapter of my professional life,” Marcel said. “I’m excited about what I can do to make our community even better.”
With the victory, Marcel now becomes one of three judges serving St. Charles Parish.He will take his place on the bench sometime after the new year.
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