Lafayette Mayor-President Monique Blanco Boulet announces appointments for administration

Lafayette Mayor-President elect Monique Blanco Boulet announced a first round of appointees for her administration’s leadership.

“I’m proud of the team we are assembling, one that will send a strong message about the kind of transparency and integrity this administration will usher in,” Boulet said.

The following individuals will begin serving, or continue service, when Boulet’s administration begins in January.

Under the Home Rule Charter, the appointment of the City-Parish Attorney is subject to approval by the City Council and the Parish Council.

City-Parish Attorney - Patrick S. Ottinger, Esq.

Ottinger served as city-parish attorney from January 2004 to February 2011, a period longer than any other city-parish attorney since the consolidation of governmental functions in 1996.

“I am honored that Mayor-President elect Boulet asked me to serve in this important position, and I look forward to undertaking the duties and responsibilities as director of the Legal Department and as city-parish attorney,” Ottinger said.

Ottinger is a graduate of Lafayette High School, the University of Southwestern Louisiana and the Paul M. Hebert Law Center at Louisiana State University. He has practiced law in Lafayette since 1974, served as president of the Lafayette Parish Bar Association in 1992, and the Louisiana State Bar Association in 1998-99.  Since 1996, he has served as an adjunct professor of law at his alma mater.  In June 2018, he was awarded the Louisiana Bar Foundation’s 2018 Curtis R. Boisfontaine Trial Advocacy Award. He practices law in the firm of Ottinger Hebert LLC.

Boulet said that Ottinger's name come up in several discussions with a diverse set of leaders in the parish.

“Due to his vast experience, I am confident that, once confirmed by the councils, Pat will hit the ground running to fashion a legal department of which we can all be proud," Boulet said. "He has agreed to undertake these responsibilities for such a period of time as might be necessary to accomplish these distinct objectives, and to organize a legal department to best serve the interest of Lafayette Consolidated Government, and correspondingly, the public.”

City of Lafayette Chief of Police - Judith Estorge

Estorge currently serves as chief, and is the first female Chief of Police at the Lafayette Police Department.

Estorge served as a patrol officer, a traffic/motor officer, in ATAC (OWI enforcement), as a homicide detective in CID, a sergeant in the Precinct 3 area, a watch commander and the commander/captain of Precinct 4.

A Lafayette native, Estorge attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, majoring in Criminal Justice. She joined the Lafayette Police Department in 1993.

City of Lafayette Fire Chief - Robert P. Benoit 

Benoit has served as Fire Chief of the City of Lafayette since 1993. Born and raised in Lafayette, he joined the department in 1979 and worked in nearly every division within the department during his career.

He is a graduate of ULL (B.S.) and LSU-Eunice (Fire Science). Benoit is the first Black fire chief in city's history and is known for ushering in state-of-the-art training and operations in the interests of employees and our families to prevent loss of life and property.

“I look forward to working with Chief Estorage and Chief Benoit,” Boulet said. “Public safety will be a top priority for my administration, and after visiting with both, I am confident they will continue to provide the leadership necessary to protect our families and our property. I want our first responders to know they will always have my support and my administration will always do what is necessary for them to be able to successfully protect and serve the people of Lafayette.”

Boulet said the appointments reflect her commitment to building a strong team.

"My campaign focused on a commitment to building an effective and ethical government that can set a strong foundation for our businesses and families to grow," Boulet said in a Facebook post. "The most critical step we can take is to build a strong team of public servants. Today I'm focusing appointments that can create an ethical government focused on public safety."

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Lafayette mayor-president elect appoints attorney, police chief, fire chief