Calvin Duncan is a Black exoneree, law school graduate, advocate, and current Clerk-Elect for the Criminal Court in New Orleans Parish. He is being targeted by high-level Louisiana officials for his advocacy for racial and criminal justice. 

On April 29, 2026, on behalf of Calvin Duncan, the Center for Constitutional Rights and the ACLU of Louisiana filed a lawsuit against Louisiana Governor Jeffrey Landry; Secretary of State Nancy Landry; Civil District Court Clerk Chelsey Napoleon; and Attorney General Elizabeth Murrill to challenge their coordinated, unconstitutional efforts to eliminate an elected office and, more uniquely, suppress Mr. Duncan’s protected freedom of speech through various forms of retaliation and punishment.

On November 16, 2025, in a landmark run-off election, Mr. Duncan garnered 68 percent of the vote to become the newly elected Clerk of Criminal Court in New Orleans Parish. He ran an unapologetic campaign with the promise of criminal justice reform by underscoring his lived experiences as an exonerated person who was wrongfully convicted and imprisoned for 28 years in Louisiana. Specifically, his campaign platform included pledges to improve record-keeping and evidence preservation and improve access to records, campaign promises that would undoubtedly benefit the disproportionate number of Black New Orleanians targeted by the criminal legal system. He coupled this with his professional acumen as a jailhouse lawyer and advocate, assisting many other similarly situated people in the criminal legal system. This personal win and remarkable example of building voting power are currently being marred by Louisiana officials who seek to chill Mr. Duncan’s protected free speech, ignore the will of the people of New Orleans, and prevent Mr. Duncan from swearing in to his duly elected position on May 4, 2026. 

On April 7, 2026, at the behest of Governor Landry, and after an aggressive push from the GOP to act quickly, the Louisiana Senate voted 25-11 to pass SB256, a bill that will merge the civil and criminal clerk offices and ultimately eliminate Mr. Duncan’s position before he has the opportunity to start. In addition to SB256, Gov. Landry’s 2026 legislative agenda includes two other bills that would remove judicial positions in Orleans Parish. Taken together, these bills undermine local voting power and overhaul the judicial system in Orleans Parish without any input from New Orleans voters or elected officials.  In advance of SB256 being signed into law, officials are taking steps to consolidate the responsibilities of the Criminal and Civil clerks under a new title “Clerk of Court,” and ensure the current Civil Clerk (who ran unopposed and therefore did not appear on the ballot in the most recent election) is installed in this new position, all without holding a special election – as required by law when a position becomes vacant. These are deep infringements on Mr. Duncan’s civil rights and the broader voting rights of the New Orleans electorate.

This lawsuit is aligned with the Center for Constitutional Rights' historical work defending candidates and elected officials, especially those who are opposed by the establishment because of their power- and world-building visions for their communities, including in Mississippi and New York.