Top Stories New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS – The jury now has the case in the civil trial over the city’s crime cameras.

Deliberations, which could last several days, ended around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday. They’re set to continue Wednesday.

A second attorney for Dell started his closing statements, talking about how, in his opinion, Southern Electronics, the plaintiffs, largely over inflated how much money they could have made had they started selling crime cameras with Dell.

Randy Smith, the attorney for defendant Greg Meffert, the former technology chief for the city, told the jury that his client did not want to be in the crime camera business. Meffert, Smith contends, consulted with NetMethods on other technology issues for business outside of the city.

Smith told the jury the NetMethods credit card that Meffert used to pay for a trip to Hawaii with Mayor Ray Nagin was his “consulting pay” and the card was used by the plaintiffs as a red herring.

Like the other three attorneys in the case, Smith tried to show the plaintiffs as greedy, pointing out that they withheld cameras and service from the city following Hurricane Katrina because the city had paid them.

“I’m a little tired of suggestion that Mr. Meffert is the bad guy here,” Smith said. “He is only one who actually served this city.”