BATON ROUGE - An ethics complaint was filed on Thursday, May 21 against seven Metro Council members who voted to approve a new parish attorney on April 30.

The complaint claims that at the time of the vote, attorney John McLindon was the private defense attorney for Councilwoman Laurie Adams' husband in an active criminal investigation. It also claims the other council members were aware of this.

The complaint further claims councilwoman Adams' own vote was unethical because, under state law, a public servant cannot participate in a transaction where a family member has a substantial economic interest.

The complaint also raises concerns that McLindon's agreed-upon salary gives the appearance of being a payoff for attorney fees the Adams family owes him.

The previous parish attorney, Greg Rome, retired in mid-April. McLindon's appointment drew pushback from some council members, including Carolyn Coleman, who believed selecting him would be a conflict of interest.

Adams and her husband are accused of buying a $700,000 home using funds from the Louisiana Oilfield Restoration Association (LORA).

McLindon told WBRZ that he is no longer on that case. He said he recused himself before the April 30 hearing, where he was appointed the parish attorney.

Councilwoman Adams did not respond to our request for comment on the ethics complaint.