(August 7, 2026) — Two Pearl River Police Department officers approved for $5,000 law-enforcement recruitment incentive payments have still not received that money, and court filings and government correspondence reviewed by APR•St Tammany provide a documented explanation of what happened to the funds.

From our understanding of these documents & what they mean. APR•St Tammany is not a lawyer nor are we a legal expert.

The records show that $10,000 was withheld from money payable to the Town of Pearl River and ultimately transferred to the Municipal Police Employees’ Retirement System (MPERS) because of delinquent retirement obligations attributed to the Town.

The two officers, Courtney Badon and Sheldon Major, were each approved for a $5,000 Law Enforcement Recruitment Incentive, according to documents filed in Badon’s subsequent small-claims case against the Town.

Importantly, MPERS has expressly stated that the officers are not responsible for Pearl River’s retirement delinquency and that the Town remains responsible for paying their incentives.

What happened to the $10,000?

The clearest paper trail comes from correspondence involving the Louisiana Department of Treasury and MPERS.

An October 2025 email from Karen Loftin, executive counsel for the Office of State Treasurer John Fleming, states:

“There is currently $10,000 being withheld from payment to the Town of Pearl River.”

The email further states that if an agreement was not reached between Pearl River and MPERS, the money would be transferred to MPERS.

The records show that is ultimately what occurred.

In subsequent correspondence, MPERS Chief Financial Officer Taylor Camp stated that MPERS’ records showed the funds had been sent from the Treasurer’s Office to MPERS.

Camp was also clear about who MPERS believed remained responsible for paying the officers:

“The duty belongs to Pearl River to pay the incentive.”

That distinction is important.

The documents do not show that Badon or Major lost their eligibility for the $5,000 incentives. Instead, they show that the $10,000 associated with the two payments became caught up in a separate financial dispute involving the Town of Pearl River and MPERS.

MPERS says this is not the officers’ debt

Another email from MPERS Executive Director and General Counsel Ben Huxen provides an even more direct explanation.

Huxen wrote that Louisiana law required the Treasurer to transmit the Law Enforcement Recruitment Incentive Program funds directly to MPERS to satisfy part of Pearl River’s delinquent retirement-contribution obligations.

According to Huxen, MPERS would credit those funds toward the Town’s delinquency.

But Huxen also expressly stated:

“The officers bear no responsibility for Pearl River’s delinquency”

and said Pearl River’s duty to pay the officers their incentive payments remained intact.

In other words, according to MPERS, the $10,000 was applied against a debt attributed to the Town — not a debt owed by Badon or Major.

The underlying MPERS dispute

The reason the incentive money became involved traces back to a much larger dispute over Pearl River’s handling of retirement enrollment and contributions for police employees.

Several Pearl River police employees filed suit against the Town and Mayor Joe Lee, alleging the Town failed to properly enroll eligible employees in MPERS and failed to make required retirement contributions.

The lawsuit identifies Badon, Major, Police Chief Jack Sessions and Cameron Hillhouse among employees whom the plaintiffs allege were required to be enrolled in MPERS but did not file the statutory waiver affidavit required to opt out.

Louisiana law, as described in the court filings, allowed certain Pearl River employees to elect not to participate in MPERS because the municipality participated in Social Security before July 1, 1973. However, the filings state that such an election required a waiver affidavit executed in accordance with state law.

The lawsuit alleges Pearl River failed to properly enroll eligible employees and remit required contributions. Those remain allegations in pending litigation, and APR•St Tammany is not presenting them as findings by a court.

MPERS separately takes action against Pearl River

The dispute did not end with the officers’ lawsuit.

MPERS itself later filed a Petition for Writ of Mandamus against the Town of Pearl River, Mayor Joe Lee and members of the Board of Aldermen.

MPERS alleges Pearl River failed to properly report compensation and remit required retirement contributions. The retirement system contends those failures resulted in delinquent contributions, lost investment earnings and additional financial liabilities.

MPERS is asking the court to compel Pearl River officials to correct compensation reports, appropriate sufficient money to satisfy the obligations and remit required contributions along with applicable interest, penalties and costs.

Again, those allegations have not been finally adjudicated.

Badon files her own claim for the $5,000

Badon has since filed a separate claim against the Town seeking her $5,000 incentive payment.

In a handwritten statement included with the filing, Badon describes both herself and Major as having been approved for the incentive and recounts the communications surrounding the withheld money.

As of the date described in her filing, Badon stated that neither officer had received the $5,000.

The Town disputes Badon’s claim and has requested its dismissal. That case remains unresolved, meaning a court has not yet determined whether Badon is legally entitled to recover the $5,000 directly from Pearl River.

So why haven’t the officers been paid?

Based on the government correspondence and court records reviewed by APR•St Tammany, the documented reason is not that Badon or Major were disqualified from receiving the incentive.

The records instead show this sequence:

1. Badon and Major were approved for $5,000 incentive payments.

2. The Louisiana Treasury withheld $10,000 from money payable to the Town of Pearl River.

3. The withheld money became subject to Pearl River’s outstanding MPERS retirement obligations.

4. The funds were ultimately transferred to MPERS and credited toward Pearl River’s delinquency.

5. MPERS maintains that using those funds toward the Town’s retirement debt did not eliminate Pearl River’s obligation to pay Badon and Major their incentives.

According to the documents, the officers’ $10,000 became entangled in the Town’s unresolved retirement-contribution dispute, and MPERS says the responsibility for paying the officers now rests with Pearl River.

The records reviewed by APR•St Tammany do not establish that Badon or Major caused the retirement delinquency. To the contrary, MPERS specifically stated that the officers bear no responsibility for Pearl River’s delinquency.

The underlying MPERS litigation and Badon’s separate claim against the Town remain pending, and the allegations contained in those lawsuits should not be considered final judicial findings.

APR•St Tammany will continue following the court proceedings and any additional public records concerning the unpaid incentive payments.