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Despite deadly on-duty crash, ex-LSP leader's son transferring to coveted new role
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BATON ROUGE - A Louisiana state trooper responsible for the deaths of two children in a car he crashed in 2020 is being transferred to the agency's intelligence division.
Kaleb Reeves is the son of former LSP Superintendent Kevin Reeves. The elder Reeves resigned amid clouds of controversy after Ronald Greene died in State Police custody in May of 2019. The WBRZ Investigative Unit uncovered Reeves had his phone sanitized during state and federal investigations into Greene's death.
Reeves' colleagues at State Police think the transfer continues the good-ole-boy network way of doing things and don't think it's a good look for the agency. State Police called the transfer a "lateral move," and said Reeves would not receive a pay increase. However, troopers say the position is highly sought-after and is looked at as a promotion.
"It's horrible in every way," LSU Law Professor Ken Levy said. "It's horrible optics, it's horrible ethics. There were probably many other well qualified officers that could have been promoted. Why him? It just stinks."
The WBRZ Investigative Unit showed you in the past, before Reeves was hired on at State Police, he had a long history of crashing. Through a public records request, the WBRZ Investigative Unit uncovered Reeves was involved in three crashes involving units in Jackson Parish. Just like at State Police, Reeves was considered at-fault in two of the wrecks.
In 2017, lawmakers passed an exemption to Louisiana's ethics code to allow Reeves' son to keep working as a state trooper despite his father's promotion to the top spot. Kevin Reeves resigned amid numerous controversies weeks after his son's last wreck.
"It boggles the mind," Levy said. "This is a guy who just two years ago... killed an 18-year-old and an 11-year-old driving recklessly... got a suspension from the force and is now being promoted for it. Most people would have been punished for it and many are."
Levy said Reeves has been the recipient of enormous favors presumably because of who his dad is.
"Kaleb Reeves is enjoying every kind of privilege that most other Louisianans don't," Levy said. "It's wrong. It's unfair and we should not allow this to happen."
Levy said he does not think Kaleb should have been promoted into this position, and believes his father Kevin Reeves committed crimes while leading State Police when he had his phone sanitized.
"You have crimes. Sanitizing phones is arguably obstruction of justice, and he gets away with that," Levy said. "His son is killing people, and he gets away with that. And not only does he get away with it, he's being promoted. There's no consequences, no accountability and rampant privilege."
Levy said what's happening here is a real morale killer. He wants to see something done about it.
"This is Louisiana State Police, so not only will this erode the public's morale but everybody... the whole public's morale," Levy said. "How do we trust people like this when they are so transparently corrupt? I don't see how we can."
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