AND ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST...

This one is kinda personal...kinda. Jerry Fowler has died. Fowler was from Coushatta, LA, a football star in college, played for the Houston Oilers for a while, and became State Elections Commissioner, succeeding his Daddy in the job...and another in the long, long, long, long line of Long-style crooks in Louisiana politics.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune is reporting:

BATON ROUGE - Former state elections commissioner Jerry Fowler has died in Baton Rouge after surgery battling an illness, a state official confirmed today.

Fowler held the statewide elected position from 1980 to 1999, following his father who also held the office. The position is no longer an elected office and the duties are handled by the secretary of state.

In 2005, Fowler was released after serving more than four years in federal prison for accepting millions of dollars in kickbacks on voting machines.

Fowler pleaded guilty in November 2000 to bilking the state out of $900,000 between 1991 and 1999, but he is believed to have made roughly $3 million on the schemes. His attorney has said Fowler spent the money gambling.

Fowler's wife, Mari Ann Fowler, was kidnapped Christmas Eve 2002 on her way to the Texas prison where her husband was serving his term. Her body was never found; a judge declared her dead in May 2004.

What makes it kinda personal is that Mari Ann Fowler was the cousin (and best friend) of a dear friend of my Momma. Her body has never been found. I have always suspected that Jerry was about to start spewing on all of his crooked cohorts in order to gain an early release from the Federal Pen... His wife disappeared mysteriously, and he stayed in the graybar hotel until '05. Just a suspicion...but having followed Louisiana politics since I was a pup, I'm pretty sure a message was sent.

Well, Fowler is gone now. He was 67...sure seemed a lot older than that to me. I hope he made things right with Jesus...