Deputy cousins

If you follow local politics you've probably already met the Mayor's Cousin Gary.  He's become an occasional vanity candidate in recent election cycles. Most recently, Cousin Gary challenged (sort of) Congressman Cedric Richmond in what was less a political campaign that it was a series of dueling  lawsuits.  In 2012, he ran near the back of a crowded City Council  At-Large field distinguishing himself by his creative plan to rid the city of its hated traffic cameras.

"When I say we're going to get rid of those traffic cameras, those traffic cameras are going to be removed," he said. "I am going to personally remove them if I have to personally go get a garbage truck from the department of garbage and go run them over with a garbage truck."

The Landrieus are a publicly Catholic family so naturally there are a lot of them.  Gary isn't the only one prone to road rage.

Kenneth Landrieu, a cousin of Mayor Mitch Landrieu who was arrested Monday in an alleged road rage incident last week in the Lower Garden District, said Wednesday that he acted out of fear when, according to police, he whipped out a gun and drew a bead on another driver.

Landrieu, 52, faces counts of aggravated assault with a firearm and impersonating a peace officer, a lesser count that he said he expects to be dismissed.

Cousin Kenneth also brandished some sort of badge that he has for some reason that is unclear.

Landrieu, a first cousin to the mayor and the brother of former congressional hopeful Gary Landrieu, said that until the incident Thursday, he was, “as far as I know,” a commissioned reserve officer in good standing at a local law enforcement agency. The 6th District officers who arrested him “knew or should have known that,” he said.

He refused, however, to disclose the agency for which he volunteers but said he turned in his badge pending the outcome of the criminal case.

The Advocate hadn't pinned down which agency had given Cousin Kenneth his badge when that story ran.  I know we've got like 700 Deputy Mayors running around already. Do they have badges?