Orleans Parish Assistant District Attorney Ian Kersting was reportedly found dead in an apparent suicide on Saturday night inside the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office building.
According to Fox 8, the 34-year-old assistant district attorney was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound at roughly 9 p.m. on Saturday night at the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office building, which is located at 619 South White St. New Orleans police officials confirmed that while emergency medical services arrived at the building, the assistant district attorney was pronounced dead at the scene.
In a statement obtained by Fox 8, the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office said, “The Orleans Parish DA’s Office family suffered a terrible tragedy Saturday night.”
“Assistant District Attorney Ian Kersting was a beloved member of our office, and we send our love and deepest condolences to his family,” officials added in a statement. “It’s important that we support each other right now, and we ask the media respect the privacy of the individuals impacted.”
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Fox 8 reported that a spokesman for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office later explained that the office would be closed on Monday to allow the “entire OPDA team” to be “addressed by grief and trauma counselors in the wake of an unexpected tragedy.”
The spokesman added, “We extend our deepest gratitude to the judges of Criminal District Court and Juvenile Court, as well as the Orleans Public Defenders, for their extraordinary compassion and humanity during this challenging time, as there will be members of our staff who will require time to cope and heal.”
The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office is expected to return to normal operations on Tuesday, according to Fox 8.
Fox News reported that Kersting worked as a sexual harassment case specialist for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office and was assigned to the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative. The Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office’s Sexual Assault Kit Initiative partners with the New Orleans Police Department to investigate and prosecute sex crimes with the aid of DNA evidence.
A picture of Kersting was shared Sunday on X, formerly Twitter.
