Grand jury indicts firing of West Baton Rouge sheriff's reserve deputy

PORT ALLEN — West Baton Rouge Sheriff's Deputy Shawn Pardazi was indicted today by a grand jury in Port Allen.

Pardazi was a reserve deputy of the WBRSO. He was fired in February 2023 after allegedly shooting at a vehicle he and another deputy had stopped, according to WBRSO. WBRSO tells UKK the vehicle was stolen from the home of the former Port Allen police chief. Pardazi and another deputy noticed this and attempted to stop the driver on June 15, 2022.

Pardazi is accused of shooting into the rear of that vehicle when the driver took off. The reserve deputy at the time is also accused of broadcasting the incident live on social media.

Since then, the West Baton Rouge Sheriff's Office launched an investigation and Shawn Pardazi was fired.

On May 30, 2024, the case was brought before a West Baton Rouge grand jury and it returned an actual bill for malfeasance in the line of duty and unlawful use of a weapon.

UKK reached out to Pardazi's attorney, John McLindon, for comment.

“We are obviously very disappointed, but the defense cannot choose what evidence will be presented to the grand jury. The district attorney has complete discretion and for whatever reason he did not call the other deputy who was in the car and I think if the grand jury had heard from the other deputy the outcome would have been different,” McLindon said.

No booking photos were provided due to Law No. 494, which places restrictions on photos released to the media for most offenses, with exceptions for certain violent crimes.

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