August 26, 2026

NEW ORLEANS — An Orleans Parish jury found Nathaniel T. Neely (Case No. 562851) guilty as charged on August 21st of aggravated kidnapping, armed robbery with a firearm and carjacking. Assistant District Attorney Savannah Robinson led the prosecution during a four-day trial before Judge Marcus DeLarge in Section K of Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. Andre Gaudin, OPDA’s Chief of Information and Technology and a veteran trial prosecutor, served as second chair.

The jury began deliberating at 4:04 p.m. and returned with a unanimous verdict at 4:54 p.m. The court remanded Neely and set sentencing for Sept. 24, 2026. Under Louisiana law, aggravated kidnapping carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation or suspension of sentence.

The case adds to ADA Robinson’s strong run. On April 29th, she joined Homicide Unit Chief Matthew Derbes in securing guilty-as-charged verdicts against Nickolas Stackpoole for second-degree murder, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and obstruction of justice. On August 5th, Lionel Anderson pleaded guilty as charged after the State began presenting its case in a trial handled by Assistant District Attorneys Robinson and Jacob Alterman. The court imposed an effective 10-year sentence.

The pace matters. Anderson entered his plea 98 days after the Stackpoole verdicts, and the Neely verdict followed 16 days later. A trial prosecutor cannot prepare those matters one at a time. Motions, witness meetings, evidence review and court appearances continue across the docket, even when one case is in trial. Robinson’s recent cases reflect the discipline to keep each file moving without losing command of the details.

Her assignments also show a steady increase in responsibility. ADA Robinson moved from working beside the Homicide Unit chief, to sharing responsibility for a gun-violence prosecution, to leading the State v. Neely case. Each step required her to own more strategic decisions and more of the courtroom presentation. That progression reflects both the work she has put in and the confidence the office is placing in her.

The clerk’s minutes offer a glimpse of how ADA Robinson and Chief Gaudin divided the courtroom work in Neely.

Gaudin’s work is far from a jury box. As Chief of Information and Technology, he works on the data, technology and coordination behind New Orleans Data-Informed Community Engagement (NODICE). The NODICE initiative helps OPDA and its partners identify patterns, share information and direct attention where coordinated action is most needed.

Returning to trial also kept Gaudin’s work outside the courtroom connected to the daily demands of prosecution. Data and technology are most useful when they answer questions that lawyers and public-safety partners actually face. Four days at counsel table gave him a current view of what takes time, where information matters and how quickly a plan can change once testimony begins.

His second-chair assignment was also an investment in Robinson. Gaudin reviewed strategy, challenged assumptions and was available when circumstances changed. Robinson kept control of the prosecution while gaining a veteran sounding board at the moments when it was most useful.

With the Neely trial complete, the value of that work carries forward. ADA Robinson adds another demanding trial to her courtroom experience. Chief Gaudin returns to NODICE, technology and the development of younger attorneys with a fresh view from the counsel table. The benefit will be felt in future cases, across the office and in OPDA’s continued service to New Orleans.

Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office
(504) 822-2414  |  communications@orleansda.com  |  orleansda.com