ENROLLED
2019 Regular Session
HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 316
BY REPRESENTATIVES JAMES, BAGNERIS, BOUIE, BRASS, CARPENTER, GARY
CARTER, COX, DUPLESSIS, FRANKLIN, GAINES, GLOVER, JIMMY
HARRIS, JACKSON, JEFFERSON, JENKINS, JORDAN, TERRY LANDRY,
LARVADAIN, LYONS, MARCELLE, DUSTIN MILLER, MOORE, NORTON,
PIERRE, AND SMITH
A RESOLUTION
To express the condolences of the House of Representatives upon the death of J. Ashley
Mitchell Carter, former attorney for the Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee
of the Louisiana Legislature.
WHEREAS, it is with deep regret and profound sorrow that the members of the
House of Representatives of the Legislature of Louisiana have learned of the death at age
thirty-four of J. Ashley Mitchell Carter, a dedicated public servant and brilliant attorney who
left this world on May 27, 2019; and
WHEREAS, Ashley was born on April 16, 1985, to James "J. B." and Jennifer Gail
Walker Mitchell in Shreveport, Louisiana; she graduated with honors from Louisiana State
University with a bachelor of arts in political science and a minor in psychology; she also
graduated with honors from Southern University with a master of social sciences in political
science and earned her juris doctor degree from Southern University; and
WHEREAS, as a law student, Ashley was elected as vice president, president, and
sub-regional director of the National Black Law Students Association; she served as vice
president of entertainment of the Sports and Entertainment Legal Association, and she held
positions as graduate advisor and teaching assistant; her public service career began as a law
clerk with the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, chaired by former U.S.
Senator Mary Landrieu; and
WHEREAS, Ashley married the love of her life, Charles Carter, Jr., on June 28,
2014; and
WHEREAS, a member of New Gideon Baptist Church, she was a strong Christian,
a devoted child of God, and a loyal family member and friend; she was the director of the
liturgical dance ministry; and
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WHEREAS, Ashley was a staff attorney for the Senate and Governmental Affairs
Committee and the Senate Select Committee on Women and Children of the Legislature of
Louisiana; she served as interim executive director of the Louisiana Legislative Black
Caucus and the Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus Foundation and as support staff for the
Louisiana Legislative Women's Caucus; and
WHEREAS, she worked in the Louisiana Senate chief of staff's office and the office
of the governor during Governor Kathleen Blanco's term; and
WHEREAS, as a founding partner of the Pearson and Mitchell law firm, Ashley
focused on intellectual property, contract negotiations, family law, wills, successions,
business, and foundation formation; she was in the 2017 graduating class of the Baton Rouge
Area Chamber leadership program; and
WHEREAS, she was a certified mediator and a member of the Baton Rouge Bar
Association, Louisiana State Bar Association, National Bar Association, and Louis A.
Martinet Legal Society; and
WHEREAS, she maintained involvement in a number of community endeavors,
including being a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and with her
husband and his childhood friends, she assisted Reaching Our Dreams Foundation, a
nonprofit organization with initiatives like annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaways in Baton
Rouge and Shreveport; and
WHEREAS, Ashley was a friend to many people who embraced and accepted her
as family; her positive nature and kind soul radiated through her work and charitable efforts;
and
WHEREAS, those who mourn her loss may find solace in the fact that she was a
believer in Christ who accepted the Lord into her life at an early age and Ashley's spirit will
live on.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the House of Representatives of the
Legislature of Louisiana does hereby express condolences upon the death of J. Ashley
Mitchell Carter; does hereby recognize and record for posterity her significant contributions,
her outstanding abilities, and her generosity and kindness; and does hereby express the deep
regret of the entire House of Representatives family upon the loss of this extraordinary
woman.
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BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
family of J. Ashley Mitchell Carter.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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