2019 Regular Session ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 143
BY SENATORS ALARIO, ALLAIN, APPEL, BARROW, BISHOP, BOUDREAUX,
CARTER, CHABERT, COLOMB, CORTEZ, DONAHUE, ERDEY,
FANNIN, GATTI, HENSGENS, HEWITT, JOHNS, LAFLEUR,
LAMBERT, LONG, LUNEAU, MARTINY, MILKOVICH, MILLS,
MIZELL, MORRELL, MORRISH, PEACOCK, PETERSON, PRICE,
RISER, GARY SMITH, JOHN SMITH, TARVER, THOMPSON,
WALSWORTH, WARD AND WHITE
A RESOLUTION
To commend the Honorable Daniel Albert Claitor, Louisiana State Senator, for his years of
exemplary public service in the Louisiana Legislature and to express appreciation for
his many contributions made on behalf of the constituents of his district and the state
of Louisiana, and to offer the best wishes of his fellow senators as he departs from
the Senate and pursues his next avenue of interest.
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor is blessed with a subtle smile and quick wit, being a
statesman and gentleman brimming with self-confidence and a mastery of the complexities
of the law and the legislative process; and
WHEREAS, he is well-known in the legislature for always being prepared and
inquisitive, and in each situation, approaching the matter at hand in the most direct yet
courteous manner possible, focusing on the issues with the utmost consideration for every
possible solution and respect for the consequences affecting all parties in the process; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor was born and raised in Baton Rouge and is a product
of Baton Rouge public schools, graduating from Robert E. Lee High School in 1979 and
receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from Louisiana State University in 1983;
and
WHEREAS, in his youth, he drove delivery trucks and worked the presses and
bindery operations at Claitor's Law Books and Publishing company, to which many in the
legal profession in Baton Rouge and across the state remain forever indebted; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor went on to earn his Juris Doctor degree from Loyola
University of New Orleans College of Law in 1987, exhibiting throughout his legal
education the same preparedness and inquisitiveness that he would later demonstrate as a
senator; and
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WHEREAS, he tried his first jury trial, the defense of a manslaughter case, as a
senior in law school in the fall of 1986, and subsequently was awarded the 1986-1987
Charles C. Foti Jr. Award for Excellence in the Field of Criminal Justice; and
WHEREAS, after graduation, Senator Claitor returned to the courtroom as an
assistant district attorney in and for the Parish of Orleans, prosecuting many criminal cases,
running the gambit from child support to murder; and
WHEREAS, he entered private practice in Baton Rouge in 1990, and has maintained
a successful legal career for these many years, having tried more than one hundred
admiralty, civil, and criminal jury trials; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor has represented Senate District No. 16 since April 14,
2009, when he was elected in a rough and tumble campaign, and was subsequently reelected
in 2011, without opposition, and again reelected in 2016; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor has served as a member of the Senate Committees on
Education, Finance, Health and Welfare, Judiciary A, Local and Municipal Affairs, Natural
Resources, Retirement, Revenue and Fiscal Affairs, and Senate and Governmental Affairs
and as chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary C; and
WHEREAS, he has designed and carried through the legislative process important
legislation relative to: access to charter schools by those with developmental disabilities;
transparency in the governor's office; the GPS tracking of domestic violence offenders; the
creation of crime prevention districts in the Baton Rouge area; firearms and hunter
education; penalties for the illegal use and abuse of controlled dangerous substances;
reporting child abuse and neglect; juvenile justice issues, including juveniles serving
sentences of life without parole; habitual offenders; protecting life and property in areas
affected by flooding; the use and misuse of unmanned aircraft; buy-in and oversight of
Office of Group Benefits rate setting; various issues of criminal procedure, including
expungement and probation and parole; and others too numerous to mention here; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor's professional and personal interests and dedication find
him holding affiliations with the Louisiana State Bar Association, the Baton Rouge Bar
Association, the New Orleans Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the United
States Supreme Court Historical Society, Ducks Unlimited, the Coastal Conservation
Association, and the Knights of Columbus; and
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WHEREAS, he has been the deserving recipient of awards and honors throughout
the course of his exemplary service, including the "Outstanding Family Advocate Award"
from the Louisiana Family Forum in 2014; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor is the son of the late Robert Gregory Claitor Sr. and the
late Nancy McLellan Claitor, distinguished in their own right in the Baton Rouge area and
beyond; and
WHEREAS, although he is a committed public servant, he is first and foremost a
devoted and loving husband to his wife Sharmaine and proud father of two sons, Samuel and
James Daniel; and
WHEREAS, Senator Claitor has worn the mantle of community service for three
productive terms as a state legislator, and is a public figure of the highest caliber, whose
service to the legislature has seen him conscientiously and effectively confront the
challenges facing the citizens of his district and the entire state with assurance and candor;
and
WHEREAS, the good works, both professional and personal, of Senator Claitor will
be realized for future generations to come; and
WHEREAS, as he prepares for the next productive chapter of his life, Dan Claitor
and the Claitor family will continue to have a positive effect on their community and their
state for many years to come.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby commend the Honorable Daniel Albert Claitor for his faithful public service to
this body and does hereby extend to him the best wishes of his colleagues for continued
success in his future endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
Honorable Dan Claitor, the distinguished legislator from Louisiana Senatorial District 16.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
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