Bossier City man says he was fired after sending an email to a local official
Plus — The new North/South road in Bossier: Where is it? When will it open?
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Bossier City man says he was fired after sending an email to a local official
You might not think that sending an email to a local politician would get you fired from your job. However, that's just what a Bossier City man says happened to him.
Fed up with the chaos at the Bossier City Charter Commission meetings, Bossier City resident Kyle Schuldt fired off a scathing email to Julianna Parks, a member of the commission, Bossier Parish Police Juror, and local attorney.
Here's what he wrote:
"Can you please carry your over dramatic, useless, lackie self out of this city? You are the physical embodiment of all that is wrong with this country. You use your positions of power in 'public service' for personal gain. Shame on you. The tide is going to be turning against folks like you.
"The only good thing about you is that you aren't intelligent enough to think for yourself so you are the pawn for someone else."
Kyle Schuld: ‘It’s just contrary to everything I believe in’
Schuldt tells BossierNow that he watched Monday night's Charter Commission meeting online and didn't like what he saw.
"I'll preface this by saying I'm a human being, and I know that Julianna is a human being as well. No one is perfect, and I don't expect anyone to ever be perfect," he said. "After witnessing her speak so negatively and speak down to Wes Marriott and tell certain members that because they don't live in the city limits, their comments are not relevant to the business of the Charter Review Commission. It's just contrary to everything I believe in as a citizen of this country and the city of Bossier City."
He admits his language was strong. And he doesn't apologize for that.
"I made a private, very stern criticism of somebody that's a local elected official. And I did not know she would publish that email basically in an attempt to belittle the viewpoints of myself and her constituents," he said.
After receiving the email, Parks posted it to her friends on Facebook.
As is often the case, social media fuels the fire of hateful opinions. Her friends posted bitter comments and began hunting down personal information on Schuldt.
They discovered that he was a diplomat for the Bossier Chamber of Commerce, and one of Parks’ Facebook friends said, "Surely this isn't the type of person you want representing your organization and community."
"He makes me a little worried for your well-being," another Facebook post said. "He could be dangerous enough to try and harm you. Be careful."
Then the Facebook friends found that he worked for a local bank. "If he is still there, I plan on moving my money soon!" one wrote.
It was a social media chain reaction with immediate and major consequences, Schuldt said.
"I sent that email to Juliana, and then within a few hours I was notified by the Chamber that I would no longer be able to serve as a diplomat in that capacity going forward," Schuldt told BossierNow. "And then, just a few hours later, I had a meeting with my boss where he called me in his office, and he said I was no longer a 'good fit for the culture of the company' and that he felt I would have a wildly successful career, but it just wouldn't be with Citizens Bank and Trust. And that was it."
Julianna Parks: ‘How do I make this stop?’
Parks said the Charter Commission meeting was “off-putting.”
"We sat there for four hours on Monday and person after person were getting up saying, different disparaging things about us, that weren't true. A lot of it was rumors and just, accusations without any sort of factual basis," Parks told BossierNow.
The week prior, she had attended a National Association of Counties Convention seminar where the personal safety of local officials was discussed. It was the very same day that former President Donald Trump was shot.
"So coming out of that and seeing the crowd, the mob mentality of everybody getting angrier, combined with the stuff I learned last week [at the seminar] and the stuff people send me all the time, I just feel so much hatred from people that I don't even know. You don't even know me at all because what you're saying is completely wrong, and yet you hate me," Parks said.
Why would she post the email on Facebook?
"My goal in doing that was just to — how do I make this stop? What can I do to make this stop?" she said.
Fired for an email
What is Parks’ reaction to Schuldt’s firing?
"Obviously, I'm horrified by that," she said. "You know, I would think that if he was a good employee and he did a good job, and the people who hired him, or who were managing him thought he was doing a good job, that they would say, 'Hey, you can't do that kind of thing.'
"I definitely did not condone that, or incite it or anything. I don't like that. I don't like it at all," Parks added.
Schuldt is pragmatic.
"I have a great support system. You know, my wife and I are on the same page," he said. "The people that love and care for me are on the same page with me, and you know, I feel like, sometimes there's costs associated with speaking out for things you believe in, but I'm not afraid of those costs."
New North/South Bossier roadway nearing completion
Stand back, Airline Dr. Get ready, Benton Road. There's a new north/south road coming to town.
The Bossier Parish Police Jury is nearing completion of a new four-mile roadway that will connect Interstate 220 at Swan Lake Road with Louisiana Highway 162 via Crouch Road.
The goal is to alleviate some of that heavy traffic on Airline and Benton.
"Work on the North/South Corridor is steadily progressing," Rod White, the BPPJ's public information officer, said. “Right now, workers are placing the base layers on the roadway in preparation for the final layer of asphalt to be applied on the southern end while preparing the northern end. That base includes a chip seal layer and base course layers, which will help extend the asphalt pavement life by 5 to 7 years."
The roadway is expected to be completed in the last quarter of the year.
The roadway does not yet have an official name. Officials call it "North/South." White didn’t have details on if there will be another name for the connector, or how that would be decided.
The budget for the entire project was an estimated $37 million, with Bossier Parish paying $21 million for Phase II. $16 was funded with revenue bonds and $5 million in cash.
Phase I was a federal-parish split, with 80% paid with federal funds and 20%, about $15 million, paid by Bossier Parish.
Help 'pack the bus' for Bossier Schools today
The Bossier Chamber of Commerce will hold its annual 'Pack the Bus' school supply drive today, benefiting Bossier Schools.
You can help out and join it with this annual event. Come by the Walmart Supercenter today, Thursday, August 1, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and drop off much-needed supplies to help Bossier teachers fill the gaps in their classrooms.
Portion of Shed Rd. is closed
A portion of Shed Road remains closed. The City of Bossier City says the 5000 block near I-220 will shut down for a railroad crossing rehab. The closure began Wednesday and is scheduled to reopen tomorrow, Friday, August 2, at 4:00 p.m.
Bossier City free time calendar
Bossier City free time calendar
Live music in Bossier City and other notable events in the area for your free time consideration. If you would like to add an event to the Bossier City free time calendar, send the details to email@bossiernow.com.
August 16-25: The BPCC Theatre and The Cavalier Players will stage a production of Murder at The Howard Johnson's, a light-hearted suspense comedy by Ron Clark and Sam Bobrick. The show will run from August 16 to August 25, 2024, in the Stephen W. Slaughter Theatre in Building C on the BPCC campus.
August 31: Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Elle King at the Paradise Theatre in the Margaritaville Casino.
August 31: William Lee Martin brings his "King of Cowtown" comedy tour to the Louisiana Grandstand.
September 7: The Cleverlys, a one-of-a-kind, unique comedy and music experience at the Louisiana Grandstand. "If Dolly Parton, Earl Scruggs, and Spinal Tap spawned a litter of puppies, it would be The Cleverlys," says the New York Times.
September 12: Pony Bradshaw makes a rare Louisiana stop at the legendary listening room of Louisiana Grandstand. Catch Pony Bradshaw as he fuses Americana, rock, folk and many other styles.
September 13: Comedian Rodney Carrington at the Paradise Theatre in the Margaritaville Casino.
September 14: Cody Johnson, The Leather Tour at the BGA.
October 18: Grammy-nominated singer/songwriter Darrell Scott at the Louisiana Grandstand.
October 20: Jelly Roll, The Beautifully Broken Tour, with Warren Zeiders and Alexandra Kay at the BGA.
October 26: Daughtry at the Paradise Theatre in the Margaritaville Casino.
November 1-3: Disney On Ice presents Frozen & Encanto at the BGA.
November 16: Creed, Are You Ready? Tour at the BGA with 3 Doors Down and Mammoth WVH.
November 23: William Clark Green brings his "Whole Lotta Lubbock" tour to his debut appearance at the Louisiana Grandstand. Green is tearing up Texas dance halls and filling venues all over the country with his hits like "She Likes The Beatles" and "West Texas in My Eye."
December 13: Creed Fisher at the Louisiana Grandstand.
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