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James M. Murphy
| James M. Murphy | |
| Candidate for | |
| Louisiana House of Representatives District 16 | |
| Party | Independent |
| Education | |
| High school | Bastrop High School (1969) |
| Personal | |
| Profession | Industrial cost analyst/estimator/scheduler |
 | |
Murphy has stated that he will not accept campaign donations, explaining, "In recent years, it has become obvious that the political leaders are influenced more by donations than by the needs of their constituents. I am not for purchase by anyone or group. I do not accept donations. I rely on my strong beliefs of fairness and act on what I believe is the right thing to do, not just for me but also for my family and community."[1]
Elections
2011
Murphy ran in the 2011 election for Louisiana House of Representatives District 16. He faced Katrina Jackson (D), Samuel Jackson (R) and Ronnie Traylor (D) in the primary election on October 22, 2011. Because Louisiana uses a blanket primary system, a candidate can be declared the overall winner of the seat by garnering 50 percent +1 of the vote in the primary. However, if no candidate reaches this threshold, then a general election will take place on November 19, 2011. Katrina Jackson won with over 50% of the vote.[2]
| Louisiana House of Representatives, District 16 Blanket Primary, 2011 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Katrina Jackson |
51% | 3,283 | |
| Republican | Samuel Jackson | 25.6% | 1,650 | |
| Democratic | Ronnie Traylor | 15.9% | 1,021 | |
| Independent | James M. Murphy | 7.5% | 482 | |
| Total Votes | 6,436 | |||
Issues
Murphy said he is running for office in order to "seek a better quality of life for all, balanced by our ability to pay."[1]
To accomplish this goal, Murphy outlines several issues:
- Police Departments: "It has become clear that we need new laws enacted that will force our police departments to do their job. In addition, we should force the mayors and city councils be held accountable for their actions allowing class action lawsuits to be filed under certain situations. I believe we should change laws that allow the City Chief of Police to have the power to do whatever he wants without consequences. Police should have minimum standards of training and education of our state and local laws. Police should be made to issue citations after the same person for the same complaint has called them three times. Let the judge be a judge, not the police officer. By state law, the police should be made to issue tickets when turn signals are not used or stop signs ignored. This would reduce accident rates. Generally, the option to issue some tickets should be removed, forcing compliance by the police."[1]
- Juries: "The requirement to have a jury for fines above $1,000 should be set at $2,500."[1]
- Unnecessary noise: "The first fine for un-necessary noise should be $500, $750 for the second and $1,000 for the third with the driver’s license revoked for six months. On the fourth, the auto should be seized and sold at auction, problem removed from society. Auto amplifiers should not be sold or installed in Louisiana that is larger than 100 watts. Illegal amplifiers, located in a Louisiana licensed auto, should be removed by owner, fined $100, and given to the arresting officer to be destroyed by the authorities. School, hospitals and designated areas should have the un-necessary noise fines doubled within 3000 feet.[1]
- Automobiles: "Law should protect old cars when the owner desires to keep it. Autos older than twenty-five years should be placed under a cover, stored on the rear of the property, and protected from all further legal requirements. The law should allow a ""auto project in progress"" in the front driveway so those that enjoy rebuilding and repairing can have a safe concrete surface to work on."[1]
Personal
Murphy studied Engineering for a year at Louisiana Tech and Building Construction for three years at Northeast University at Monroe. He lists his profession as an industrial cost analyst, estimator, scheduler and Excel expert using VBA. He is the author of PIPEtalk, an industrial pipe estimating software program, and a member of the American Society of Professional Estimators.
Contact
Email: ElectMurphy@yahoo.com
Phone: 318-281-1069
Address: 915 Gibbs Street, Bastrop, LA 71220
External links
- Project Vote Smart biographical profile
- PIPEtalk - Estimating Software Program written by James M. Murphy
- [www.murphyslaws.info Official Campaign Website]
References
 |
State of Louisiana Baton Rouge (capital) |
|---|---|
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| Transparency Topics |
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