| Julie Ann Unangst Quinn | |
|---|---|
| Louisiana State Senator from District 6, (Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, and Tangipahoa parishes) | |
| In office 2005 – 2012 (pending) |
|
| Preceded by | John Hainkel |
| Succeeded by | Bodi White |
| Member, Jefferson Parish School Board | |
| In office 2001 – 2005 |
|
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 26, 1966 |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Francis Patrick Quinn (1996-2006, divorced) |
| Children | Two sons |
| Residence | Metairie, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, USA |
| Alma mater | Louisiana State University |
| Occupation | Attorney |
Julie Ann Unangst Quinn (born October 26, 1966) is an attorney from Metairie, Louisiana, who is a Republican member of the Louisiana State Senate. Quinn's District 6 includes parts of Orleans (a portion of Uptown), Jefferson, St.Tammany, and Tangipahoa parishes.
Quinn initially won the seat in a special election runoff held in July 2005 against fellow Republican Diane Winston of Covington, then a state representative. Eliminated in the first round of balloting was freshman State Representative John LaBruzzo, also of Jefferson Parish. The position became suddenly available by the death of veteran Republican lawmaker John Hainkel.
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Quinn is the oldest of three children born to teenagers, Bruce Edward Unangst (born ca. 1949), a native of Greenville in Mercer County in northwestern Pennsylvania, and the former Shirley Ann Lineman (born ca. 1948).[1] She has two brothers, attorney Bruce Unangst, II, of Gonzales in Ascension Parish, and Christopher Martin Unangst. Her father, the first president of the combined parish and municipal government in St. Tammany Parish,[1] is a real estate agent and banker in Covington. Quinn’s mother also had political aspirations and unsuccessfully sought the District 76 seat in St. Tammany Parish in the Louisiana House of Representatives in a four-candidate all-Republican field[1] in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 19, 1991.[2] In the second round of balloting, the incumbent Edward C. Scogin of Slidell was unseated for the position that Mrs. Anangst sought by Suzanne Mayfield Krieger.[3]
Quinn was reared in St. Tammany Parish. She graduated in 1989 from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge with a Bachelor of Arts degree in broadcast journalism. In 1992, she earned her Juris Doctor degree from Loyola University in New Orleans, where she graduated on Law Review and Moot Court, and was twice named a teaching assistant in legal research and writing.[1] In 1996, Quinn married businessman Francis Patrick Quinn, owner of the Decatur hotel chain. Although seven months pregnant with his second child in 2001, Quinn ran for and won a special election to the Jefferson Parish School Board.[4] From that berth she declared her support for fiscal responsibility[1] and worked to establish the first magnet school in Jefferson Parish.[4]
To seek the Senate seat in 2005, Quinn resigned from the Jefferson Parish School Board. She was elected and sworn in in August, 2005, just 3 weeks before Hurricane Katrina. Between 2005 and 2006, Quinn and her husband divorced under the scrutiny of the media.[4]
Quinn was thereafter elected to a full term in the Senate seat in the primary held on October 20, 2007.[5]
As a senator, she serves on the Insurance Committee, a position through which she became an advocate for property insurance reform, she worked to require insurance companies to pay the claims to homeowners in the wake of Katrina. After her first legislative session, she was named "Senator of the Year" by the Louisiana Childcare Association. Within 18 months, she was named Legislator of the Year by the Louisiana Orthopedic Association, the Louisiana Chiropractic Association, and the Louisiana Nurse Anesthetists. She has been twice named to the "Hall of Fame" of the conservative Louisiana Family Forum for a voting record 100 percent in line with the organization’s traditional values.[6] Additionally, she supported Senate colleague Heulette Fontenot's Pet Evacuation Act of 2006 and in 2008 passed legislation protecting and including animals in a Domestic Abuse Protective Order. In 2008 she was named "Legislator of the Year by the United States Humane Society.
Quinn sponsored a bill requiring mandatory jail time for people who violate a restraining order at the request of the Louisiana Coalition for Domestic Abuse. The bill is now law.[4] She also filed a bill banning text messaging while driving in Louisiana.
In 2008, Senate President Joel Chaisson, a Democrat from Destrehan in St. Charles Parish, named her chair of the Judiciary A Committee. In that role, she has managed a large amount of non-fiscal legislation relating to clerks of court, tort reform, the courts, property law, successions, family law, the state civil code, the code of evidence, and the children’s code. She also serves on the Senate Committee on Local and Municipal Affairs.[6] In 2009, she championed the cause of homeowners having problems with Chinese drywall.
Quinn ran for re-election to the state Senate in 2007. Former television anchorwoman Mary Lou McCall, announced her candidacy for Quinn's seat.[7] Ultimately, McCall was declared not to meet the residency requirement to contest the Senate seat. Another potential rival, outgoing State Representative Diane Winston of Covington, also withdrew. Quinn finally faced only two intraparty rivals, Doug Johnson and Dr. Monica L. Monica, an ophthalmologist from Gretna, the seat of Jefferson Parish. Quinn handily defeated Johnson and Monica, 21,002 (57.5 percent) to 9,468 (24.8 percent) for Johnson and 6,791 (17.8 percent) for Monica.[5]
In 2009, Quinn, with two years remaining in her Senate term, filed to run for a local office, the District 5 Jefferson Parish Council seat vacated by former Councilwoman Jennifer Sneed-Heebe.
In the council race on April 4, Quinn faced business owner Kelly Daniels, accountant Cynthia Lee-Sheng (daughter of late sheriff Harry Lee), and school board member and retired educator Martin Marino.
Quinn's reputation was damaged by a series of negative relevations regarding her management skills with respect to both her personal and professional life.[8] The Internal Revenue Service sought back taxes on her house in Old Metairie. A federal tax lien was placed in her name on the property for $265,452 for 2005 and 2006. Quinn denied knowledge of the lien.[9]
She also failed to maintain her eligibility to practice law, having unpaid Bar Association dues. She failed to comply with the Mandatory Continuing Legal Education rule and did not maintain her legal license. She was ineligibile to practice law for the following periods:
Quinn also alleged in a 17-page motion that her divorce judge, Joan Benge, was trying to thwart Quinn's campaign. "Judge Benge is no stranger to political campaigns, and this strategic docketing was a serious impediment to Ms. Quinn's campaign," Quinn wrote.[11]
Quinn lost the election in the first round of balloting, having polled only 4,600 votes (30.5 percent). Lee-Sheng won the election with 52 percent of the vote.[12]
Meanwhile, the state Ethics Board charged Quinn with campaign-finance violations.[13]
Senate District 6 is being entirely reconfigured under legislative redistricting. It will stretch from Baton Rouge east to the Florida Parishes. Quinn is not seeking reelection. State Representative Mack A. "Bodi" White, Jr., of East Baton Rouge narrowly won the Senate seat in the October 22 primary election.[14]
| Louisiana Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John Hainkel |
Louisiana State Senator from District 6 (Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, and Tangipahoa parishes)
Julie Ann Unangst Quinn |
Succeeded by Bodi White |
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