Written by Nicholas Persac

A bill that will retroactively qualify the families of the two fraud investigators killed in Ville Platte on June 7 for the same benefits given to the families of law enforcement officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty passed through the state Senate on Wednesday.

Senate Bill 271, sponsored by state Sen. Robert Marionneaux, D-17, passed through the state's upper chamber Wednesday with a 39-0 vote of approval.

State Sen. Eric LaFleur, D-28, said the House's Administration of Criminal Justice Committee will hear the bill Sunday, and the full House could vote on it as early as Tuesday.

The amendment faces a tight timeline because this year's legislative session ends June 23.

The Senate fast-tracked the bill by suspending normal rules to provide enough time for the legislative process to be completed.

"I'm very optimistic it will pass," LaFleur said Wednesday evening.

Department of Insurance fraud investigators Rhett Jeansonne, 39, and Kim Mc-Eleveen-Sledge, 44, both of Denham Springs, died June 7 when they went to Lavergne Insurance Agency on official business.

John Melvin Lavergne killed the investigators as they collected files for an ongoing case.

Both Jeansonne and Mc-Eleveen-Sledge have surviving spouses and children, but even though the pair were investigating criminal activity as part of their jobs with the state, neither qualifies for the benefits given families of police officers and firefighters killed while on the job because the investigators are not POST-certified officers.

State law currently gives $250,000 to the surviving spouse of a law enforcement officer or firefighter killed in the line of duty.

The law also awards $25,000 to each of the dependent children of such officers and firefighters.

If the bill passes and is signed by Gov. Bobby Jindal, both Jeansonne's and Mc-Eleveen-Sledge's families will qualify for those benefits.

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