Total Pro Sports
It wasn’t exactly a saintly scene in Charleston this week. Rita LeBlanc, the once-anointed heir to the New Orleans Saints empire and granddaughter of the late NFL team owner Tom Benson, found herself in handcuffs on Monday after a run-in with a parking enforcement officer turned physical.
According to Live5News.com, police say LeBlanc shoved the officer and interfered with an attempt to boot a vehicle. She reportedly grabbed the locking mechanism mid-process and refused to back off.
Charleston police arrested the 48-year-old on a charge of hindering a city employee. She walked out of Al Cannon Detention Center on Tuesday after being granted a personal recognizance bond. A court date has been set for July 24, per NOLA.com.
LeBlanc’s clash with law enforcement adds another chapter to a long and public family saga that once had her poised to inherit control of the Saints. She held the role of vice chairman for the franchise from 2012 to 2014 and appeared set to succeed her grandfather until everything unraveled.
In late 2014, Tom Benson dismissed LeBlanc from her role and cut off all future involvement. The move followed an incident during a Saints-Falcons game in which LeBlanc allegedly grabbed Gayle Benson, Tom’s wife and now the team’s principal owner, by the shoulders and shook her in a family suite, according to NOLA.com. Two sources described LeBlanc as the aggressor that day.
The fallout led to an ugly legal battle. LeBlanc, along with her brother Ryan and mother Renee, filed a lawsuit in early 2015 challenging Benson’s mental competency in an effort to regain control. That lawsuit ended in a 2016 settlement.
Speaking to Sports Business Daily that year, LeBlanc acknowledged the emotional toll of the years-long conflict. “No family should have to go through this,” she said. “There’s miserable things in the press and miserable things that aren’t being reported.”
Despite everything, Rita LeBlanc still holds a partial stake in the Saints organization. The franchise itself continues to search for stability. The Saints ended a brutal 5-12 season, their worst since 2003, and took another hit when Derek Carr abruptly retired.
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