Tony Bacala

{{short description|American politician}} {{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Anthony Joseph "Tony" Bacala, Jr. | image = | caption = | office = [[Louisiana House of Representatives|Louisiana State Representative for District 59 (Ascension Parish)]] | term_start = January 2016 | term_end = | preceded = [[Eddie J. Lambert]] | succeeded = Incumbent | birth_date = July 1957 | birth_place = | occupation = Law-enforcement officer | spouse = Lisa Faucheux Bacala | party = [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] | parents = | alma_mater = [[East Ascension High School]] [[Louisiana State University]] [[FBI National Academy]] | footnotes = }}

'''Anthony Joseph Bacala, Jr.''', known as '''Tony Bacala''' (born July 1957),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Home/Home?uid=8107|title=Anthony Bacala, July 1957|publisher=[[Louisiana Secretary of State]]|accessdate=February 18, 2017}}</ref> is a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] member of the [[Louisiana House of Representatives]] and a retired law enforcement officer.

==Background==

Bacala is married to the former Lisa Faucheux (born July 1962), a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Home/Home?uid=20092|title=Lisa Bacala, July 1962|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State|accessdate=January 10, 2020}}</ref> who is employed by the [[Ascension Parish School Board]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.intelius.com/people-search/Lisa-F-Bacala/Prairieville-LA|title=Lisa F. Bacala|publisher=intelius.com|accessdate=February 26, 2017}}</ref>

==House tenure== Bacala voted for and supports a draft Louisiana state bill that would make in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments and some forms of birth control a crime, and prosecute women who get abortions for "murder."<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Bort |first=Ryan |date=2022-05-05 |title=Louisiana Moves to Charge Women Who Get Abortions With Murder |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/louisiana-bill-abortion-homicide-1347890/ |access-date=2022-05-05 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-05 |title=Bill to make abortion a homicide advances in Louisiana |url=https://www.wric.com/news/u-s-world/bill-to-make-abortion-a-homicide-advances-in-louisiana/ |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=WRIC ABC 8News |language=en-US}}</ref> The draft bill intentionally has no exceptions for rape, incest, or the protection of the life of the mother,<ref>{{Cite web |first=Kevin |last=McGill |agency=The Associated Press |date=2022-05-04 |title=Lawyer: Louisiana abortion bill could subject women to homicide charge |url=https://mynbc15.com/news/nation-world/lawyer-louisiana-abortion-bill-could-subject-women-to-homicide-charge-house-committee-vote-new-olreans-rep-danny-mccormick-anti-abortion-attorney-bradley-pierc |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=WPMI |language=en}}</ref> and would likely also criminalize miscarriages.<ref>{{Cite web |last=LaRose |first=Greg |date=2022-05-05 |title=Abortion would be punishable as murder under new Louisiana proposal |url=https://lailluminator.com/2022/05/04/abortion-would-be-punishable-as-murder-under-new-louisiana-proposal/ |access-date=2022-05-05 |website=Louisiana Illuminator |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://staticresults.sos.la.gov/10242015/10242015_Legislative.html|title=Results for Election Date: 10/24/2015|publisher=[[Louisiana Secretary of State]]|accessdate=October 25, 2015}}</ref><ref name="pvotesmart">{{cite web |title=Tony Bacala |url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/165556/tony-bacala#.WLMMnPkrLDc |accessdate=February 26, 2017 |publisher=[[Project Vote Smart]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thenewsstar.com/story/news/2017/07/25/conservatives-tighten-grip-la-house/507846001/|title=Conservatives tighten grip in La. House|author=Greg Hilburn|newspaper=[[The News-Star|The Monroe News-Star]]|date=July 25, 2017|accessdate=July 26, 2017}}</ref>

In April 2024, Bacala voted in favor of advancing House Bill 545 from the Administration of Criminal Justice committee.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Roll Call and Record Vote|url=https://house.louisiana.gov/H_CmteRecordRolCallVotes/RollCallVotes/ACRJ_04162024.pdf|access-date=2024-04-16|website=Louisiana House of Representatives|language=en-US}}</ref> The bill, filed by [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[Beryl Amedee]], would remove legal protections for obscenity from teachers and librarians in all Louisiana public schools.<ref>{{Cite web|title=House Bill 545|url=https://www.legis.la.gov/legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1351530|access-date=2024-04-16|website=Louisiana House of Representatives|language=en-US}}</ref>

In November 2024, Bacala voiced support for Senate Bill 2, filed by Senator [[Heather Cloud]], which lifts limitations on the types of crimes for which people under age 17 can be sentenced as if they are adults.<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Donoghue |first=Julie |date=2024-11-14 |title=Louisiana Senate approves proposal making it easier to send minors to adult prisons • Louisiana Illuminator |url=https://lailluminator.com/2024/11/14/louisiana-senate-approves-proposal-making-it-easier-to-send-minors-to-adult-prisons/ |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=Louisiana Illuminator |language=en-US}}</ref> Bacala remarked, “Some of these kids are already lost at 2 years old. I want to make that point. Everybody realizes it.”<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Donoghue |first=Julie |date=2024-11-19 |title=Mental health professionals oppose Louisiana sending more youth to adult prisons • Louisiana Illuminator |url=https://lailluminator.com/2024/11/18/mental-health-professionals-oppose-louisiana-sending-more-youth-to-adult-prison/ |access-date=2024-11-21 |website=Louisiana Illuminator |language=en-US}}</ref>

==References== {{reflist}}

{{s-start}} {{s-par|us-la-hs}} {{succession box | before=[[Eddie J. Lambert]] | title=[[Louisiana State Legislature|Louisiana State Representative for District 59 (Ascension Parish)]] Anthony Joseph "Tony" Bacala, Jr. | years=2016 – | after=Incumbent}} {{s-end}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacala, Tony}} [[Category:1957 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:People from Prairieville, Louisiana]] [[Category:Republican Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives]] [[Category:21st-century members of the Louisiana State Legislature]] [[Category:East Ascension High School alumni]] [[Category:Louisiana State University alumni]] [[Category:Catholics from Louisiana]]