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Louisiana names new leader of juvenile justice department

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Louisiana has a new leader of its juvenile justice agency that oversees youth lockup facilities and other programs for convicted youth offenders.

It was an unexpected change at the agency’s top job. Gov. John Bel Edwards announced Wednesday evening that he has named Edward Dustin Bickham as interim deputy secretary for the Office of Juvenile Justice.

Bickham took over from James Bueche. The governor’s office says Bueche resigned from the Office of Juvenile Justice on Wednesday.

No reason was offered for Bueche’s abrupt departure.

Bickham is a lawyer who worked for Department of Corrections for nearly 17 years, including as deputy warden at the Dixon Correctional Institute.