A trial court "abused its discretion" in ruling that the public could not be allowed in the courtroom for parts of testimony during the new rape trial of a Livingston Parish woman linked to an ex-deputy's sex crimes case, an appeals court said.

The Louisiana First Circuit Court of Appeal ruled Thursday that the 21st Judicial District Court did not have a "substantial reason" for saying that the public, but not the media, could be excluded during parts of an alleged adult victim's testimony during Melanie Curtin's new rape trial.

Curtin, 46, of Denham Springs, was originally convicted of rape in 2021 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2022.

Later, in 2023, the court of appeals ruled that Curtin must receive a new trial, saying the court "improperly adm

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