McFreedom

The Mayor of New Orleans has finally ordered the police "to compel the evacuation of all persons ... regardless of whether such persons are on private property or do not desire to leave". To say nothing of the PR nightmare this could cause, I'm curious about the legal underpinnings of the order. By what authority does the Mayor remove people from their own private property who have comitted no crime against their will? I'm not categorically saying this is the wrong decision, but I am curious where he gets this authority from. I know Louisiana's Parish Law is different from the rest of the states, but, even so, I'd be surprised if he really has the power to just order people removed from their own private property at his discretion. Is the thinking, perhaps, that by the time courts tell him he can't do that it'll be long over? None of the news stories I've read had any coverage whatsoever of the legal issues.