Mayors: Parsh's crime problem is juvenile crime

The parish’s mayors see multiple reasons for a recent increase in violent crime and many ways to address it.

But there was general agreement at a town hall meeting Monday that the big crime problem is juvenile crime, and much of the juvenile problem starts in the homes.

Mayors Lee Dragna of Morgan City, Duval Arthur of Berwick, Rodney Grogan of Patterson, Eugene Foulcard of Franklin and Abel Prejean of Baldwin met with St. Mary residents in the first in a series of town halls meetings at the Patterson Area Civic Center.

The object is to put together a task force and seek grant funding to tackle violent crime and drug abuse, Grogan said.

On Monday, the focus was on crime by young people, and why young people commit crimes. And that turned the focus to home life.
Berwick has been spared much of the surge in youth violence. But even there, Arthur said, a 14-year-old was recently accused of shooting at two vehicles.

“I don’t understand how we let our young people run around at night shooting people,” Arthur said.

Morgan City’s Dragna said it’s time “to have grandparents grab them by the ear and pull them in the house. ...

“Take care of your kids. Take care of your grandkids. Straighten them up and we won’t have these problems.”

Patterson’s Grogan sees a lack of participation in activities such as Boy Scouts, Cub Scouts and band. He also believes religion's diminishing roles plays a part.

“Our faith, our religion, our believe in God, that’s our conscience,” Grogan said.

Baldwin’s Prejean believes juvenile crime has been aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“For two years they didn’t go to school,” Prejean said. “They got to believing social media is reality.”
COVID restrictions also forced Baldwin to close three facilities where kids could play basketball, Prejean said, even to the point of removing the goals. The goals are back, he said, but no one comes to play basketball.

And the sign-up for youth sports programs has been nearly nonexistent, he said.

“When you say there’s nothing to do,” Prejean said, “somebody has to show up to do it.”
Schools showed up again in concerns about safety and discipline. Dragna pointed to a meeting earlier this year among police, school and city officials about parent complaints centering on Morgan City Junior High.

Foulcard and Grogan agreed that juvenile justice facilities are lacking, leading to the release of youthful offenders who should be in the system.

Too many offenders are “coddled and slapped on the wrist,” Foulcard said.

Dragna thinks the age at which young offenders are treated as juveniles rather than adults should be lowered from 17.

“What if we lower it to 15?” Dragna said. “How many 13-year-olds are going to go out and shoot somebody? But 15-year-olds. ...”

Arthur agreed. But “I don’t think [the age change] is going to happen,” he said.

The Berwick mayor challenged his colleagues to see if they can’t come up with money for police pay raises.

Morgan City is doing that now. The City Council recently approved a $1-an-hour raise for entry-level officers after then-Chief James F. Blair said the city’s police pay is $4 an hour less than pay in other area departments.

A recent Budget Committee meeting sought ways to raise police and fire pay $4 an hour across the board, possibly through a proposed tax increase.

The next town hall June 13 will feature the parish’s police chiefs.