Sheriff: Man tried to swallow marijuana

A 42-year-old Patterson man was booked into jail Friday after authorities saw him try to swallow marijuana, St. Mary Parish Sheriff Blaise Smith said in a news release.

—Aaron James Smith Jr., 42, of Church Street in Patterson, was arrested at 2:02 a.m. Friday on charges of possession of marijuana, resisting arrest or officer and obstruction of justice.

Deputies patrolling the area of La. 182 near the Patterson city limits observed a vehicle swerve and cross the center line. Upon conducting a traffic stop on the vehicle, deputies made contact with the driver.

While deputies were speaking with the driver of the vehicle, they noticed a male passenger inside the vehicle, identified as Smith, begin to consume and swallow illegal narcotics, the sheriff said.

Deputies observed Smith spit out a piece of marijuana to the ground. While deputies were trying to detain Smith, he became resistant, the sheriff said. Smith was jailed with bail set at $4,500.

Smith reported that deputies responded to 36 complaints in the parish and reported the following arrest in east St. Mary Parish:

—Brennan Norton Skinner Sr., 26, of Grace Street in Siracusa, was arrested at 11:12 a.m. Thursday on warrants charging him with two counts of failure to appear for contempt hearing.

Skinner was located at the parish courthouse and arrested on the warrants. Skinner was jailed with bail set at $1,653.15.

Morgan City Police Chief James Blair reported the following arrests:

—Shaqunia Marie Harris, 24, of Arizona Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 7:30 a.m. Thursday on warrants charging her with failure to appear in court and four counts of failure to pay fines. Harris was located at the police department and arrested on city court warrants. Harris was jailed.

—Heather Renee Ganaway, 32, of Sixth Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 8:48 p.m. Thursday on warrants charging her with failure to appear in court and five counts of failure to pay fines.

An officer conducted a traffic stop on La. 182 and identified Ganaway as an occupant of the vehicle. A warrants check revealed that city court had active warrants for her arrest. She was jailed.

—Heath Anthony Loupe, 22, of Rose Street in Berwick, was arrested at 12:06 a.m. Friday on a warrant charging him with illegal carrying of weapons-burglary tools.

An officer came into contact with Loupe in the area of Federal Avenue and Bowman Street. A warrants check revealed Morgan City police had a warrant for his arrest. He was jailed.

—Meagan Luren Jumper, 22, of Oregon Street in Berwick, was arrested at 2:04 a.m. Friday on a warrant charging her with failure to appear in court.

An officer conducting a traffic stop on Allison Street came into contact with Jumper. A warrants check revealed that city court had a warrant for her arrest. Jumper was jailed.

—Christopher L. Pike, 49, of Hunting Road in Franklin, was arrested at 3:31 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of disturbing the peace by appearing intoxicated in public.

An officer observed a suspicious subject on Maple Street in Morgan City. The officer attempted to make contact with the subject but before the officer could initiate the stop, the male subject was able to elude the officer by hiding in the residential area, Blair said.

A short time later the male subject was located leaving the area between Spruce Street and La. 70. He was detained by officers and identified as Pike. Officers detected an odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath, and he appeared in an intoxicated condition, Blair said. He was jailed.

—Gerian Elliot Lightfoot, 27, of Willow Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 2:33 a.m. Thursday on charges of tail light violation and possession of marijuana first offense.

An officer observed a vehicle traveling on La. 182 without operating tail lights. The officer conducted a traffic stop and identified the driver as Lightfoot. During the traffic stop, Lightfoot was found to be in possession of suspected marijuana, Blair said. He was jailed.

Berwick Police Chief David Leonard Sr. reported no arrests.

Patterson Police Chief Garrett Grogan reported no arrests.