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BACK TO SCHOOL
St Mary Parish 2021 Back to School Bash set 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. July 31 at Park Street Park, Patterson. Event features free school supplies and free haircuts for students in elementary through college age. Also various free activities: family fashion show, fun jumps, games, train ride, singing, dancing and more. Vendors to include LSU, Nicholls Dyslexia Center, SLCC and more, along with guest speakers. Presented by Patterson Outreach, Event Planning & Design By S. Hartman, LA Hustlers Nonprofit Organization, James Tiger Pollard Roofing and Token of Love Ministry. For info contact Hartman, 404-422-3775 or shartman18@yahoo.com.

(Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)

A Franklin man was arrested by St. Mary Sheriff’s Office deputies Monday and accused of possessing three kinds of illegal drugs, arrest reports say.

St. Mary
Sheriff Blaise Smith advised that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff’s Office responded to 42 complaints and made the following arrests:
—Jondre Jaman Wesley, 38, Franklin, was arrested at 12:42 p.m. Monday on charges of possession of heroin, possession of methamphetamine, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Wesley was also named in two warrants alleging failure to appear on the charges of neglect of family and possession of Schedule II drugs.
No bail has been set.
—Martin Anthony Scelfo, 28, Franklin, was arrested at 11:53 a.m. Monday on five warrants alleging failure to appear on charges of unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, domestic abuse battery, theft, criminal trespassing and resisting an officer.
No bail has been set.
—Koulton Henderson, 19, Baton Rouge, was arrested at 7:55 p.m. Monday on a charge of reckless operation (no accident). Henderson was released on a summons to appear Sept. 1.
—Joseph Lee Robertson Sr., 57, Jeanerette, was arrested at 12:07 a.m. Tuesday on charges of simple burglary- and possession of drug paraphernalia.
No bail has been set.

Berwick
Police Chief David Leonard reported this arrest:
 —Jairo Juarez Perez, 24, Amelia, was arrested at 11:28 p.m. Monday, on charges of driving while intoxicated (first offense) and careless operation.
 At 11:11 p.m. Monday, the Berwick Police Department received a complaint of a reckless driver on La. 182. Officers located the vehicle and observed it swerving all over the roadway and conducted a traffic stop.
The driver was identified as Perez. He exhibited signs of impairment on alcohol, and he subsequently performed poorly on standardized field sobriety testing.
Perez was placed under arrest and transported to the Berwick Police Department, where he provided a proper breath sample of .175g% BAC. He was booked into the Berwick Jail and was released after posting a $3,000 bond. 

St. Martin
Sheriff Becket Breaux reported these arrests:
—Marshelle Davis, 23, Knox Avenue, Orange, Texas, was arrested Sunday by the Breaux Bridge Police Department on charges of principal to aggravated criminal damage to property, principal to assault by drive-by shooting and principal to aggravated assault with a firearm.
—Markeisha Guidry, 23, Carmel Drive, Lafayette, was arrested Sunday by the Breaux Bridge Police Department on charges of principal to aggravated criminal damage to property, principal to assault by drive-by shooting and principal to aggravated assault with a firearm.
—Jajuan Mouton, 18, Breaux Bridge, was arrested on charges of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles, simple burglary of a movable or immovable, and simple criminal damage to property.
—Martin Scelfo, 28, La. 87, Franklin, was arrested Sunday on charges of failure to appear, distribution of drug paraphernalia and possession of Schedule II drugs.
—Clarence Smith, 35, Myrtis Street, St. Martinville, was arrested Sunday by the St. Martinville Police Department on charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana, possession of Schedule II drugs, possession of Schedule IV drugs, transactions involving proceeds from drug offenses, possession of drug paraphernalia, and registration plate light required.
—Lerneisha Stevenson, 38, 1900 block of Carmel Drive, Lafayette, was arrested Sunday by the Breaux Bridge Police Department on charges of assault by drive-by shooting, aggravated assault with a firearm, aggravated criminal damage to property, illegal use of a weapon, and failure appear.

The Louisiana Legislature gave final passage Tuesday to the state’s $3.9 billion K-12 education funding formula.
Lawmakers unanimously approved the plan contained in Senate Concurrent Resolution 2 to spend about $19 million more than last year and give raises of $800 to teachers and $400 to other school personnel.
Louisiana’s public school teachers will continue to make less than peers in nearby states, though lawmakers said they will consider more raises next year if state finances allow in hopes of bringing state teachers closer to the regional average.
The funding formula, known as the Minimum Foundation Program or MFP, is state government’s primary contribution to education funding. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education creates the MFP, which the Legislature can either accept or reject but cannot change. The governor’s signature is not required.
The formula maintains base funding to school systems at $4,015 per student.
The Legislature also gave final passage to House Bill 691 by Rep. Tony Bacala, which raises many of the fees the state charges for hunting and fishing licenses to fund the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries.
LDWF Secretary Jack Montoucet sought the adjustments, saying he thought users, rather than all taxpayers, should pay for the programs the department provides.
The fees have not been raised in 20 years, he said.
The House voted 78-20 to concur with more than two dozen amendments the Senate made to the 72-page bill. The changes it calls for would begin to go into effect after July 1, 2022, and raise more than $18 million per year once fully implemented, according to a Legislative Fiscal Office estimate.
HB 691 now heads to the governor’s desk. Gov. John Bel Edwards is likely to sign the bill, since his administration proposed the overhaul.

A bill that would let Louisiana college athletes cash in on the use of their names, images or other likenesses passed the Legislature and is on the way to the governor’s desk.
The Senate voted 35-0 Tuesday to approve the bill with amendments that had been added in the House. The bill, SB 60, passed 88-7 in the House on Monday.
The bill would allow college athletes to profit off their names and likenesses once the National Collegiate Athletic Association gives guidance on how athletes can profit off themselves.
The bill comes shortly before the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to decide on the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s case about its limits on eligibility and compensation. A number of states have passed similar bills to overcome the NCAA’s reluctance to loosen its rules when athletes’ names and images are used in video games or for other commercial reasons.
“I think this is important, and I think this is where our country is headed, and I think this is important for the schools in Louisiana,” said Rep. John Stefanski, R-Crowley. “Fifteen other states have passed legislation on this matter, so if Louisiana does not pass this, they will be left behind.”
During the House debate, Stefanski argued that the bill was a matter of fairness for student athletes.
Lawmakers questioned the legitimacy of the bill due to the fact that the NCAA has not given guidance on athletes getting compensation. There was a debate over how the bill could affect athletes’ decision on where they go to school.
Stefanski reassured his colleagues the bill is purely tailored to the athlete and includes a mechanism for the athlete to use the college’s logo on his or her content.
“In my opinion, this is the best athlete-tailored bill that has come across my desk, and I believe will be the standard every state follows soon,” Stefanski said.
“This goes back to fairness because some of these athletes, they’ll never be able to maximize their earning potential without this bill.”

The bill would not affect the athletes’ scholarship eligibility.