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Residents of Bernice Street in Morgan City celebrated their 35th annual Christmas by Candlelight Saturday night. Brilliantly lighted homes lined the street to welcome visitors, and Santa appeared along with a scheduled puppet show by Cornerstone Ministries. Christmas by Candlelight was scheduled to continue until 9 p.m. Saturday.

The Daily Review/Bill Decker

Tyson Jeffery James Celestine, wanted in the Sunday shooting that wounded one man, has turned himself in at the Morgan City Police Department.

The Morgan City Police Department responded to a shots fired complaint early Sunday on Fifth Street. Responding officers located an individual who was suffering from a gunshot wound.

The victim has since been released from the hospital.

During the investigation, Investigators with the Morgan City Police Department developed Celestine, 32, as a suspect.

Celestine was wanted on charges of attempted second-degree murder, carrying of a firearm by a convicted felon and illegal use of weapons or dangerous instrumentalities.

Ochsner St. Mary staff members most at risk for exposure to COVID-19 could begin receiving the new Pfizer vaccine as early as Monday, according to members of the Ochsner Health System administration and medical staff.

The system conducted a Zoom meeting for reporters Friday as Ochsner waits for its first shipment of the vaccine. Among those online were Debbie Simonson, a vice president with pharmacy responsibilities, and Drs. Sandy Kennerly, Katherine Baumgarten and Leo Seoane.

Louisiana public health officials have prioritized health care workers for the early rounds of vaccine delivery. Baumgartner said Friday that the system will await word about vaccine availability from the state government before making the vaccine available to the general public.

Here are some of the key points:

---Ochsner is expecting delivery of the Pfizer vaccine, a messenger RNA vaccine that requires ultra-cold storage. But after it is removed from ultra-cold temperatures, the vaccine can be safely kept in normal refrigeration for five days.

The Pfizer vaccine has been recommended for emergency use authorization by a Food and Drug Administration panel after trials indicated the vaccine has 95% efficacy. Inoculation requires two shots 21 days apart.

Moderna also has an MRNA vaccine awaiting approval by the FDA for emergency use. It requires two shots 28 days apart.

--Ochsner is expecting more than 9,000 doses of the vaccine, which will be divided among three hubs with ultra-cold storage capability: 1,325 doses for Shreveport, which will serve Ochsner facilities in north Louisiana; 2,975 for Lafayette to serve central and west Louisiana facilities; and 5,125 does for the New Orleans hub, which will serve that area plus the Bayou region, including Ochsner St. Mary.

--Ochsner plans to move vaccine doses from the hubs to the system's facilities quickly.

--The first vaccinations will go to staff members who work in COVID units, and not just doctors and nurses. This tier will also include people such as food service workers and members of the cleaning staff who are at frequent risk of COVID exposure. The second round of shots will go to these deemed to be at occasional risk, and the third round to those who have no contact with COVID patients.

A few weeks may be required to inoculate all hospital staff members.

--Staff members will receive notification when the vaccine is ready for use. The vaccinations are not mandatory, but staff members are being encouraged to get them. On the other hand, staff members who have tested positive and have recovered within the last three months are believed to have immunity of unknown duration. They're being asked to delay their vaccinations to conserve the vaccine.

CENTERVILLE — The St. Mary School Board on Thursday adopted a discipline policy for students who go to school online, bringing the district in line with a state law inspired by a widely publicized case in Jefferson Parish.
The School Board also received good grades on its fiscal 2020 financial audit.
The board’s new virtual learning discipline policy complies with a law passed by the Legislature in the second special session this year.
The law came about after a 9-year-old student at Woodmere Elementary in Harvey was threatened with expulsion in October after he put a BB gun in view of the computer on which he was receiving virtual instruction in his bedroom.
The school administration originally considered expelling the boy, even though his parents said the student was only picking up the BB gun after a sibling knocked it over in his bedroom. The family objected to the application of the school’s on-campus weapons policy to the boy’s actions in his own home.
The school administration decided to impose a suspension, a less serious penalty. But while the parents would have been able to appeal the expulsion, there was no opportunity to appeal the suspension.
The Legislature’s Act 48 requires school districts to develop virtual learning discipline policies and to allow appeals for students for whom expulsion is recommended, even if the penalty is reduced to suspension.
Both state representatives for St. Mary, Beryl Amedee and Vincent St. Blanc, were co-sponsors of the act.
The St. Mary virtual learning policy adopted Thursday says students and parents don’t give up their rights because the students are engaged in remote instruction. But students must log on each day as required and keep the area in view of their laptop cameras free of “any object, writing, picture, or other display which, if possessed on school buses, in the classroom, or on school property would subject the student to disciplinary action.”
The policy also prohibits bullying, including cyber-bullying; the use of language deemed to be discriminatory or harassing; obscene language, drawings or writings; cheating or sharing work or answers; displaying pornography; committing “lewd or sexual acts or simulations”; repeatedly disrupting the classroom; exhibiting disrespect for teachers or other school personnel; interfering with instructional audio or video; handling or displaying weapons, real or facsimile; using or showing drugs, alcohol, tobacco or vaping devices; divulging confidential information; violating password or security rules; and violating the Acceptable Use Policy or device contracts.
Also Thursday:
—Chris Miller, a partner at the Darnall, Sikes, Gardes and Frederick accounting firm, presented what he called “overall, a very positive audit” of school finances for the year ending June 30, 2020.
The district handled the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, Miller said, with the help of a $4 million increase in state Minimum Foundation Program spending to $54 million, the biggest single source of general fund spending.
Sales tax receipts also outperformed expectations, and the school district was able to control spending.
—The board recognized its Students of the Month: J.S. Aucoin Elementary fifth-grader Devin Nguyen; Franklin High senior Kaitlyn Marcotte; and LaGrange Elementary fifth-grader Mi’Queria Harris.
—The board recognized its Employees of the Month: J.S. Aucoin pre-kindergarten teacher Shana Goulas; Franklin High math teacher Trivette McCurtis; and LaGrange Elementary curriculum facilitator Kelly Williamson.