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Assumption Parish deputies made two arrests last week related to threats. One of the threats was against a witness in a decade-old murder trial, and one was against a postal worker over service, Sheriff Leland Falcon said.

— Frank A. Couteau III, 32, Midland Drive, Thibodaux, was arrested Thursday on a charge of intimidating, impeding or injuring a witness.

In January 2019, detectives investigated a matter in which the witness involved had recorded cell phone threats on multiple occasions that Couteau allegedly made.

The case in question involved a relative of Couteau, who was convicted of murder following the trial over a decade ago.

Based on the witness interview and electronic evidence, detectives applied for and received a warrant for Couteau’s arrest.

Couteau was arrested on Thursday by Thibodaux police. He was transferred Thursday afternoon to Assumption Parish, where he remains incarcerated pending a bond hearing.

—Anthony Joseph Bozeman, 36, West Jeana Drive, Gonzales, was arrested Thursday on a charge of public intimidation-threats.
On Aug. 24, deputies responded to a call in Belle Rose in which the complainant indicated that Bozeman had made specific threats of violence against her because he was upset over issues with his mail delivery.

After interviewing the complainant, deputies obtained arrest warrants for Bozeman.

On Thursday, Anthony Joseph Bozeman was arrested and booked into the Assumption Parish Detention Center and remains incarcerated pending a bond hearing.

Morgan City Police Chief James F. Blair reported these arrests:

—Lawrence Alex Garrett, 24, Fourth Street, Gibson, was arrested at 12:01 Thursday on charges of possession of synthetic marijuana (second offense), illegal use of a controlled dangerous substance in the present of a person under 17 and possession of drug paraphernalia.

—Megan Falgout Archilla, 36, Bowen Lane, Morgan City, was arrested at 12:01 p.m. Thursday on charges of possession of synthetic marijuana (first offense), illegal use of a controlled dangerous substance in the present of a person under 17 and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Detectives with the Morgan City Police Department Narcotics and Investigation Unit investigated a complaint of illegal narcotics activity at an address on La. 182. They came into contact with Archilla and Garrett.
During the investigation, they were found in possession of suspected synthetic marijuana and drug paraphernalia in the presence of several children. They were placed under arrest and transported to the Morgan City Police Department for booking and incarceration.

St. Mary Parish Sheriff Blaise Smith reported these arrests:

—Tyrone Len Freeman, 51, La. 87, Franklin, was arrested at 11:55 a.m. Thursday on charges of theft and criminal trespass. Freeman was released on a $6,000 bond.

—Charles Joseph Boudreaux, 55, La.182, Franklin, was arrested at 2:03 p.m. Thursday on charges of possession of stolen things and criminal trespass. Bail was set at $5,000.

—Nolan Polidore Jr., 40, MLK Drive, Jeanerette, was arrested at 9:13 p.m. Thursday on a charge of driving under suspension. Polidore was released on a summons to appear Dec. 11.

St. Martin Sheriff Becket Breaux reported these arrests:

— Codie J. James, 41, St. Martinville, was arrested Friday on charges of possession with intent to distribute Schedule I drugs (two counts), manufacture/distribution/possession with intent to distribute Schedule II drugs (two counts), clandestine lab, manufac-ture/distribution of Schedule III drugs, possession of a firearm committing/attempting crime (10 counts), criminal conspiracy (six counts), transactions involving proceeds from drug offenses, Schedule I narcotics (all other), unauthorized use or food stamps (six counts) and possession of drug paraphernalia.

—Jardell Olivier, 33, St. Martinville, was arrested Friday on charges of possession with intent to distribute Schedule I drugs (two counts), manufacture/distribution/possession with intent to distribute Schedule II drugs (two counts), clandestine lab, manufac-ture/distribution of Schedule III drugs, possession of a firearm committing/attempting crime (10 counts), criminal conspiracy (six counts), transactions involving proceeds from drug offenses, Schedule I narcotics (all other), unauthorized use or food stamps (six counts), possession of drug paraphernalia, and possession of a firearm/concealed by a convicted felon (two counts).

Following a lengthy investigation regarding suspected illegal drug activity, deputies with the St. Martin Parish Sheriff’s Office executed a narcotics search warrant at a residence in the 2000 block of Catahoula Highway, St. Martinville.

Following the execution of the warrant, Deputies located suspected marijuana, suspected promethazine/codeine, suspected crack cocaine, suspected cocaine, MDMA and a digital scale. They also located two firearms, items consistent with a clandestine laborato-ry, six SNAP EBT cards (that did not belong to either suspect), and a large amount of U.S. currency.

Deputies arrested James and Olivier and booked them into the St. Martin Parish Correctional Center. As Friday, no bonds had been set.

If you suspect illegal drug activity in your neighborhood, please report it via the St. Martin Parish Narcotics Tip Line 337-394-2626.

The weather is cooling and the days are getting shorter. We’re now into astronomical fall following the autumnal equinox. There are so many things we can do in the garden this time of year. Fall is a great time to work in the landscape.
Many tasks can be done in preparation for winter. And the cooler weather it makes it so much more delightful.
Take care of weeds in your flower beds and vegetable gardens. Apply a thick layer of mulch about 2- to 3-inches deep with pine straw, leaves, straw or bark to help protect the roots of citrus trees and shallow-rooted trees and shrubs such as camellias from cold snaps in the coming months leading up to winter.
The lawn may be giving you fits right now. Virginia buttonweed and common lespedeza are major weed problems this time of year. They can be controlled with herbicides that contain the active ingredient metsulfuron such as MSM Turf or Celsius if the temperatures are over 85 degrees.
Once weeds have flowered they are more difficult to control. You may need to apply herbicides more than once to control them. As the weather cools you can begin using herbicides with the active ingredient atrazine in combination with 2, 4-D + mecoprop + dicamba + carfentrazone for the best results. Follow the product label for rates, and use a spreader sticker to improve coverage.
Stop applying nitrogen-containing fertilizers to your lawn now as the high nitrogen promotes fungal diseases such as large patch and grey leaf spot that are common in the fall. Fungal diseases appear as large circles in the grass that begin as yellowing leaves that transition to brown as the grass dies.
Control these fungal diseases with a granular fungicide containing one or more of the following ingredients: maneb, myclobutanil, PCNB, propiconazole, thiophanate-methyl and triadimefon. Be sure to follow label instructions.
Be careful not to confuse fungal disease with damage from insects such as sod webworms, armyworms or chinch bugs. They can also be a major problem this time of year as well, and sod webworms have definitely been an issue this year.
Check for caterpillars and chew marks on grass to confirm sod webworm presence. The moths in the grass are a dead giveaway for webworms and armyworms. Use an insecticide with the active ingredient bifenthrin for control. Treat again in seven days to take care of newly hatched eggs.
If you’ve got plants you want to add to your landscape, now is a great time to do so as the weather cools and water demands have decreased. Consider selecting trees that have good fall foliage color change for added beauty. Some great trees with beautiful fall foliage colors are bald cypress, black gum, Chinese pistache, dogwood, hickory, Japanese maple, oaks of many kinds, red swamp maple, southern sugar maple, sweet gum and sycamores.
October is traditionally the driest month of the year in Louisiana. Make sure trees and shrubs are receiving enough water so that they do not become stressed and more susceptible to disease and insects.
This is also a good time to address other insect problems such as scales. Use a horticultural oil spray to help control scale on camellias, magnolias, gardenias and citrus. This will also help control whiteflies.
Purchase and plant strawberry plants in October. Some recommended varieties are Sea Scape, Camarosa, Eversweet and Chandler. Fertilize them with one-third pound of 10-10-10 per 100-foot row.
In the vegetable garden, plant cool-season vegetables such as leafy greens in addition to broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. Control caterpillars on your cool-season vegetables with Bacillus thuringiensis insecticide. This is considered an organic insecticide safe for use in vegetable gardens.
For me, the changing of the seasons always sparks an itch to decorate. In the fall, we think of Halloween, All Saints Day and Thanksgiving. The fall ushers in thoughts of harvest time and the changing colors of the leaves. Orange is the official color of fall (well, in my book anyway). You can use many different types of flowering plants to incorporate not only orange but also yellow and red, the other traditional colors of the changing leaves.
The most common flowers of fall, of course, are mums. For decorations, you also can incorporate bales of hay or straw in addition to corn stalks and pumpkins that are easily found at most local retail nurseries as well as large chain stores and even grocery stores.
Pumpkins are a true symbol of the fall. There are many varieties in many colors these days to choose from. Make your pumpkins last longer by wiping the outside of them with a 10% bleach solution to kill any fungus or bacteria, thereby preserving and extending their life.
Once carved, you can dip your jack-o-lanterns into a bucket of 10% bleach solution again. Make them last longer by applying Vaseline, vegetable oil or WD-40 for moisture retention after cleaning with the bleach solution, or keep pumpkins refrigerated. Do not use real votive candles; use battery-operated votives instead.
You can also use acrylic paints or washable paints and skip the carving all together. This can be a fun and creative way to decorate pumpkins for the whole family. Try planting your own pumpkins next summer in July.

The Louisiana Office of Public Health reported nine new COVID-19 cases in St. Mary and Assumption and no new cases in St. Martin in the 48 hours ending at midday Sunday. No deaths were reported in the three parishes.

St. Mary has six new cases for a pandemic total of 1,917.

St. Martin's case count remains at 2,094.

In Assumption, three new cases raised that parish's total to 761.

The death toll remains 77 in St. Mary, 61 in St. Martin and 24 in Assumption.

Statewide:

--920 new cases raise the pandemic total to 164,851.

--21 deaths raise the toll to 5,283.

--13 fewer COVID-positive people are hospitalized for a total of 557.

--The number of people on ventilators fell by one to 85.

The Louisiana Office of Public Health reported 15 new COVID cases in three local parishes for the 24 hours ending at midday Friday. One new COVID-related fatality was reported in St. Martin.

Nine new COVID cases were reported in St. Mary, where the total since the pandemic began is now 1,911. Seventy-seven deaths have been reported here.

The relatively low new case numbers recently in St. Mary are encouraging because they come two-three weeks after parish public schools opened, bringing thousands of children back to campuses for the first time since March.

Another set of St. Mary institutions got good news this week: Bars are allowed to open with social-distancing requirements and capacity limits because the COVID positivity rate is below 5%.

St. Martin had three new cases Friday for a total of 2,094. The death reported Friday was the 61st among St. Martin people.

Assumption had three new cases for a total of 758. The death toll remains at 24.

Statewide:

--698 new cases raise the pandemic total to 163,928.

--21 newly reported deaths raised the total to 5,262.

--5 fewer COVID-positive patients are in hospitals, lowering the total to 570.

--6 fewer people are on ventilators for a total of 86.