Submitted Photo
Lisa Russo with LMR Travel LLC is the newest member of the St. Mary Chamber. She can be reached at 985-519-2720. Russo, left, is shown with Chamber President Donna Meyer.
Our friends and neighbors in Louisiana started voting in person over the weekend for the first time since the COVID-19 outbreak interrupted our lives and turned state government upside down. This summertime election cycle is unlike any other in recent memory. The early voting period, in fact, will stretch over two weeks instead of one, due to the pandemic.
While the presidential preference question will garner a great deal of attention alongside numerous state party posts that must be filled, there were also 169 mostly local elections that were scheduled for this summer primary ballot, including three multi-parish contests for a pair of judgeships and a state House seat.
Of those 169 scheduled elections that are currently being aged, there are 25 for mayor and 14 for chiefs of police. The rest run the gamut from school boards and city councils to justices of the peace and city judges.
However, only 100 of those elections are competitive, since 63 candidates statewide qualified for jobs without opposition and another six elections drew no candidates whatsoever. In those cases where no candidates at all qualified, the elections will either have to be called again or temporary appointments will have to be made.
That means 40% of the local races have already been decided, which is a sobering reminder that civic engagement isn’t exactly at a level that it should be. This happens every election cycle, and I always find it frustrating. There’s no doubt that the best way to win a seat for a politician is to do so without opposition, but the lack of challengers and, even worse, races that field no interest, speak to an apathy that’s ill-suited to address this state’s mounting challenges.
Nonetheless, there are still several hot elections to participate in and track this cycle, beginning with a pair of multi-parish races that politicos statewide are watching with interest.
--Judge, Court of Appeal 1st Circuit, 3rd Dist., Division D: In this district that stretches from Livingston to St. Tammany, there are two Republicans vying for the seat, so no runoff will be needed. Rick Swartz of Covington has a slight edge in this one, with the backing of local business and industry. More importantly, there are some hot municipal elections in his base of St. Tammany Parish, which should help drive turnout. Swartz is currently on radio in the district and is said to be exploring how much bang he can get in the coming weeks with TV and direct mail. Beth Wolfe of Albany has been an aggressive opponent, and has made sure that voters know about her tough-on-crime approach to the law. The local trial bar may get more involved on her behalf, but this election is not expected to draw the kind of statewide interest we’ve seen in similar contests. Fundraising has been difficult here and both candidates are relying on word of mouth.
--State Rep. 54th Representative District: Politicos in Baton Rouge haven’t been sleeping on this first special legislative election of the year. Around the Capitol, the name of Joseph Orgeron of Golden Meadow has been on the lips of many, and he picked up quite a few checks at a fundraiser here earlier this week. Locals expect him to make the runoff, if not lead it, due to his war chest and the fact that he’s the only Lafourche Parish candidate from south of the bayou, or the 10th Ward. Everyone else is from north of the bayou, starting with James Cantrelle of Raceland, who will benefit from a bit of name recognition since his father served as parish president. Should Cantrelle make the runoff against Orgeron, that name may also backfire on him, since his father was constantly at odds with the Parish Council and others over his salary and other issues. Donny Lerille of Larose shouldn’t be ignored, since he was in the last race for the seat, and the same goes for Phil Gilligan of Larose, who has peppered the district with signs. Dave Carskadon of Larose and Kevin Duet of Raceland are also on the ballot. Locals wouldn’t be surprised if turnout is higher than expected for this one.
Also in towns and cities all over our state, which serve as the backbone of our politics and government structure, there are elections for top municipal officers. There are several to keep tabs on, and they’re worthy of our consideration.
--Mayor city of Mandeville (All Republicans): Michael Blache, Chad Bordelon, Brian J. Henly, “Clay” Madden and Laure Sica
--Mayor city of Monroe: L. Marie Brown, Democrat; Friday Ellis, Independent; Fredrick Louis, Democrat; “Jamie” Mayo, Democrat; and Ronnie Scott, Libertarian
--Mayor city of Baker (All Democrats): Joyce Burges, Leroy Davis and Darnell “DA-1” Waites
--Mayor town of Madisonville: Jean Pelloat, Independent, and Charles “Charlie” Tucker, Republican
--Mayor town of Ferriday (All Democrats): Gene Allen, Glenn Henderson, Sherrie Jacobs and Rydell Turner
--Mayor town of Vidalia: Hyram Copeland, Independent, and “Buz” Craft, Democrat
--Mayor town of Jackson: Linda Karam, Independent; James “Jimmy” Norsworthy III, Democrat; and Junius “Pappy” Robillard, No Party
--Mayor town of Slaughter: Melissa Davis, No Party, and Janis Landry, Republican
--Mayor town of Jean Lafitte: Nicholas Dinet, Democrat, and Timothy P. Kerner Jr., Republican
--Mayor city of Natchitoches: David “DJ” Kees Jr., Libertarian; Lee Posey, Independent; and Ronnie James, Democrat
While this first election cycle of 2020 may be marked by a lack of qualifiers and reconfigured voting system due to the Coronavirus, participation on the backend — inside the booths — doesn’t have to show wear. There are plenty of issues that matter, from the top of the ticket to the bottom. Hopefully they’ll be enough to grab and maintain your attention.
For more Louisiana political news, visit
www. LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on
Twitter @LaPoliticsNow
BATON ROUGE — The House passed a potential compromise bill Tuesday aimed at winning support from Gov. John Bel Edwards, who vetoed an earlier effort that sought to lower car insurance rates by limiting injury lawsuits.
The bill, by Rep. Richard Nelson, R-Mandeville, passed 82-9, with 21 Democrats voting for it. Nelson said he was trying to break the logjam on an issue that Republicans have billed as one of their biggest priorities during this legislative season.
In other action Tuesday, the House voted 82-17 to pass a bill that would prevent students and teachers who contracted infectious diseases, including COVID-19, from suing K-12 schools and colleges unless they can prove “grossly negligent or wanton or reckless misconduct.”
Earlier this month, Edwards vetoed a bill by Sen. Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge that had addressed several components of Louisiana’s tort laws that Republicans say lead to high auto insurance rates.
Republicans appear to be short of the votes needed to override the veto, so they are trying to pass replacement legislation before the special session ends July 1.
Like Talbot’s bill, Nelson’s would extend the time that parties have to file suits and would limit the amount of recoverable medical expenses and insurance premium payments. Nelson’s bill also would lower the monetary amount an injury has to be worth to be decided by a jury rather than a judge.
But unlike Talbot’s bill, it would reduce the default number of jurors to six from 12 to try to lessen the burden on courts and jurors. Judges expressed concerns that Talbot’s bill would overwhelm courts with jury trials and that rural areas could have trouble finding enough jurors for personal injury cases.
In another compromise, Nelson’s bill includes a sunset provision that would repeal the bill if rates do not decrease by at least 15% in three years. Democrats had issues with Talbot’s and other bills that did not mandate reductions, and Republicans denied their requests to include provisions that would repeal the legislation if it did not lower rates.
Talbot’s bill also would have prohibited suing insurance companies directly. Nelson’s bill would prohibit juries from seeing evidence of an insurance policy for purposes of establishing direct action against an insurance company.
His bill would prevent injured plaintiffs from recovering damages if their percentage of fault is greater than the combined percentage of fault of all other persons found to have contributed to the injury, death, or loss.
Unlike Talbot’s bill, Nelson’s bill would prohibit insurance companies from setting rates based on a driver’s gender if they are over the age of 25.
Democrats sponsored bills that would have tried to lower insurance rates by prohibiting insurance companies from determining rates based on age, gender, marital status and credit score, but faced opposition from Republicans. Edwards has said he supports this measure and that he believes “discriminatory practices” need to end in order to lower rates.
The House also passed three resolutions by Rep. Alan Seabaugh, R-Shreveport, that would address some of the same components of Talbot’s bill.
The resolutions would repeal a rule that allows juries and judges to hear whether someone was wearing a seatbelt at the time of an accident.
They also would prohibit suing insurance companies directly and remove the monetary requirement needed for juries to hear a case.
The main difference is that resolutions are veto-proof and would have to be renewed by the Legislature every year, unless a bill that does the same thing is signed into law by Edwards. The resolutions, if successful, would take effect immediately.
Rep. Robby Carter, D-Amite, said having the law take effect immediately was like “changing the rules in the middle of the game.”
“I would prefer a bill to get signed and quit having to do this, but when (Edwards) is going to veto the bill, this is one of the only bullets left in the gun,” Seabaugh said during a committee hearing.
Some lawmakers opposed his strategy, saying it is a tactic to go around the Democratic governor’s veto. Rep. Joseph Stagni, R-Kenner, called it a “political shakedown.”
“I’m embarrassed as a member of this body that we are using this methodology to make a point,” said Rep. Aimee Freeman, D-New Orleans.
All three of Seabaugh’s resolutions now move to the Senate, where three identical resolutions by Sen. Robert Mills, R-Minden, also could be debated.
The bill to insulate K-12 schools and colleges from liability for COVID-19 infections was written by Rep. Buddy Mincey, R-Denham Springs. He said it was critical to allow schools to return to in-person classes without the fear of lawsuits.
More than 50,000 people in Louisiana have contracted the coronavirus, and cases are rising in several regions of the state. Some lawmakers opposed the bill, saying it could put students and teachers at risk.
“I’m just in favor of erring on the side of fighting for our children,” said Rep. Gary Carter, D-New Orleans. “I think this legislation reduces the protection of our children for the benefit of our schools.”
A similar bill that protects businesses and government agencies from lawsuits regarding deaths or injuries related to the virus has been signed into law by Edwards.
A Bayou L’Ourse man was arrested Monday and accused of violating a protective order and assault, Morgan City Police Chief James F. Blair said.
—Ryan Joseph Delahoussaye, 26, Legnon Court, Bayou L’Ourse, was arrested at 7:19 p.m. Monday on a warrant for violation of a protective order and for telephone harassment and simple assault.
Delahoussaye was located at the Berwick Police Department and placed under arrest on an active warrant held by the Morgan City Police Department. He was transported to the Morgan City Department for booking and incarceration.
Blair also reported these arrests:
—Tiffany Lynn Remedies, 30, Canary Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 5:25 p.m. Monday on a warrant for four counts of failure to appear.
Remedies was located at the Morgan City Police Department and placed under arrest on active warrants held by the City Court of Morgan City. She was booked and incarcerated.
Remedies had been arrested at 12:29 p.m. by the Sheriff’s Office on a warrant, which resulted from failure to appear on a charge of possession of methamphetamine.
—Peter Jaral Grogan, 23, Fifth Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 7:32 p.m. Monday on a warrant for domestic abuse battery.
Officers came into contact with Grogan in the area of La. 182 and Ditch Avenue. A warrant check revealed the Morgan City Police Department held an active warrant for his arrest. He was placed under arrest and transported to the Morgan City Police Department for booking and incarceration
St. Mary Parish Sheriff Blaise Smith reported these arrests:
—Willie James Hayes, 40, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Patterson, was arrested at 11:45 a.m. Monday on a charge of violation of a protective order. Hayes was released on a $3,250 bond.
—Todd Wayne Romero, 45, Bethia Street, Franklin, was arrested at 2:45 a.m. Tuesday on charges of turning movements and signals required and driving under suspension, and on an Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office warrant for the charge of introduction of contraband into a penal facility. Romero is being held for another agency.
—Jaquan Montaque Verrett, 21, La. 87, Franklin, was arrested at 3:42 a.m. Tuesday on charges of turning movements and signals required and possession of marijuana. Verrett was released on a summons to appear Sept. 24.
—Aaron Jackson, 53, La. 318, Jeanerette, was arrested at 12:23 a.m. Tuesday on charges of license plate required, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of marijuana, and possession of alcoholic beverage in motor vehicle (open container). Jackson was released on a summons to appear Sept. 24.
Assumption Parish Sheriff Leland Falcon reported one arrest:
—Ian Talbot, 40, La. 401, Napoleonville, was arrested Monday on charges of felony theft and theft of a firearm.
The arrest was in connection with a theft investigation originating on or about April 16.
Detectives commenced an investigation and shortly thereafter identified Talbot as a suspect.
It was also determined that Talbot had some familiarity with the victim of the theft.
During the series of events, Talbot is alleged to have stolen miscellaneous items as well as a firearm.
With the assistance of the Gonzales Police Department, detectives were able to recover some of the stolen items.
Warrants were obtained for the arrest of Ian Talbot.
On Monday, Assumption Parish sheriff’s detectives, accompanied by the Thibodaux Police Department, located and arrested Talbot in Thibodaux.
Talbot was later transferred to Assumption Parish, where he was booked into the parish detention center.
He remains incarcerated pending a bond hearing
The following are the radio dispatch logs from the Morgan City Police Department. To report unlawful or suspicious activity, call the police department at 985-380-4605.
Monday, June 22
5:36 a.m. 600 block of Front Street; Alarm.
6:16 a.m. 1200 block of Victor II Boulevard; Alarm.
6:39 a.m. 3100 block of Lake Palourde Road; Alarm.
8:03 a.m. Eighth and Willard streets; Debris in road.
9:04 a.m. U.S. 90 West; Debris in road.
9:09 a.m. Morgan City; Theft.
10:57 a.m. Brashear Avenue and Front Street; Animal.
11:17 a.m. 500 block of Roderick Street; Complaint.
11:21 a.m. 3200 block of Susan Court; Complaint.
11:43 a.m. La Quinta Inn; Complaint.
1:01 p.m. Siracusaville; Fight.
1:15 p.m. 7000 block of Railroad Avenue; Loud music.
1:31 p.m. 1400 block of Second Street; Drug activity.
1:34 p.m. Ochsner St. Mary; Complaint.
2 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Medical.
3:44 p.m. 800 block of Brashear Avenue; Complaint.
3:55 p.m. 1000 block of Brashear Avenue; Complaint.
4:27 p.m. 1000 block of Ditch Avenue; Damage to property.
6:38 p.m. La. 182 and Ditch Avenue; Accident.
6:45 p.m. 1400 block of Second Street; Assistance.
11:25 p.m. 1400 block of Railroad Avenue; Medical.
11:42 p.m. 7200 block of La. 182; Theft.
Tuesday, June 23
4:38 a.m. 600 block of Front Street; Alarm.
Week 1
W L
Let Er Rip 6 3
Horseshoes Great 5 4
Let’s Geaux 5 4
3 Guys & A Gal 4 5
Buffet Margaritaville 4 5
High scratch point average: (30’) Tim Gilmore 76.0 and Mary Guzdial 27.3; and (40’) Randy Giroir 51.7, Dwain Arceneaux 50.0 and Glenn Miller 46.3.
High individual ringer percentage: (30’) Gilmore 55.0 and Guzdial 9.2; and (40’) Giroir 35.8, Arceneaux 33.3, Miller 25.8 and Travis Bourdier 25.8.
High scratch game: Gilmore 82, Giroir 59, Arceneaux 53, Dale Pearce 53, Rodney Fromenthal 51, Miller 51 and Bourdier 49.
Most ringers: (one night) Gilmore 66, Giroir 43, Arceneaux 40, Miller 31 and Bourdier 31; and (one game) Gilmore 24, Giroir 16, Arceneaux 15, Miller 13 and Bourdier 12.
Most points one night: Gilmore 228, Giroir 155, Arceneaux 150, Miller 139 and Pearce 137.
Best won-loss record: Bryan Phoenix 3-0, Pearce 3-0, Miller 2-1, Fromenthal 2-1, Craig Rink 2-1, Guzdial 2-1, Travis Bourdier 2-1 and Tyler Bourdier 2-1.
Most points one night (team): Make Horseshoes Great Again 363 and 3 Guys & A Girl 352. Most ringers one night (team): Let’s Geaux 90 and Make Horseshoes Great Again 87.
St. Mary and St. Martin each had five new COVID-19 positives and another St. Mary death was reported in Wednesday's Louisiana Office of Public Health update.
The number of new cases statewide was high again, but the number of hospitalizations fell.
St. Mary's five new cases mean 410 people have tested positive here since the pandemic began. The latest death raised the parish's toll to 37.
St. Martin's five cases raised its total to 586. Twenty-six St. Martin people have died from COVID-19.
Assumption's totals remained at 334 cases with 14 deaths.
Statewide:
--882 new cases raised the total to 52,477.
--18 deaths mean 3,039 Louisiana deaths have been linked to COVID-19.
--The number of people hospitalized dropped by 15 to 631.
--77 COVID patients are on ventilators.
The Bash is on.
The Morgan City Council on Tuesday approved a Marine Corps League request to hold the annual Bayou BBQ Bash July 10-11 under the approach to the Atchafalaya River Bridge.
The request was presented by Marine Corps League member Bill Goessl. The league has been asked to run the annual barbecue competition this year by the St. Mary Chamber, Goessl said.
The BBQ Bash is a Barbecue Competitors Alliance-sanctioned competition that has attracted competitors from around the country. Goessl told the council that, after talk with organizers at other recent barbecue competitions that about 40 barbecue chefs will come to this year’s Bash.
Organizers of the nationwide Jack Daniels barbecue competition recently announced via Facebook that its October finals have been canceled because of the coronavirus. But points earned by contestants this year will be carried over to the 2021 competition.
Last year’s Bayou BBQ Bash was canceled because of Hurricane Barry. This year’s Bash comes as the parish lives with restrictions designed to fight the spread of COVID-19. And there will be some changes.
There will be no kickoff event at the Hampton Inn and Suites before the Bash, as has been the custom in recent years. Recent kickoffs have featured the unveiling of the Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival poster.
The festival board announced in April that the 2020 event is on hold because of COVID-19.
Goessl succinctly summed up two other changes in this year’s Bayou BBQ Bash.
“No bands,” he told the council. “No booze.”
But food will be for sale in to-go containers, Goessl said. When the barbecue event started, he said, organizers got some negative feedback about the lack of food for sale at the event.
The Bayou BBQ Bash will run 4-10 p.m. July 10, a Friday, and will continue until 6 p.m. July 11. A kids barbecue contest will again be part of the event.
The BBQ Bash will give Tri-City area people two public events on successive weekends after four months of coronavirus restrictions.
The combined Morgan City-Berwick fireworks display over the Atchafalaya River is scheduled for 9 p.m. July 4. Berwick’s Rockin’ the Riverfront entertainment precedes the fireworks show.
The Morgan City Council may soon have a decision to make about participation in a federal program that offers city residents a break on their flood insurance.
The council heard about changes in the Community Rating System at Tuesday’s regular meeting, held at the Morgan City Municipal Auditorium to allow for social distancing.
Also Tuesday, the council introduced one ordinance setting property tax rates and approved another that changes firearm discharge rules to accommodate a new business that will assemble firearms.
Morgan City has participated in the federal Community Rating System since 1991, said Anthony Governale, the city’s planning and zoning manager. Cities are rated from 1 to 10 on how well they meet flood-control standards.
Morgan City has an 8 rating, which entitles homeowners to a 10% discount on premiums under the National Flood Insurance program.
But the standards are getting stricter. To keep the 8 rating, the city would have to require that new residential construction and substantial improvements worth at least 50% of an existing home’s value have to be a foot above the base flood elevation determined by flood control authorities. The local requirement would have to take effect by Jan. 1.
Congress has been involved in a years-long effort to put the National Flood Insurance Program on a sound financial footing. The program guarantees flood insurance to make it available in flood-prone areas where private homeowners coverage would be prohibitively expensive or impossible to get.
Lee Dragna, who resigned earlier this month from the chairmanship of the Consolidated Gravity Drainage District No. 2 board, stepped to the microphone Tuesday to say the federal government is hoping to reduce the subsidy it pays to support flood insurance.
That makes it important to complete the Morgan City pump station upgrades and the levee system improvements now underway, Dragna said. The last big piece of the levee improvements is the section between Lake Palourde and Lakeside Subdivision, where a levee will have to be constructed.
The St. Mary Parish Levee District is trying to build a consensus around a levee plan for Lakeside.
The council took no action Tuesday on the Community Rating System issue.
Also Tuesday:
—The council heard the first reading of the ordinance setting the general property tax rate at 16.07 mills.
A mill is 1/10th-cent of tax applied to each dollar of assessed valuation. By law, the assessed valuation of residential property is set at 10% of its market value as determined by the parish assessor.
The word from the Assessor’s Office is that the total assessed valuation in Morgan City is about $127.9 million, down from $137 million four years ago.
The ordinance is due for a public hearing and a final passage vote at the council’s July meeting.
City voters will be asked to renew a 2-mill tax for operating the Municipal Auditorium later this year.
—The council passed an ordinance to change the firearm discharge rules that will allow Trojan Firearms to test weapons that it will assemble at its facility at 7900 La. 182 East.
The new ordinance allows the company to test-fire weapons 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and restricts the caliber of the ammunition being tested, among other rules. It also forbids the storage of large quantities of ammunition at the site.
The provisions are limited to companies with a city permit to assemble firearms.
Recent outages in the Morgan City utility system are nothing out of the ordinary, just a byproduct of nature, City Utilities Director Bill Cefalu said Tuesday.
He said a downed tree and lightning were the cause of some recent outages, while Saturday and Monday, the same breaker tripped at the La. 70 Substation that energizes Elliot Subdivision.
In addition to trees and lightning, wildlife can cause issues for the city’s utility system, Cefalu said. He said all of these issues are common among utility providers.
“It’s nothing that we have any control over,” Cefalu said. “I can’t control a tree branch breaking off in the middle of the night. I can’t control a lightning strike, and then I can’t control the squirrels and the pigeons. We just handle problems as they come and address them.”
He said the city’s utility system has performed well for a while.
“Those two breakers tripping was the first incident we had on that circuit (in) probably over a year,” Cefalu said of the La. 70 Substation.
He said most of the wildlife issues occur in the city’s downtown circuit, but he said lately, they haven’t had breakers trip due to wildlife.
Lightning, one of the factors of outages, occurs more during the summer, Cefalu said.
“When the system is hot and loaded more, it’s more sensitive, but we have a lot of times in the winter we get storms, lightning,” he said. “Again, you can’t put your finger on it.”
Cefalu said it’s simply a matter of fixing what breaks and moving forward.
“We’re prepared to fix anything that we have a problem with,” he said. “That’s how this business goes.”
Franklin Banner-Tribune
P.O. Box 566, Franklin, LA 70538
Phone: 337-828-3706
Fax: 337-828-2874
Morgan City Review
1014 Front Street, Morgan City, LA 70380
Phone: 985-384-8370
Fax: 985-384-4255