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A 27-year-old Morgan City woman was caught in possession of stolen property in connection with burglaries in the Lakeside and Wyandotte areas of Morgan City, Police Chief James Blair said in a news release.

—Shaysa C. Thomas, 27, of Patton Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 7:32 p.m. Wednesday on warrants charging her with possession of stolen things $1,000 to $5,000, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute, possession of drug paraphernalia, violation of uniform controlled dangerous substance law-drug-free zone and transactions involving proceeds from controlled dangerous substance activity.

Thomas was located and arrested in the area of Marguerite Street on active warrants. The warrants stem from a June 20 investigation while officers were investigating several burglaries that had occurred in the Lakeside and Wyandotte areas. During the investigation, a Patton Street address was identified where some of the stolen property was located.

A search warrant was executed on the home where investigators located stolen property in connection to these burglaries, Blair said. In addition, investigators located suspected marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Thomas was one of the suspects in the investigation, Blair said.

Police found evidence that suspected marijuana was intended to be sold in illicit sales. Officers found $360 in cash believed to be derived from those sales, Blair said. The incident took place in a drug-free zone. The investigation continued when warrants were prepared for Thomas’ arrest. Thomas was jailed. The investigation is still ongoing.

Blair reported that officers responded to 39 calls and reported the following arrests:

—Brittany Morgan, 27, of Glenwood Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 11 a.m. Wednesday on a warrant charging her with two counts of failure to appear to pay a fine. Morgan was located and arrested at the police department on a city court warrant. Morgan was jailed.

—Cory Jones, 36, of Oriole Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 5:20 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia, illegal possession of a controlled dangerous substance in the presence of juveniles and violation of uniform controlled dangerous substance law-drug-free zone.

—Danielle Jones, 31, of Oriole Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 5:20 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of drug paraphernalia, illegal possession of a controlled dangerous substance in the presence of juveniles and violation of uniform controlled dangerous substance law-drug-free zone.

Investigators with the Morgan City Police Department Narcotics Division with the assistance from the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Section executed a search warrant in the area of Oriole Street. Cory Jones and Danielle Jones were identified during the investigation.

Investigators located suspected methamphetamine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia. Authorities found evidence that the methamphetamine was intended to be sold in illicit sales, Blair said. There were three children located inside the home, and the area where the incident took place was in a drug-free zone. The duo was jailed.

—Wilbert S. Harrison, 33, of La. 182 in Morgan City, was arrested at 5:58 p.m. Wednesday on charges of possession of marijuana second offense and entry or remaining in places after being forbidden.

Patrol officers observed Harrison exiting an apartment complex in the area of La. 182. The officer had knowledge that Harrison had been barred previously from the property, Blair said. A stop was initiated when Harrison was found in possession of suspected marijuana. Harrison was jailed.

—Leah M. Owens, 40, of Fifth Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 8:55 p.m. Wednesday on a warrant charging her with simple burglary.

Owens was located and arrested in the area of Fifth Street on an active warrant. The warrant stems from a June 15 investigation when Owens was identified as a suspect in a burglary of a home that had occurred in the area of Railroad Avenue, Blair said. The investigation continued when a warrant was prepared for Owens’ arrest. Owens was jailed.

—Joseph J. Jessie, 39, of Utah Street in Berwick, was arrested at 10:52 p.m. Wednesday on a warrant charging him with theft less than $1,000.

Jessie was located and arrested at the police department on a warrant. The warrant stems from a June 26 investigation when officers responded to an establishment in the area of La. 70 in regard to a shoplifter. Officers arrived when Jessie was identified as taking items valued at $67.70 without paying for them, Blair said. Jessie had departed the store prior to officers’ arrival. Therefore, a warrant was prepared for his arrest. Jessie was jailed.

St. Mary Parish Sheriff Scott Anslum reported that deputies responded to 39 complaints in the parish and reported the following arrests in east St. Mary Parish:

—Harvey Trahan, 44, of Bayou Plaquemine in Rayne, was arrested at 10:04 a.m. Wednesday on charges of hit and run, reckless operation with an accident and a warrant for failure to appear on the charge of speeding. Deputies initially responded to the area of Patterson for a vehicle that was traveling at a high rate of speed and struck a sign.

Through the investigation, deputies located a vehicle matching the given description at a business in Morgan City. Deputies located the driver, Trahan. Deputies found evidence that the vehicle Trahan was operating was involved in a crash, Anslum said. Deputies also learned that Trahan held an active warrant for his arrest. Trahan was jailed with bail set at $2,000.

—Elijah Ross, 70, of Vega Court in Gibson, was arrested at 12:31 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of theft. A deputy responded to a theft complaint at a business in Bayou Vista. Upon arrival, the deputy learned that the suspect was exiting the store. The deputy made contact with Ross and found evidence that he removed several items from the store, Anslum said. The items were returned and Ross was released on a summons to appear in court Sept. 4.

Berwick Police Chief James Richard reported the following arrest:

—Marcolby Marks, 29, of Fourth Street in Berwick, was arrested at 9:47 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of resisting an officer giving false information, two Lafayette Parish warrants for failure to appear on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia and a Lafayette police warrant charging him with driving under suspension. Marks was awaiting transport to Lafayette.

Patterson Police Chief Janis Merritt reported no arrests.

Cade Toups, 14, goes airborne Wednesday on a scooter at The Swamp Skate Park in Bayou Vista. (The Daily Review/Zachary Fitzgerald)

On the surface, the latest unemployment figures for St. Mary Parish look good. Underneath that, the numbers are gloomy.
St. Mary has some things going for it, too. They aren’t magic-wand or pot-of-gold things, but they’re positive developments nevertheless.
First, the almost good news: In May, the St. Mary unemployment rate was 6.9 percent, which is 1.4 points lower than the May 2017 rate, according to the Louisiana Workforce Commission.
Then we come to why the rate is lower. That isn’t so good.
Remember that unemployment is about the number of people who are actively looking for jobs but don’t have them. The unemployment rate fell because the number of unemployed actively seeking work dropped by 20 percent over the last year, while the number of jobs decreased by 3 percent.
The changes in the energy industry, the drop in oil prices and the shift away from offshore work to inland production, continue to work their mischief.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says that in September 2014, just before the oil price began falling, more than 27,000 people were employed in St. Mary. By December 2017, only about 21,000 people worked here.
The positive developments around the parish may take longer than that to work. But we can point to:
—A $1.3 million Economic Development Administration grant to help build an industrial training operation at the Port of West St. Mary. The Commerce Department says the facility will create 120 jobs.
It will be a 5,000-square-foot facility that offers aluminum fabrication training for the local marine industry, according to the administration. Local industry will provide the equipment, and South Louisiana Technical College will provide the instructors.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, U.S. Rep. Clay Higgins, R-Port Barre, the South Louisiana Community College System, the port, and the South Central Planning & Development Commission all get to take a victory lap for the new operation.
—St. Mary Excel, a group under the Community Foundation of Acadiana, has reached its $140,000 fundraising goal with donations from private individuals and local governments. It will commission a study of economic development opportunities in Berwick and Morgan City. The study will be done by the Urban Land Institute starting in the fall.
When Monica Mancuso, Alice Pecoraro and other St. Mary Excel members made their pitch to the Berwick Town Council on June 12, they acknowledged that some eyes may roll at the thought of another study.
But what sets the Urban Land Institute’s work apart from similar endeavors is depth. Part of the process will be interviews with dozens of local people.
—The Young Memorial Campus of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System is about to get a name change next month as it becomes part of the South Louisiana Community College System.
The change is more than cosmetic. Young Memorial is offering traditional academic courses along with technical training. The addition of transferable college credits available locally will be good for students, of course. But it also broadens the training opportunities for employees of any new business or industry that wants to move into the parish.
—Parish President David Hanagriff and Economic Development Director Frank Fink went to local governments for months with an idea for streamlining the Louisiana Industrial Tax Exemption Program process here.
The local municipal councils, the parish council, the school board and the sheriff all agreed. When a new or expanding manufacturer wants the property tax relief the program offers, Fink will run them through an economic model to determine whether the benefits outweigh the costs.
If they do, Hanagriff will be empowered to kick the exemption request up to the state level on his own. Otherwise, a potential employer would have to go to those governments individually to ask for the tax break.
And that, Hanagriff and Fink argued, is the kind of red tape that might scare off a potential manufacturer.
Over the years, St. Mary has gotten used to the rapid upswings and equally rapid downturns that go along with dependence on the energy industry. None of the steps outlined here offer that sort of quick transformation.
But there is a sense that private and public entities are building something for the future.
Bill Decker is managing editor of The Daily Review.