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A'Maizn McGuire was crowned queen at halftime of Patterson High's 54-6 football win Friday over Bunkie. She was crowned by 2021 homecoming queen Nyla Alexander. McGuire is shown with her parents, Kina Williams and Carleton McGuire of Patterson.

The Review/Bill Decker

(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.)

Theft and bank fraud were among the crimes alleged in arrests by local authorities on Friday.

Two of the suspects, Jeffry Gross and Lisa Fontenot, were booked into parish and Morgan City custody after being charged by Berwick police in an alleged check fraud case earlier in the week.

St. Mary

Sheriff Blaise Smith reported that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff’s Office responded to 42 complaints and made these arrests:

—Jeffry Bryan Gross, 39, Berwick, was arrested at 12:19 p.m. Thursday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on charges of criminal conspiracy, bank fraud, theft and attempted theft.

—Keondrell Deon Jude Lee, 22, New Iberia, was arrested at 4:18 p.m. Thursday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on the charges of cruelty to juveniles and criminal abandonment. Bail has not been set.

—James Rogers, 48, Plaquemine, was arrested at 5:12 p.m. Thursday on a warrant alleging failure to pay annual registration fee, duty for offender to notify law enforcement, and failure to register as a sex offender. Bail has not been set.

Morgan City

Interim Police Chief Mark E. Griffin Jr. reported that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 60 calls for service over the last 24-hour reporting period and made these arrests.

—Brittany Sierra Jones, 29, Lloyd Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 10:18 a.m. Thursday on two counts of principal to theft (under $1,000) and as a fugitive from the Rayne and Scott police departments.

—Lisa A. Fontenot, 57, River Road, Berwick, was arrested at 3:13 p.m. Thursday on three counts of bank fraud and theft ($1,000-$5,000).

—Lionel Nathaniel Brooks, 59, Just Street, was arrested at 9:22 a.m. Thursday on a charge of remaining after forbidden.

—Demetrius Roy Green, Mike Drive, Patterson, was arrested at 7:15 p.m. Thursday on charges of failure to appear to pay fine (6th Ward Morgan City Court), failure to appear for revocation (16th Judicial District Court) and failure to appear for trial (16th Judicial District Court).

Assumption

Sheriff Leland Falcon reported these arrests:

—Chance Rivere, 29, Paul Street, Pierre Part, was arrested Thursday on charges of felony damage to property and resisting an officer.

—Bridget Ann Rivere, 41, Paul Street, Pierre Part, was arrested Thursday on charges of interfering with a law enforcement investigation and resisting an officer.

An I.C.E.-assigned unit was on assignment in the Paul Street area in Pierre Part. The deputy noticed a male and female standing by the roadway. As the deputy approached, he observed the male subject throw an object into the window of the police cruiser, causing significant damage.

The deputy was able to locate both the male and female, now identified as Chance Rivere and Bridget Ann Rivere.

Chance Rivere initially resisted efforts to be taken into custody. The deputy was able to arrest Chance Rivere. Bridget Ann Rivere was noncompliant and obstructed the deputy’s efforts to subdue Chance Rivere to the point that she was arrested as well.

They remain incarcerated pending bond proceedings.

Franklin

Police Chief Morris Beverly reported that the Franklin Police Department responded to seven complaints over the last 24-hour reporting period and made this arrest:

—Gregory Johnson, 63, Martin Luther King Boulevard, Franklin, was arrested at 4 p.m. Thursday on a warrant for 16th Judicial District Court alleging failure to appear on the charge of criminal neglect of family. Johnson was booked, processed and transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.

The campaign to recall New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell gathered 3,000 signatures during its first three days of operation, mostly through pop-up events. That was indeed a hot start for a long shot recall bid, and now supporters need to find ways to keep that momentum alive.

The recall petition was just filed two weeks ago by Eileen Carter, the mayor’s one-time social media manager and the sister of former state Sen. Karen Carter Peterson. Also listed on the filing was perennial candidate and community activist Belden “Noonie Man” Batiste.

Carter and Batiste are community-level leaders in the city, but they’re not associated with the kinds of political brands in New Orleans that could pull off a recall. Still, election officials say the coordinators are organized — to the point that individual signatures are being matched to
voter records onsite and in real-time to avoid future verification problems.

No matter how organized they are, gathering 53,500 signatures by Feb. 22 will be a herculean task. Failure, which is likely, will serve as yet another reminder that Louisiana makes the recall process more difficult than it should be for voters.

To remove Cantrell from office, 20% of registered voters in Orleans Parish must sign the petition being managed by Carter and Batiste, which would then prompt an actual recall election. If voters choose to fire Cantrell, the City Council would then select one of its two at-large members — currently Councilmembers JP Morrell or Helena Moreno — to serve as interim mayor until a special election can be held. Like Cantrell, Morrell and Moreno are Democrats.

The threshold to trigger such a recall election was one-third of registered voters until 2018, when state Rep. Paul Hollis, R-Covington, convinced lawmakers to make the recall law more user-friendly. In the years leading up to change, the higher threshold helped parish presidents and big city mayors involved in corruption investigations (and, in one case, a sexting scandal) survive recalls that should have ended their careers.

Morrell, who’s endeavoring to stay neutral on the recall publicly, said he wasn’t sure where the effort would lead. Cantrell, however, has missed too many opportunities to mend fences across the city, he added. “I believe the people of New Orleans are frustrated,” Morrell said. “There are a tremendous amount of issues facing the city, particularly crime, sanitation, busted infrastructure, as well as the added economic pressure of high taxes, inflation and brutal utility bills.”

As the politics play out in the background, those in the hospitality sector — the industry that serves as New Orleans’ heartbeat — are weighing how to best engage (or not engage). After feeling the brunt of the mayor’s COVID-19 restrictions and following an uncomfortable uptick in crime, bars and restaurants responded quickly with pop-up signing locations. The reaction from folks involved in lodging, hotels, conferences and conventions, meanwhile, has been slightly more muted for a variety of reasons.

Asked if any members had expressed interest in engaging with the recall, Stan Harris, president of the Louisiana Restaurant Association, said there have long been concerns about the direction of the city. “Our LRA New Orleans members are dependent on the city of New Orleans working efficiently and providing critical services like public safety and cleanliness that our residents, employees and guests deserve,” said Harris.

“When these services are deficient, it is the responsibility of the mayor to elevate the conversation, develop action plans and implement corrective measures. When our member feedback becomes more about the areas where the city is ineffective, discussing all options is reasonable.”

Ms. Mae’s, an iconic dive bar in the city, was among the first supporters two weeks ago to serve up a “signin’ party,” and more events are being planned.

The Louisiana Association of Beverage Alcohol Retailers, a new member of the state lobbying corps, intends to work with businesses in the coming weeks and months to educate them on how to best host signing parties and to make sure the right information is being collected. “The industry has been really hurt over the last few years, and the mayor hasn’t done much to help,” said Andrew Kilshaw, director of government affairs for LaBar, a state affiliate of American Beverage Licensees. “We want to help retailers be engaged and informed.”

As for hotels and lodging establishments, engagement will be minimal, due mainly to so many out-of-state and corporate owners. Those who do have some real skin in the game, meanwhile, are hesitant to participate because there’s no guarantee the recall is going to work — and, to put it bluntly, Cantrell and her team do not play around when it comes to holding grudges.

Moreover, there are concerns about what this recall process could do to the mood of the city. Already the Democratic mayor is claiming a Republican conspiracy is to blame in a city filled with locals who are always ready to mobilize and fight for what they believe in.

As for organizers and other folks who want a new mayor, they have five months and two weeks left to make their shared point.

For more Louisiana political news, visit www. LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on Twitter @ LaPoliticsNow

CENTERVILLE — Debra Roberson Jones took the oath of office Thursday as the newest St. Mary Parish School Board member, just in time to help approve the 2022-23 budget and the sale of the elementary school where Jones once taught.

Jones was appointed at a special meeting Aug. 23 to fill the District IV seat vacated by Pearl Rack, who resigned because her presence on the board prevented her daughter from seeking management positions in parish schools.

Jones, who lives in Franklin, has more than a decade of experience as a special education teacher. She currently teaches at Westgate High in Iberia Parish, where she became a teacher after J.A. Hernandez Elementary closed in 2016.

On Thursday, the board accepted the highest of three bids for purchase of the Hernandez building, 1400 Willow St. in Franklin.

Donald A. Foulcard of Baton Rouge submitted the winning bid of $58,000.

Mt. Zion Faith Ministry in Franklin bid $45,000, and the St. Mary Community Action Agency bid $40,000.

Foulcard is the nephew of board member Joseph C. Foulcard, who recused himself from voting on the motion to accept the $58,000 bid.

The board closed Hernandez and Morgan City’s M.D. Shannon in 2016 as a response to declining enrollment. The board sold Shannon to the Morgan City government earlier this year for $100,000.

Also Thursday, the board followed the practice in recent years of adopting a budget two months into the fiscal year.

The 2022-23 budget calls for total spending of $141.1 million and revenue of $139.5 million. The budget will balance with $1.4 million from a healthy beginning fund balance of $46 million.

The bulk of the shortfall comes from maintenance funds, where expenses will exceed revenue by $809,000 on revenue of $8.1 million, and in food services, where expenses outstrip revenue by $645,000 on income of $6.4 million.-

The School Board’s general fund, which funds day-to-day operations, has anticipated revenue from local property and sales taxes of $32.7 million, or about 9% less than the actual figure for 2021-22.

Minimum Foundation Program funding from the state government is expected to be $50.4 million, up 1% from 2021-22.

The School Board anticipates receiving $37.2 million from federal sources, led by about $29 million in stimulus funding known as Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief, which Congress approved during the COVID pandemic.

The school system has three maintenance districts: District 1 in west St. Mary, District 2 in the Berwick-Bayou Vista-Patterson area, and District 3 in Morgan City and Amelia.

All three are anticipated to spend more than they receive in 2022-23: $2.9 million in spending in District 1, $2.7 million in District 2 and $3.4 million in District 3.

Even after the 2022-23 fiscal year, the fund balances will still total $1.5 million in District 2 and $3.2 million in District 3. The District 1 fund balance will be smaller at $451,000.

One category where the School Board got a break was in property insurance.

The school system is one of about 30 districts that participate in the Louisiana Risk Management Association as a way to band together and reduce costs.

The limits on LARMA coverage for bus liability coverage had led the board to buy insurance from a commercial carrier. But LARMA changed its coverage, raising the cap to $400,000.

The board voted Thursday to drop its previous bus liability coverage and go with LARMA. The system’s total cost for liability insurance will be $447,000 for a savings of about $60,000.