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Berwick police say a traffic stop late Tuesday on U.S. 90 led an officer to 46 pounds of marijuana being transported from Texas to Louisiana.

And St. Mary deputies also reported the arrest of two juveniles, one a 12-year-old, on marijuana possession charges.

Berwick
Police Chief David Leonard Sr. reported this arrest:
—Emmanuel Rodriguez-Enriquez, 25, Houston, was arrested at 12:06 a.m. Wednesday on charges of possession with intent to distribute marijuana (46 pounds), improper lane use and no driver’s license.
At 11:50 p.m. Tuesday,, officers were patrolling U.S. 90 East when they observed a vehicle cross the fog line several times. A traffic stop was conducted on the vehicle, and the driver was identified as Rodriguez-Enriquez.
He was informed of the reason for the stop and he stated that he did not have a driver’s license. While speaking with Rodriguez-Enriquez, the officers noted that he was extremely nervous. Through investigation, the officers observed indicators of narcotics trafficking and asked Enriquez for consent to search his vehicle, which he granted.
During the search of the vehicle, officers located a large duffle bag that contained 46 individual bags of marijuana, each of which weighed 1 pound. Rodriguez-Enriquez admitted that he was being paid to transport the narcotics from Texas to Louisiana.
At the conclusion of the investigation, Rodriguez-Enriquez was placed under arrest and booked into the Berwick Jail, where he remains with a $50,500.00 bond.
Leonard commended the officers for the awareness during the traffic stop that lead to a large seizure of marijuana. Because of the officers’ training, they were able to quickly identify that this was no routine traffic stop, he said.
“The officers’ proactive patrols prevented a large amount of illegal narcotics from hitting our streets,” Leonard said.

St. Mary
Sheriff Blaise Smith advised that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff’s Office responded to 28 complaints and made these arrests:
—Shawn Case Lovell, 44, Berwick, was arrested at 9:09 a.m. Tuesday on a charge of entry or remaining on premises after being forbidden. Bail was set at $500.
—Juvenile female, 14, Franklin, was arrested at 10:22 a.m. Tuesday on charges of possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled dangerous substance in a drug-free zone. The juvenile female was released into the custody of a guardian pending juvenile court proceedings.
—Juvenile female, 12, Franklin, was arrested at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday on charges of possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled dangerous substance in a drug-free zone. The juvenile female was released into the custody of a guardian pending juvenile court proceedings.
—Joshua Michael Davis, 35, Morgan City, was arrested at 11 p.m. Tuesday on a warrant alleging failure to appear on the charges of possession of methamphetamine and failure to maintain automobile liability insurance. Bond has not been set.

Morgan City
Police Chief James F. Blair reported that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 58 calls for service over the last 24-hour reporting period and made these arrests:
—Hope Cubbedge, 42, Carter Lane, Berwick, was arrested at 2:19 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of possession of marijuana.
—Louis Alberto Reyes, 36, Allison Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 7:55 p.m. Tuesday on charges of providing fraudulent identification, improper lane usage, no driver’s license, switched license plates and no insurance.
—Herbert Jermaine Brown, 39, Egle Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 8:46 p.m. Tuesday on charges of driving under suspension, no insurance and disobeying traffic controls, and on a 6th Ward Morgan City Court warrant alleging failure to appear to pay fines.
—Joeb Richard, 19, Dawn Drive, Morgan City, was arrested at 10:22 p.m. Tuesday on charges of driving while intoxicated (first offense), possession of tobacco under 21, possession of alcohol under 21 and disobeying traffic controls.

Franklin
Police Chief Morris Beverly reported that the Franklin Police Department responded to 10 complaints over the past 24 hours and made this arrest:
—Gerald Dupas, 35, Iberia Street, Franklin, was arrested at 6:27 Tuesday on charges of battery on a dating partner, four counts of flight from an officer, four counts of possession of Schedule II drugs, obstruction of justice, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting an officer.
Dupas was booked, processed and transported to the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center.

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana is partnering with his colleagues in Montana, Iowa and South Dakota on legislation to funnel funds from duties on Chinese crawfish imports to domestic producers in Louisiana and elsewhere.
Cassidy, R-La., Sen. John Tester, D-Mont., Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., introduced the China Trade Cheating Restitution Act last week to direct Customs and Border Protection to pay $38.5 million from the interest on anti-dumping duties received from Chinese imports to certain agricultural sectors harmed by the country’s illegal trade practices.
The funding would include $10.6 million for crawfish producers.
The issue stems from the Chinese trade practice known as “dumping,” which involves exporting crawfish and other products to the U.S. at a price below the cost of production. The intent is to drive Louisiana crawfish producers out of business.
The lawmakers note that federal law requires CBP to pass duties on Chinese imports including crawfish to American agricultural producers, but administrative delays have prevented much of the funding from reaching Louisiana businesses impacted by the scheme.
“Crawfish is part of our culture in Louisiana and we will defend it,” Cassidy said. “China is attempting to put our crawfish farmers out of business dumping their product in the U.S. at prices below the cost of production. This is against the law. This legislation gives American farmers the resources they need to stay competitive and thrive.”
Congress passed the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act in 2000 to require CBP to pay all collected anti-dumping duties and accrued interest to U.S. producers impacted by the nefarious dumping. The act applies to imports that entered the U.S. through Sept. 30, 2007, but CBP is still assessing and collecting duties and interest on many of the imports, according to a Cassidy statement.
The China Trade Cheating Restitution Act would require the CBP to distribute an estimated $35.6 million in accrued delinquency interest on the anti-dumping duties that have been wrongfully withheld.
The bill would also amend the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 to change the date of interest collected by CBP from Oct. 1, 2014 to Oct. 1, 2000 to account for substantial interest withheld by the CBP, the statement read.
“Louisiana crawfish processors have taken a beating from unfairly traded crawfish from China,” said Adam Johnson of Bayou Land Seafood in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. “We are fortunate to have a Senator, like Bill Cassidy, who is willing to stand up for the industry"
The anti-dumping legislation is backed by lawmakers in other states because of similar issues with China-imported honey, fresh garlic, and mushrooms.
"South Dakota is one of the top honey-producing states in the country," Thune said. "The unfair practice of circumventing U.S. trade laws, which jeopardizes honey producers' financial security, should be met with strict enforcement and increased protections. South Dakota honey producers deserve a level-playing field. This bipartisan legislation helps ensure fair treatment for affected domestic producers and strengthens their ability to compete globally."
"Montana's farmers grow the best products in the world and shouldn't be penalized for following the rules," Tester said. "China's continued violation of U.S. import laws has hurt producers at home, making it harder to compete in emerging markets, and America's farmers need to be made whole. This bipartisan bill will give domestic producers the resources they need to compete and will help ensure we maintain our competitive edge over China for years to come."

Belated happy birthday Carol LeBlanc from your family and friends … Belated happy birthday Sandra Garrett from family, friends and Ira … Happy eighth anniversary Matt and Rachel Kidder, we love you, Douglas and Wesley.

PATTERSON -- For the second consecutive meeting, the City Council welcomed a new member Tuesday, this time under sorrowful circumstances.
The council also picked a new city clerk after Kim Dardeau announced her retirement at the end of April.
In other action, the council asked for a look at a proposed ordinance that would effectively ban large farm animals from being kept in the city limits. And members heard that the city government budget will be ready for introduction at the May meeting.

New officials
The council unanimously approved Mayor Rodney Grogan's nomination of Dawn Vining Rentrop for the seat left vacant by the March 10 death of her husband, John Charles Rentrop.
Dawn Rentrop has been the chairwoman for the city government's Main Street program, a duty she'll give up during her tenure on the council.
John Rentrop was nearing the end of his third term on the council. The next scheduled elections for mayor, City Council and police chief are scheduled for November.
Grogan noted that Dawn Rentrop has been involved in public service even apart from her work with Main Street.
"Through the 11 years John served," Grogan said, "she was right there."
Dawn Rentrop joined the council a month after Ray Dewey Sr. became a council member. Dewey qualified without opposition for what would have been a March 26 election to fill another vacant seat.
Also Tuesday, the council heard about the retirement of City Clerk Kim Dardeau, effective April 30.
Dardeau will leave after 17 years with the city government, including almost a year as city clerk after longtime clerk Angela Shilling-Boyles retired.
Dardeau said and her husband agreed that they'd retire while they still have the chance to spend quality time together.
"We know Kim is a perfectionist," Grogan said. "She's always trying to make things better in the city."
The council approved the appointment of Damita Young, who has worked in the city's accounts department for 15 years. She will become clerk May 1.
The council approved resolutions of respect for four Patterson residents who have died recently: John Rentrop; former two-term City Council member Russell Cardinale Jr.; longtime music teacher Jackie Breaux Como; and businessman and philanthropist F.C. "Butch" Felterman.
"This has been a rough month for all of us," Grogan said.

Livestock
ordinance
City Attorney Russel Cremaldi will prepare an ordinance that would change the current city law governing the keeping of farm animals in the city limits. The proposed change would effectively ban large livestock from the city.
The current ordinance defines livestock as any animal other than house pets. Grogan said Wednesday that the ordinance has not been applied to chickens.
The current ordinance bans keeping livestock on any property of less than one acre and a half-acre for each additional animal.
The ordinance makes an exception for animals kept in barns, stables or similar buildings or in fenced enclosures that are at least 100 feet from a neighbor's home or any of a list of public buildings, including churches, schools and restaurants.
The Planning & Zoning Commission recommended a ban on large animals without the exceptions.
Grogan said problems have been caused recently by people moving into the city and keeping ponies and donkeys.
The ordinance could come up for introduction as early as May 3 and for a public hearing and passage vote June 7.

Budget
City Accountant Reginald Weary said the city's 2022-23 budget is nearing completion and will be ready for introduction next month. He asked for a budget workshop April 23 to finalize the proposal, which could be adopted in June.
Weary said the budget has a projected surplus of more than $493,000 before department heads have their last chance to make requests.
The council also:
--Went along with a Planning & Zoning Commission recommendation to approve plans by Hebert Management and Land Co. to subdivide property at the corner of Waveland Drive and Enterprise Avenue into tracts.
--Moved ahead with plans to rent space at the Patterson Community Center to 100 Black Men, a group formed to mentor young people. The organization will pay $400 a month for two years with an option for a third year.
--Gave certificates to members of the Patterson All-Stars, a 9- and 10-year-old basketball team that recently finished as runner-up in the Pelican Park Nationals in Mandeville.