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ST. MARY PARISH – Shortly after 8:00 p.m. on January 10, 2021, Louisiana State Police Troop I was notified of a two-vehicle crash on Louisiana Highway 182, near Louisiana Highway 670, in St. Mary Parish. The crash claimed the life of 41-year-old Jackie Marie Brown of New Iberia.
The preliminary investigation revealed Brown was driving a 2009 Hyundai Santa Fe SUV west on LA 182. At the same time, a 2007 Cadillac SRX SUV was traveling east on LA 182. For reasons still under investigation, Brown’s SUV crossed the center line and struck the Cadillac head-on in the eastbound lane of travel.
Seatbelt usage on the part of Brown is unknown; she was pronounced dead at the scene by the St. Mary Parish Coroner’s Office. The driver of the Cadillac was not properly restrained and was transported to a local hospital in serious condition. Toxicology samples were taken from both drivers and results are pending. This crash remains under investigation.
Troop I has investigated 3 fatal crashes resulting in 4 deaths in 2021.

December 31, 1941 ~ January 7, 2021

ABBEVILLE — Funeral services were held at 2:00 PM on Sunday, January 10, 2021 at Vincent Funeral Home - Abbeville honoring the life of Jeffrey James Faulk, Sr., 79, who died on Thursday, January 7, 2021 at his residence. He was laid to rest at St. Mary Magdalen Cemetery with Deacon William “Billy” Vincent officiating the services. Those serving as pallbearers were Jeffrey Faulk, Jr., Tony Faulk, Justin Faulk, Tyler Faulk, Jonathan Breaux and Ricky Gaspard.
Jeffrey believed that family was everything. Growing up on a cattle farm, he developed a solid work ethic. He truly enjoyed working on the farm caring for the cattle, tending to the field and repairing equipment. Farming was in his blood.
He is a retired school bus driver for the Vermilion Parish School Board for over 24 years. Jeffrey was active in many local organizations including the Knights of Columbus, Lions Club, and Vermilion Parish Cattlemen’s Association. He served on the Louisiana Farm Bureau Board of Directors and was a 4-H volunteer for over 50 years where he was inducted into the Louisiana 4-H Hall of Fame.
He is survived by his daughters, Nancy Breaux and Lori Piazza; two sons, Jeffrey Faulk, Jr. (Kellie), and Tony Faulk (Angela); eleven grandchildren, Jennifer Breaux, Jonathan Breaux, Brooke Fergerson, Justin Faulk, Kacie Piazza, Tyler Faulk, Hannah Faulk, Sarah Faulk, Kali Broussard, Jarod Faulk and Nathan Faulk; and ten great grandchildren; and former spouse. Mildred Faulk.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Lawrence and Hilda Faulk; son-in-law, Joseph Breaux; and three great grandchildren.
The family requested that visiting hours be observed at Vincent Funeral Home - Abbeville, 209 S. St. Charles St., on Sunday, January 10, 2021 from 9:00 AM until time of services. A memorial service will be held at a later date for those who are unable to attend.
Condolences may be sent to the family at www.vincentfuneralhome.net.
All funeral arrangements are being conducted by Vincent Funeral Home of Abbeville, (337) 893-4661.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Reports have indicated that the Food and Drug Administration is considering distributing half doses of the Moderna vaccine to younger patients in the hopes of inoculating more Americans.
Top officials in the FDA warn, however, that doing so could come with risks.
So far, just over 4 million Americans have received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, which puts the U.S. far behind the 20 million dose schedule set for the end of 2030 by Operation Warp Speed.
The FDA said on Monday that considerations of altering the coronavirus vaccine schedule are “premature.”
The two coronavirus vaccines that have received emergency use authorization require two doses. For the Pfizer vaccine, the booster comes three weeks after vaccine administration. The Moderna vaccine requires the second dose four weeks after inoculation.
Data has shown that the two vaccines are at least 94 percent effective after the second dose is administered. To date, there is not enough data to estimate the effectiveness of a single dose, leaders from the FDA said.
“These are all reasonable questions to consider and evaluate in clinical trials,” FDA Commission Stephen Hahn and Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research Director Peter Marks said in a joint statement.
“However, at this time, suggesting changes to the FDA-authorized dosing or schedules of these vaccines is premature and not rooted solidly in the available evidence. Without appropriate data supporting such changes in vaccine administration, we run a significant risk of placing public health at risk, undermining the historic vaccination efforts to protect the population from COVID-19.”
As of Monday, there are 4.5 million Americans who have received their first dose of one of the two coronavirus vaccines. It was not until Monday that some Americans began receiving a second dose of the vaccine.
But Marks and Hahn caution that foregoing the second dose of the vaccine could cause more harm than good without data to backup the effectiveness of the first dose.
“Using a single dose regimen and/or administering less than the dose studied in the clinical trials without understanding the nature of the depth and duration of protection that it provides is concerning, as there is some indication that the depth of the immune response is associated with the duration of protection provided,” they said.

After not finding a definitive answer from the Vermilion Parish Police Jury on Monday, Abbeville officials said on Tuesday they will continue to work to find a solution to an issue with an handful of “islands” that are within the city limits.
The islands are unincorporated areas completely surrounded by the city limits. An advertising company recently placed an
electronic billboard on one of those islands. That drew concern from some city officials, as the city does have an ordinance that prohibits such billboards.
Seeking some assistance from the police jury, as the islands fall under its jurisdiction, Mayor Mark Piazza, Councilman Brady Broussard Jr., Councilwoman Roslyn White and City Attorney Ike Funderburk attended Monday night’s police jury meeting.
“We had hoped that the police jury would adopt our sign and billboard ordinances,” Funderburk said during Tuesday’s regular city council meeting, “to be applied uniformly for the five inclosed islands.”
During its meeting on Monday, the police jury tabled the issue. Police Juror Scott Broussard, whose district includes the island with the electronic billboard on Park Avenue, said he will gather more information on the topic.
White, whose city district includes the area around the island with the billboard, said she is disappointed with Monday’s outcome.
“I was deeply upset by the lack of action,” White said during Tuesday’s meeting. “I found one study that showed if you live within 500 feet of a billboard, your property value can be decreased by up to $30,000.
“What you do on your property can affect your neighbors.”
White said she has spoken to people who live in that area.
“They want to write a letter to the police jury,” White said. “I would encourage them to do so.”
Councilman Francis Touchet Jr. said Tuesday that another year cannot go by with nothing being done in regard to these islands.
“We have to make this a priority,” Touchet said, “When we end this year, all of those islands have to be part of the city.”
During Tuesday’s meeting, Funderburk showed a binder full of research he has done on this subject. He said he could not go into more detail during Tuesday’s meeting, but encouraged members of the council to meet with him.
“We are going to keep with the open meetings law,” Funderburk said. “What I am suggesting is meeting with me, the mayor and one or two council members at a time. We can go over goals and objectives. I can give you the benefit of the research that I have done to this point.
“We need to move on this quickly, because sunlight is burning, folks. We don’t have much time to get things done.”