ST. LOUIS – The weekend’s Soulard Mardi Gras celebration draws thousands of people to the historic south St. Louis neighborhood, providing an economic boost to local restaurants, bars, and shops.
With the large crowds and frivolity comes an increased police presence.
On Monday, the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department released arrest statistics for this past Saturday.
According to police spokesman Sgt. Sean Mazzola, police made 12 arrests on Saturday. The Bud Light Grand Parade ran that morning, featuring 80 units rolling through Soulard.
Seven people were detained for underage drinking, issued summonses, and released; one person was arrested for disturbing the peace and resisting arrest; one person was arrested for fourth-degree assault on a law enforcement officer; and three people were arrested on at-large warrants for third-degree assault.
While the origins of Mardi Gras stem from New Orleans, St. Louis also has some deep-rooted connections. Back in the 1790s, one southern area of St. Louis City was run by an upper Louisiana surveyor named Antoine Soulard. The neighborhood later embraced his namesake and began hosting Mardi Gras celebrations more than 200 years later.