Local News

The Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement (MADGE) team seized over 50 pounds of methamphetamine and fentanyl within two days last week. On August 6th, MADGE conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle traveling north on Interstate 5 in the Medford area as part of an ongoing investigation. During the stop, investigators developed probable cause to seize the vehicle and subsequently served a search warrant, recovering 32 pounds of meth and nearly 4.5 pounds of fentanyl. The investigation is ongoing. In an unrelated case on August 8th, MADGE contacted two subjects in a business parking lot in southeast Medford as part of an ongoing investigation. During this contact, a Medford Police K-9 alerted on a vehicle which was seized and 17 pounds of meth was located. The suspect -- 48-year-old Pasqual Padilla -- was arrested and lodged at the Jackson County Jail on charges related to drug delivery. MPD Lieutenant Geoff Kirkpatrick said these two cases display the hard work their drug teams are doing on a daily basis in an effort to keep local communities safe. The MADGE team is a multijurisdictional narcotics task force that identified, disrupts and dismantles local, multi-state and international drug trafficking organizations using an intelligence-driven, prosecutor-supported approac

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for roughing up another man on the west side of the city early today. The Police Department reports officers arrested a 48-year-old male subject for the incident in the 1100-block of SW Greenwood Avenue at 1:06 this morning. Police said a man called 9-1-1 to report that he got into an argument with the subject and the subject assaulted him. The caller told dispatchers that the other man carries a whip and has been living at the property on and off. He advised the subject was heading toward the All Sports Park. Officers responded and detained the suspect. An investigation determined that he and the victim became engaged in a physical altercation that resulted in scrapes and bleeding to the victim who refused medical attention. The suspect was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 4th-Degree Assault and Strangulation. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for his boorish behavior in the downtown area yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers placed the 49-year-old male subject into custody in the 300-block of SW 6th Street on Thursday at 3:28 p.m.. Police said the man had generated multiple calls for service regarding his violent and tumultuous behavior. Witnesses stated that he was hitting his head against a window and tried to kick an employee at a downtown restaurant. According to the report, the subject denied any use of intoxicants -- but he showed signs of impairment including slurred speech and a strong odor of alcohol. Officers notified his corrections officer about the incident. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Disorderly Conduct and the resulting Felony Parole Violation. He was being held on a no-bail detainer.

 

A city park complaint by a disgruntled taxpayer last night led to the arrest of a man who fell asleep in a public restroom surrounded by drug paraphernalia. Grants Pass Police responded to a report of suspicious activity at Riverside Park on Thursday around 7 p.m.. Police said a man who identified himself as "a taxpayer" was upset because he was unable to take his daughter to the restroom due to another man doing drugs inside the facility near the park playground. Officers arrived on scene and contacted a 24-year-old male subject who was asleep inside the restroom, with drug paraphernalia in his hands and around him. He had been trespassed from the park recently so his corrections officer was contacted. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Criminal Trespass and the resulting Felony Parole Violation. He was being held on a no-bail detainer. He was also excluded from the park for an additional 30 days.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a man on a local felony warrant after a traffic stop in downtown Cave Junction yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested the 31-year-old male subject at Taser point near the corner of West Lister Street and South Hussey Avenue on Thursday at 3:44 p.m.. Deputies said they stopped a vehicle for a traffic violation and discovered that the driver was wanted on a Josephine County felony warrant for Probation Violation related to a recent weapons offense. They said the subject bailed out of the vehicle and took off running, but he stopped a short distance away because of breathing issues. He was checked out by medics before being placed into custody. The suspect was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the outstanding warrant. He was being held on $35,000 bail.

 

The Oregon State Police apprehended a Wolf Creek man who was wanted on multiple local warrants yesterday during a traffic stop just north of Grants Pass. OSP reports troopers pulled over a Chrysler Cirrus driven by a 74-year-old male subject near the intersection of Highland Avenue and Merlin Road on Thursday at 11:25 a.m.. Troopers said they stopped the car because the registered owner had multiple arrest warrants and was flagged as being felony suspended. Upon contact, they learned that he was wanted on four local warrants for three counts of Felony Driving While Suspended and one count of Felony Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants. The suspect was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County on the warrants plus an additional count of Felony Driving While Suspended. He was being held without bail and his vehicle was impounded.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested an Azalea woman on an outstanding warrant during a traffic stop on Interstate 5 in the North Valley area early today. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Subaru Legacy driven by a 45-year-old man in the northbound lanes of I-5 near milepost 65 at 12:24 this morning. Troopers said they stopped the vehicle for a traffic violation and learned that the driver had a suspended license and no insurance. They contacted the 28-year-old female passenger and discovered that she was wanted on a local bench warrant for failing to appear in court for 2nd-Degree Theft. The passenger was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant while the driver was cited for the moving violations. His vehicle was impounded.

 

Firefighters from multiple agencies in Southern Oregon and Northern California extinguished a small blaze just north of the state border late yesterday. The Oregon Department of Forestry said crews responded Thursday afternoon to a report of smoke in a remote area southwest of Colestin near the Oregon-California border. ODF, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest and the Siskiyou Unit of Cal-Fire sent resources to the incident. Firefighters engaged in an aggressive initial attack and were successful in holding the blaze to just 1/10th of an acre. In a 5:15 p.m. update, ODF said crews had 90% of the fire lined and 40% mopped up. Additional resources arrived and continued mopping up last night. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

 

After a year-long investigation, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office busted a burglary ring targeting licensed marijuana businesses in Jackson and Josephine counties. The Sheriff's Office reports the suspects committed 16 known burglaries at local marijuana farms and storage facilities from April 2023 to June 2024. The suspects accumulated 65 total criminal charges during their crime spree. Deputies, detectives and the Illegal Marijuana Enforcement Team (IMET) served two simultaneous search warrants on August 13th at locations in Central Point -- the 1,000-block of Glengrove Avenue and in the 500-block of Mazama Street. Search warrants were also served at two storage units in the 1400-block of 2nd Avenue in Gold Hill. The Oregon State Police assisted with the search warrants which resulted in the arrests of three suspects and the seizure of burglary evidence, eight firearms and 520 pounds of marijuana. The suspects are 35-year-old Mitchell Jeffrey King of Central Point, 31-year-old Dylan Buck McNerney of Central Point and 48-year-old Kenneth Alan Parker, II, of Gold Hill. The 65 charges included 32 for King, 23 for Parker and 10 for McNerney. Parker was also charged with Felon in Possession of a Firearm. The case is under further investigation with detectives following additional leads. It has been referred to the Jackson County District Attorney's Office for prosecution. Additional charges from the Josephine County burglaries will likely be added at later time.