Local News

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a man for allegedly breaking into and vandalizing an early childhood education facility in Williams late last week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 37-year-old Sephiran Paul Roberts for the incident in the 100-block of East Fork Road on Friday at about 5 a.m.. Deputies said a man called 9-1-1 to report he was holding Roberts at gunpoint for the incident. The caller -- who apparently lives near the Head Start building -- said the suspect's hands were bleeding from the vandalism and "beating up" his car. Upon arrival, deputies discovered Roberts had thrown rocks through windows at Head Start and then entered the building, throwing computers and phones outside. He was placed into custody at the scene. According to the Sheriff's Office, a spit hood was placed on Roberts for the ride to Grants Pass as he was spitting and kicking inside the patrol vehicle. Roberts was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for two counts each of 2nd-Degree Burglary and 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed two people for stealing merchandise from Walmart late last week and they believe the couple is responsible for previous crimes. The Police Department reports officers arrested 40-year-old Nicole Ashley Rickard and 39-year-old Tyler Scott Rickard for the incident at the store on NE Terry Lane on Friday morning. Police said a Walmart manager was watching the couple fill two shopping carts with items before combining the items into one cart and attempting to leave the store through a fire door. Loss prevention was able to detain them before they left. The Rickards were identified as suspects in at least one other case of theft from Walmart. Loss prevention officers said there have been several incidents with the two subjects stealing items that had already been reported. Nicole Rickard was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony 1st-Degree Theft and Felony Criminal Conspiracy. Tyler Rickard was jailed for two counts of Felony 1st-Degree Theft, two counts of 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief and one count of 2nd-Degree Burglary. More charges are pending further investigation.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a man on an outstanding warrant after contacting him at a transient camp near Grants Pass late last week. According to the Sheriff's Office, deputies were alerted to a transient camp near the 2500-block of Foothill Boulevard by a property owner on Friday morning. Deputies said the caller reported there were two squatters with a campsite on his property which overlooks Interstate 5 just east of the city. The callers said he first noticed the squatters coming and going from the campsite about a month ago. Law enforcement accessed the illegal campsite east of Exit 55 of I-5 and contacted 44-year-old Brandon J. Buchholz. A routine records check showed he was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for 2nd-Degree Theft and 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. He was lodged in jail on the outstanding warrant. Buchholz and the other male transient were given two days to gather their property and move along.

 

Firefighters were able to save a large shop building in the Wilderville area after it caught fire over the weekend. Rural Metro Fire Department, Grants Pass Fire & Rescue and the Illinois Valley Fire District responded to the incident in the 600-block of Minnow Lane shortly before 5 p.m. on Saturday. Engine 7504 from Rural Metro's Wilderville Station got a quick knockdown on the flames that had already spread to about 25% of the woodworking shop. Multiple units from Rural Metro, Grants Pass and IVFD worked for three hours to overhaul the fire and salvage the contents. According to Rural Metro, there were no injuries reported and the shop building was still standing when they left the scene early Sunday morning. Officials said the cause of the fire was under investigation.

 

The City of Grants Pass is inviting citizens to attend an Urban Renewal Agency (URA) community forum tomorrow evening. The community forum is scheduled for Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the City Council Chambers at Grants Pass City Hall, 101 NW A Street. During the forum, city staff plans to briefly present the URA plan and purpose as well as an overview of the projects and timeline proposed for the five-year strategy of implementation. An urban renewal agency is a designated area of a city that is being redeveloped to improve its economic vitality and livability. It is authorized by state law and put into effect locally, while being paid for through tax increment financing. Members of the public in attendance at Tuesday's forum will be able to provide feedback to the Grants Pass City Council. A mailer announcing the forum has been mailed to all properties located within the urban renewal area.

 

Grants Pass police officers and firefighters logged another impressive week of community protection. According to the Weekly Report filed by Grants Pass City Manager Aaron Cubic, police officers responded to a total of 594 calls for service along with 275 officer-initiated calls last week that resulted in 38 arrests, 44 citations, 51 warnings and five highly-intoxicated people being lodged at the Sobering Center. Cubic also reported that officers conducted 74 traffic stops in the city and they made 11 referrals to the Oregon Department of Human Services. No report was available for the GPPD Community Response Team. Grants Pass Fire & Rescue responded to a total of 102 calls last week including 44 for emergency medical service and one for a reported fire, plus 12 lift assists, 41 rescue situations, six assists to other agencies and four false alarms. Firefighters also performed 27 business inspections, led three education-prevention programs, assisted the public 13 times and properly installed five child car seats. The Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center fielded well over 1,000 emergency calls in addition to 454 calls for non-emergency service.

 

The Oregon Department of Transportation's Climate Office has selected electric vehicle (EV) charging companies for the first round of grants from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program -- two of them are in Southern Oregon. The federal NEVI program funds public EV fast-charging stations along major roads throughout the state. ODOT selected these companies via a competitive process and with an "intent to award," which means the agency is still developing final agreements with each company. They expect to have agreements in place before the end of 2024, and they estimate the companies will begin installing NEVI-funded stations in 2025. Interstate 5 south of Eugene has four charging station locations including Sagwal Gas in Wolf Creek and WinCo Foods in Medford as well as sites in Roseburg and Cottage Grove. The stations will have at least four DC fast-charging ports with CCS connectors. All stations will have overhead lighting and parking accessible to people with disabilities. Several will feature "pull through" parking for vehicles towing trailers.

 

The Oregon Heritage division of the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department is offering grants for the construction or restoration of veterans and war memorials throughout the state. The grant application period is now open and it closes January 31, 2025. Local and regional governments as well as federally recognized Tribes are eligible to apply for funding for monuments placed on publicly-owned properties. Grants may fund up to 80% of projects and require a 10% match from grant recipients. New monuments should acknowledge veterans and/or wars not already recognized in the community. Restoration projects may address broken monuments, missing elements, and/or additions to existing monuments. Proposals must demonstrate active participation of a veteran organization and community support. A free online workshop about the program will be held December 3rd from 10-11 a.m. via Zoom. Registration is required.

 

One person was killed and another person was seriously injured after two shooting incidents in Central Point this morning. The Central Point Police Department reports officers responded to a shooting in the 300-block of South 4th Street at 7:26 a.m. today. CPPD officers arrived at the home and located a deceased 42-year-old male inside the residence. About five minutes later, officers were advised of a second shooting in the 500-block of Bush Street, which is approximately four blocks away from the 4th Street address. A female victim was located in a vehicle. She was transported by ambulance to Rogue Regional Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. Shortly after 8 a.m., the Medford Police Department, Jackson County Sheriff's Office and Oregon State Police located the lone male suspect on foot in the 1,000-block of North 5th Street in Central Point where he was placed into custody. CPPD Chief Scott Logue said the investigation will be ongoing and police activity will continue through the day. Due to the proximity of the shooting locations to Central Point schools, he said some schools were placed into soft lockdowns until the suspect was arrested. No names are being released at this time. At this time in the investigation, it appears there is a known relationship between the suspect and the deceased male victim. There is not a known relationship between the suspect and the female victim. The Jackson County Major Assault and Death Investigation Unit is assisting the Central Point Police Department with the investigation. The OSP Forensics Unit is also assisting.