Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a motorist for suspended driving yesterday after a citizen called 9-1-1 to report suspicious activity at Redwood Park. The Police Department reports officers responded to the incident at the city park on Dowell Road on Thursday at about 2:30 p.m.. Police said a 52-year-old male subject drove into Redwood Park around noon and consumed multiple alcoholic beverages. A citizen observed the incident and called for help, worried that the man might try to drive. Upon arrival, officers found the subject sitting in the driver's seat of a burgundy-colored Ford sport utility vehicle and consuming an adult beverage. He admitted to driving to the park with a suspended license, so he was placed into custody. The suspect was lodged in jail for Driving While Suspended and his SUV was impounded. He was also issued a 30-day exclusion from Redwood Park.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a woman who was wanted on an out-of-county warrant at an Illinois Valley RV park late yesterday. According to the Sheriff's Office, deputies placed the 60-year-old woman into custody at the RV Park near Cave Junction on Thursday at 5:53 p.m.. Deputies said the female subject was wanted on a Douglas County warrant for 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. No details about the alleged crime were available. The suspect was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail.

 

The Illinois Valley Fire District and American Medical Response rushed to the scene of motor vehicle accidents in the Kerby and Cave Junction areas yesterday. On Thursday at 1:21 p.m., IVFD and AMR crews were dispatched to a two-vehicle crash in the 100-block of Kerby Street in Kerby. Arriving units found two vehicles with damage and at least one travel lane was blocked. No one was hurt. Jerry's Towing arrived and removed the vehicles from the roadway. The Oregon State Police was conducting an investigation. On Thursday at 9:01 p.m., IVFD and AMR responded to a single-vehicle crash in the 900-block of Hays Cutoff Road near Cave Junction. No one was hurt. Jerry's Towing removed the vehicle from the roadway. OSP was investigating.

 

Authorities are alerting the public to a blackmail extortion scam that has recently emerged in Southern Oregon. According to the Medford Police Department and Josephine County Sheriff's Office, scammers are e-mailing individuals claiming they have knowledge of something about you and are using it as leverage to blackmail you out of money. Victims have reported receiving e-mails from individuals claiming to have personal, incriminating information. The scammers have obtained names, phone numbers and addresses, and they are sure to include that personal information to try to bolster their story. They are also using online images of your home and including them in the e-mail to prove they know where you live. The scammer then demands payment via Bitcoin to prevent release of this alleged incriminating information. This is a scam. Law enforcement strongly advised the public not to pay attention. If payment is made, the scammer will likely continue to exploit the victim for more money. Do not engage with them and simply delete the e-mail. If the e-mails persist, contact your local law enforcement agency. Online scam artists are continually evolving their tactics. To protect yourself, do not open e-mails from unknown senders, do not click on suspicious attachments, and be cautious when interacting with unfamiliar individuals on social media. If you've received these e-mails, report them to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center at "ic3.gov."

 

Grants Pass Police apprehended a man wanted on an out-of-county felony warrant this week following a domestic disturbance near an eastside supermarket. The Police Department reports officers arrested a 31-year-old male subject in the 2,000-block of NE Fairview Avenue on Wednesday morning. Police said they responded to four people in a purple pickup truck with one of the male occupants beating up a female occupant. They said the man and woman were hitting each other and the other male occupants were trying to stop them. The other two men drove off in the pickup with the man and woman still throwing punches. A short time later, the Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center received a call from a resident about a man and woman fist-fighting in front of their home. That's when officers arrived on scene, broke up the scuffle and learned that the man whom they identified as 31-year-old Christian Bradley was wanted on a Jackson County felony warrant for Parole Violation related to a burglary conviction. Bradley was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on a no-bail detainer. The woman was taken to Three Rivers Medical Center on a Police Officer Mental Hold. No physical injuries were observed, so no domestic violence charges were filed.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a man for being out of compliance with his sex offender registration while investigating a squatting complaint at a vacant house near Selma this week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested an unidentified male subject at a home in the 17,900-block of Redwood Highway on Wednesday morning. Deputies said a woman from the Oregon State Treasury called 9-1-1 to report the property had been assigned to her and she was bringing in a cleaning crew when she discovered that people were living in the house and cutting down trees on the land. She requested the trespassers be removed by law enforcement. Upon arrival, deputies contacted the squatters including a man whom they knew was a convicted sex offender. He had been living under a bridge near Hogue Drive, but had his clothing, a backpack and bedding inside the vacant house. The man was placed into custody, transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Failure to Report as a Sex Offender because he had not notified his corrections officer that he had moved.

 

Grants Pass Police were looking for a woman who allegedly stole items from Fred Meyer and fled the scene in a vehicle this week. According to the Police Department, officers were alerted to a shoplifting incident at the store on the Grants Pass Parkway on Wednesday afternoon. Police said Fred Meyer loss prevention observed a female subject later identified as 29-year-old Tiffany Chantel Parker steal $26 worth of merchandise from the store by passing all points of sale without attempting to pay for the items. Parker reportedly fled the scene in a red Dodge Durango pickup with Oregon license plate 485NLZ. Officers searched the area, but she was not located. A report was sent to the Josephine County District Attorney's Office. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Tiffany Parker is encouraged to call GPPD at (541)-450-6260.

 

Rogue Community College has announced the addition of free parking spaces for RCC students and employees at the Riverside Campus in Medford. Free parking is available at the Bear Creek South/Almond Street lot. It's the result of ongoing efforts between RCC and the City of Medford to address parking challenges faced by students and employees. RCC officials say parking availability at the Riverside Campus has been a significant concern. As a result, RCC students have often used short-term parking spaces, leading to rushed trips to and from class or having to pay for parking. These are challenges not shared by students at other RCC campuses, which have ample free parking. The partnership between RCC and the City of Medford to secure additional parking is a long-term arrangement that will mitigate parking pressures, reduce costs for the campus community and encourage students to spend more time on campus for years to come. The additional parking spaces at Almond Street will be available on the first day of fall term, Monday, September 30th.

 

The Oregon Government Ethics Commission has dismissed a set of complaints made against members of the Josephine County Board of Commissioners. During its regularly scheduled meeting on September 13th, the state ethics commission heard details of complaints made by Josephine County's former Human Resources Director JJ Scofield regarding an April 30th meeting. That meeting was led by Board Chair John West and attended by Board Vice-Chair Herman Baertschiger as well as former Commissioner Dan DeYoung who resigned from the Board in July. The complaint involved possible violations of ORS 192.660(2), which outlines policies and procedures relating to meetings held in executive session. During the ethics commission meeting, Investigator Andrew McIntyre provided details of his preliminary review. Following feedback from West, Baertschiger and DeYoung plus brief deliberations among commission members, a motion was made to dismiss each complaint and end the preliminary investigation. Each motion passed 5-3 and all three matters were dismissed.