Local News

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday began the process of forming a rural fire protection district and continued its work to tidy up the County Code. The Board voted unanimously to approve an order that initiates the formation of a rural fire protection district for Josephine County and set the first public hearing on the district for October 23rd at 9 a.m.. County Legal Counsel Wally Hicks testified that the district can be formed without a permanent tax rate. He said if the fire district is approved by the Commissioners, a district board of directors will be formed that would set the tax rate for rural properties outside the City of Grants Pass and existing fire protection districts. Hicks said the proposed tax rate for the proposed fire district must be approved by Josephine County voters next May, adding that a fire district can exist without a tax rate. He said the physical boundaries of the district have not yet been finalized and that will be done by the Board with public input prior to its approval. Following four brief public hearings, the Board continued its work to clean up sections of the Josephine County Code that are outdated or no longer necessary.

 

US Cellular and the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Rogue Valley have announced the return of their 3rd annual Hispanic Heritage Month Art Contest. New to the 2024 contest, the top three first-place submissions with the most votes from all participating clubs will also be named national winners and will receive an additional $250 -- bringing their total winnings to $500 -- while their home club will also receive a $1,000 donation. Up to 10 finalists from each of the six Boys & Girls Clubs of the Rogue Valley will be chosen by local Club representatives and US Cellular leaders based on creativity, quality, interpretation, clarity of theme and overall impression. The finalists' artwork will be digitally displayed in select US Cellular stores. Through September 22nd, anyone 18 and older is invited to vote for their favorite art online. The top three vote-getters at each club will be announced in October, with the winners receiving $250 for first place, $150 for second place and $100 for third place.

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners this morning started the process of forming a rural fire protection district and continued its work to tidy up the County Code. The Board voted unanimously to approve an order that initiates the formation of a rural fire protection district for Josephine County and set the first public hearing on the district for October 23rd at 9 a.m.. County Legal Counsel Wally Hicks testified that the district can be formed without a permanent tax rate. He said if the fire district is approved by the Commissioners, a district board of directors will be formed that would set the tax rate for rural properties outside the City of Grants Pass and existing fire protection districts. Hicks said the proposed tax rate for the proposed fire district must be approved by Josephine County voters next May, adding that a fire district can exist without a tax rate. He said the physical boundaries of the district have not yet been finalized and that will be done by the Board with public input prior to its approval. Following four brief public hearings, the Board continued its work to clean up sections of the Josephine County Code that are outdated or no longer necessary. After the first hearing, Board adopted an ordinance amending the Emergency Medical Services Chapter of the Code. Language was simplified and a section was added related to the transport of injured timber workers. The Commissioners also approved the first readings of ordinances repealing chapters of the Code pertaining to ballot measures, genetically-engineered plants and loitering near the county jail. The second readings are scheduled for October 2nd.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a young man for allegedly threatening to kill another young man in Cave Junction. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested an 18-year-old male subject at a home in the 3600-block of Caves Highway on Tuesday shortly before noon. Deputies said a young man called 9-1-1 to report being threatened by the subject with a firearm. They said the subject called the young man and threatened to kill him over an altercation that occurred between the two on a weekend camping trip. According to the report, the incident occurred at a school that is next to Illinois Valley High School. No other details were disclosed, but the suspect was located and placed into custody at the home of his girlfriend. The suspect was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Unlawful Use of a Weapon.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a man for causing a disturbance at an RV park in the southern Illinois Valley yesterday. According to the Sheriff's Office, deputies arrested a 39-year-old male subject for the incident at the Lone Mountain Resort in O'Brien on Tuesday at 2:06 p.m.. Deputies said a resident of the resort reported that the subject appeared to be under the influence of narcotics when he threatened to shoot him in the head. The caller told dispatchers the subject also threw several large rocks at him, but he was not injured. He described the subject as "yelling and being disorderly." Upon arrival, deputies looked for the suspect in and around the O'Brien General Store. They eventually located him near milepost 35 of Redwood Highway and placed him into custody. He had a small amount of methamphetamine visible in his pocket -- it was seized for destruction. The suspect was transported to Grants Pass and booked into the Josephine County Jail for Menacing and Disorderly Conduct. He was being held without bail and he was trespassed from the RV park.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a "frequent flyer" for violating terms of her post-prison supervision by drinking alcoholic beverages in the downtown area. The Police Department reports officers arrested 34-year-old Morgan Delin Weber near the corner of SE 7th and G streets on Tuesday at 11:57 a.m.. Police said Weber was located after an earlier call for service in which her corrections officer requested she be placed on a detainer. They said she was visibly intoxicated, with the smell of alcoholic beverages emanating from her body. Officers placed Weber into custody as she attempted to bite them. She was taken to the Josephine County Jail where she attempted to kick deputies and was placed in a spit hood as well as a restraint chair. She was being held on a no-bail detainer. Jail records show Weber has been arrested for violating her parole 12 times since September 2023.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested two men for trespassing on railroad property in the city early yesterday and one of them for narcotics possession. According to the Police Department, the first incident occurred on railroad property near NE Spalding Avenue on Tuesday around 9 a.m.. Police said 45-year-old Daniel Beier was observed by a railroad work crew in the same general area as a homeless camp that went up in flames earlier this summer. The subject tried to hide in the bushes, but the work crew pointed him out to responding officers. Beier was placed into custody and found to be in possession of more than two grams of methamphetamine. He was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 1st-Degree Criminal Trespass and Meth Possession. He was being held without bail. The second incident occurred on railroad property behind the downtown Safeway store on Tuesday at 10:20 a.m.. Police said 51-year-old Robert Lee Doyle was found sleeping on railroad property near the supermarket and he had been trespassed from that location in April. He was jailed for 1st-Degree Criminal Trespass and was also being held with no bail.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a motorist for impaired driving last night during a traffic stop in southeast Grants Pass. OSP reports troopers pulled over a maroon Nissan 350Z driven by a 49-year-old female subject near the corner of SE Grandview Avenue and Drury Lane on Tuesday at 10:39 p.m.. Troopers said they stopped the vehicle for a traffic violation and the driver showed signs of impairment. They said she performed poorly in field sobriety tests and was transported to the Grants Pass Sobering Center where she provided a breath sample that exceeded the legal driving limit. The suspect was lodged at the Sobering Center for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Endangering of her 52-year-old male passenger. Her car was impounded.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office has released additional information about a violent motor vehicle crash that seriously injured two people in the Illinois Valley earlier this week. On Monday at 5:21 p.m., deputies, the Illinois Valley Fire District and American Medical Response were dispatched to the single-vehicle wreck in the 2200-block of Holland Loop Road. The caller reported a vehicle had struck a power pole and that someone was still trapped inside the vehicle. Emergency crews arrived to find the vehicle on its roof, with an occupant trapped inside. Another occupant had been ejected. A nearby power pole had been sheared off at the base and power lines were hanging in trees. According to the report, the occupant trapped inside the vehicle was extricated by IVFD crews. Both occupants were transported to Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center -- one by Mercy Flights helicopter and the other by AMR ambulance. Both occupants were reported to be in "stable" condition by hospital staff. Josephine County Sheriff's Sergeant Jason Stanton said witnesses reported the vehicle passed another vehicle in a no passing zone at a high rate of speed, lost control on a corner and crashed into the power pole. He said the crash remains under investigation.