Local News

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a woman for assaulting her boyfriend at a Murphy area residence. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 35-year-old Adelinne Kathleen Maddi for the incident at a home in the 900-block of Hyde Park Road on Tuesday. Deputies said a man called 9-1-1 to report that he and his girlfriend -- Maddi -- were fighting when she picked up a frying pan and threatened to hit him with it. He managed to knock it out of her hand and she fled to a neighbor's home. She then called 9-1-1 and told dispatchers that her boyfriend hit her in the face with an open hand and broke a tooth, although she declined medical attention. Upon arrival, deputies interviewed both parties. They determined both parties engaged in a physical altercation and both parties sustained physical injuries, but Maddi was the primary aggressor. Maddi was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon, 4th-Degree Domestic Assault and Domestic Menacing. She was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for trespassing at a southeast city convenience store and then fighting with officers when they arrived to arrest him. The Police Department reports officers contacted 35-year-old Joshua Cole Wilson and eventually placed him into custody at the Market & Deli in the 1600-block of Rogue River Highway on Tuesday morning. Police said Wilson refused to leave the market after being asked multiple times to do so by an employee. While detaining him, he displayed pre-assault indicators and resisted arrest. He also displayed signs of impairment by a narcotic stimulant. According to the report, Wilson tried to poke his hands and fingers in the faces of officers who had to use physical force to subdue him. He was transported to Three Rivers Medical Center for an evaluation before being cleared for incarceration. Wilson was booked into the Josephine County Jail for Attempted Assault on a Police Officer, Resisting Arrest and Criminal Trespass. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a felon for violating her post-prison supervision this week following a 9-1-1 investigation at Morrison Centennial Park. According to the Police Department, the Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center received a hang-up call from the city park on Rogue River Highway on Tuesday evening. Dispatchers were able to trace the call to the park. Police said a woman reported 39-year-old Crystil Marie Ann York was with her son near the swings and acting erratically. The caller advised that she has sole custody of York's son, and York was paranoid and under the influence of narcotics. Upon arrival, officers contacted York and she displayed signs of impairment by methamphetamine so she was placed into custody. After putting the woman into a patrol vehicle, she started acting in a disruptive manner by removing her seatbelt, standing up, licking the rear partition, kicking the seats and gyrating. York's corrections officer was contacted and advised of her client's behavior. She was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Parole Violation and was being held on a no-bail detainer. Jail records show York was been arrested for Parole Violation five times since last December.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a transient for stealing a phone from another transient at a downtown convenience store. The Police Department reports officers responded to a theft complaint at 7-Eleven on SW 6th Street on Tuesday night. Police said a man reported his Samsung A16 phone was stolen off the counter of the store by an unknown male subject. They viewed surveillance footage which showed a man later identified as 56-year-old Thomas Allen Pitts, Sr., stealing the phone and leaving in a vehicle. Officers searched the area and located Pitts and the stolen phone at Baker Park. They recovered the phone and found the suspect to be in possession of fentanyl, which was seized for destruction. Pitts was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Theft and Fentanyl Possession. He was being held without bail and was trespassed from Baker Park for 30 days. Police took the recovered phone to Kesterson Park, but were unable to locate the victim. They placed the phone into the GPPD evidence locker for safekeeping.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a Medford man for impaired driving and putting his young children in danger while doing so on Interstate 5 in the Grants Pass area. OSP reports troopers pulled over an Infinity G35 driven by 27-year-old Johan Velasquez-Urbina in the northbound lanes of I-5 near milepost 58 on Tuesday night. Troopers said they responded to a traffic complaint regarding a vehicle driving erratically with its rear bumper dragging on the freeway. They found the vehicle as it was entering north Grants Pass and traveling at 97 miles per hour while passing other vehicles aggressively. During the traffic stop, Velasquez-Urbina displayed signs of impairment. After he performed poorly in field sobriety tests, he was placed into custody. It was quickly discovered that the driver had his 17-month-old and 3-month-old children in the vehicle, with the 17-month-old not properly restrained. Velasquez-Urbina was taken to Three Rivers Medical Center for a legal blood draw and then lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Reckless Driving and three counts of Reckless Endangering.

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners will consider a proposed rate increase for American Medical Response during its weekly business session this morning. AMR -- Josephine County's designated ambulance service provider -- is requesting an 8% increase to their "all-inclusive" base rates along with an additional mileage adjustment. In two other Administrative Actions, the Board will decide whether to support the Airports General Fund and the Commissioners will consider an order to authorize the execution of lease agreements on airport properties to the Airport Director. There will be Requests and Comments from Citizens when participants are given three minutes to address the Board on virtually any topic pertaining to Josephine County. Today's public meeting starts at 10 a.m. in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium.

 

Following a productive library lease negotiation meeting this week, leaders of the Josephine Community Library District report that discussions about the lease for the county-owned Grants Pass library facility are moving forward. Library leaders attribute this forward momentum to the continued engagement and support of the community. While the details of a new lease agreement have not yet been finalized, the library district and Josephine County Board of Commissioners are engaged in continued negotiations and Library Director Kate Lasky expressed optimism about reaching a resolution that protects community access to library services. Lasky said they're encouraged by the progress made during the latest meeting and hopeful about the direction of the talks. The current lease runs through December 31st. The Commissioners are expected to review the terms of the proposed agreement later this month. The library district board will follow with its own review next month. If negotiations stay on track, a final lease agreement is expected to be completed by the end of August. The district encourages residents to stay engaged, continue asking questions and remain active in support of a long-term agreement that preserves reliable library service for everyone in Josephine County.

 

The Grants Pass City Council made quick work of a brief business agenda on Wednesday night. The City Council first approved the vacation of a property line between two lots on Redwood Avenue. An existing building straddles the shared line and there is just one owner for both lots -- Southern Oregon Sanitation -- which intends to change the use of the existing building. Removal of the property line allows the long-time local company to meet minimum setback requirements. The Council then approved two ordinances adopting a developer-installed reimbursement district for the E Street Sewer Extension and the Buckmaster Subdivision Water Main Extension. Two citizens -- Emma Black and Bob Lange -- were appointed to the Bikeways & Walkways Committee. Councilors adjourned and reconvened as the Urban Renewal Agency, which then approved a building rehabilitation grant in the amount of $44,973 for Ausland Holdings for the building at 735 SE 6th Street known as "The Riverway." The amount represents 25% of the total qualifying project costs.

 

The Grants Pass Historical Buildings & Sites Commission has approved a new mural to be located on the Kienlan-Harbeck Building. The building owner proposes a new mural to be located on the rear wall facing the Owl Parking Lot. Appropriately, the artwork of the new mural will depict a flying owl to be painted by local artist Cate Battles. It will cover the entire back of the existing two-story building at the northeast corner of 5th and G streets. The Kienlan-Harbeck Building is located within the Grants Pass National Historic District. The Owl Parking Lot is slated for construction that will allow the lot to also be used as a plaza for downtown events such as Art Along the Rogue.