Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a local warrant and for violating terms of his probation yesterday in an encounter near the Parkway Public Safety Station. According to the Police Department, officers contacted 64-year-old Timothy Carl Ferguson at the intersection of the Grants Pass Parkway and East Park Street on Monday at 11:18 a.m.. Police said they observed Ferguson and knew that he was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for Disorderly Conduct. After he was placed into custody, he made numerous statements about harming law enforcement once he was released from jail. Ferguson reportedly told the arresting officer that he would burn down his house, and drop rocks off overpasses onto police cars while wearing a black hoodie and riding around on a bicycle. He also mentioned going around town and cutting wires at buildings as a means to express his hatred toward everyone. Ferguson was lodged without bail at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant and the resulting Probation Violation. He was also flagged for his threats to local law enforcement and the community.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for trespassing at Three Rivers Medical Center last night. GPPD reports officers responded to the incident at the hospital on SW Ramsey Avenue on Monday at 8:16 p.m.. Police said 39-year-old Abigail Reese Ozkan refused to leave the emergency room after being asked to do so by hospital staff. They said she was given warnings that she would be arrested if she did not leave the facility. She could not be reasoned with and chose to be arrested. That's when things got interesting. Ozkan passively resisted by sitting on the ground while holding her baby as a shield to make it so officers could not place her into custody. She eventually handed her baby to a friend who was seated next to her and was arrested. Ozkan was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Criminal Trespass.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for drug possession during a patrol check at a city park early yesterday. According to GPPD, officers contacted Melissa Burger at Baker Park on Monday at 8:26 a.m.. Officers said when they contacted Burger, two glass pipes were in plain view. She admitted the pipes were hers and that she used them to smoke methamphetamine. She was cited to appear in court for Meth Possession and trespassed from the park for 30 days. Meanwhile, officers cited Gennette Hudgins and James Brockmann for Utilization of Space. They were warned that a second violation would result in park exclusion.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for disrupting business at Hellgate Jetboat Excursions last weekend. The Police Department reports officers responded to a disturbance involving 61-year-old Marjorie Rose Anderson near the business on SW 6th Street by Caveman Bridge on Sunday around 9:45 a.m.. Police said Anderson took a camera off the neck of a Hellgate employee who was taking photos of boat riders and threw it in the Rogue River. She told officers that the employee told her to remove the camera and throw it in the river, but the worker stated she said nothing to Anderson. The suspect was placed into custody. Anderson was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on felony charges of 1st-Degree Theft and 1st-Degree Criminal Mischief. She was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for causing disturbances at a city park last weekend. According to the Police Department, officers responded to the incident at Baker Park on Sunday shortly after 2 p.m.. Police said 42-year-old Caleb Neil Pratt had been called in for screaming and yelling at the park earlier in the day and he was warned for his bad behavior. A second caller reported that the screaming and yelling were continuing. They said he was threatening violence to others, stating "I'm going to kill the next person that looks at me." Officers responded again, contacted Pratt and placed him into custody. He 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.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a motorist for impaired driving after she crashed her vehicle off Redwood Highway west of Grants Pass. According to OSP, troopers and emergency crews responded to the single-vehicle wreck near milepost 5 of US Highway 199 on Sunday at 8:10 p.m.. Troopers said their investigation indicated 25-year-old Jessica Long was impaired when she crashed the Toyota Camry she was driving. The driver was transported by ambulance to Three Rivers Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries. A search warrant was obtained and a legal blood draw was performed. Based on the results of the blood draw, Long was cited at the hospital for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Driving. Her car was impounded. ODOT was notified of state property damage for destroyed highway signs.

 

Monday was an uncommonly busy day for the Illinois Valley Fire District and its partners. At 3:47 p.m., IVFD and the Oregon Department of Forestry responded to a small grass fire in front of McGrew's Restaurant in O'Brien. Units arrived on scene to find the fire had been fully extinguished and the incident is being investigated. At 3:59 p.m., IVFD, ODF and the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest responded to a grass fire near the Chevron gas station on South Redwood Highway in Cave Junction. The small fire was confirmed to be extinguished. Several citizen bystanders assisted in suppression efforts. An investigation will be conducted. At 4:58 p.m., IVFD, ODF and American Medical Response were dispatched to a reported structure fire in the 2600-block of Holland Loop Road. Arriving units confirmed a contained flue fire that was subsequently extinguished. At 9:35 p.m., IVFD, AMR and the Josephine County Sheriff's Office responded to a single-vehicle rollover accident on West Side Road at Finch Road in Kerby. No individuals were present at the crash scene. A search of the area was conducted, but no one was located. The Sheriff's Office is investigating the incident.

 

The Oregon Department of Transportation has started a project to improve safety along Interstate 5 by adding features that alert drivers when they enter a freeway off-ramp from the wrong direction. ODOT officials said these enhancements include permanent signs, reflective pavement markings and flashing beacons. The project will involve most ramps on I-5 from the California border north to the Curtin interchange at milepost 163. Starting this week, motorists are urged to watch for intermittent I-5 closures each Sunday night to Friday morning from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.. Construction on each ramp will take about 4 to 6 hours. During ramp closures, drivers should watch for construction signs and electronic message boards. Drivers are advised to use alternate routes, usually by traveling to the next interchange and turning around. In general, the contractor will begin work at the south end of the project area near the California border and gradually work north through Jackson, Josephine and Douglas counties.

 

The Grants Pass City Council has directed staff to start the process of hiring a consultant to help guide it in next steps for the Washington Campus property. During its Monday workshop, the Council discussed what should be done with the roughly 8-acre property off NW Midland Avenue and Washington Boulevard that the City of Grants Pass purchased last year for $2 million. City Manager Aaron Cubic called it the "North Star Project" and explained the property is zoned Industrial, R-4, R-1-6 and General Commercial, which provides numerous potential uses and possibilities. He said a 9-month process to create an Opportunity Plan for the property could reveal some exciting opportunities. Cubic said public dollars are being used to incentivize private development. City Council members agreed that a consultant should help guide the process and city staff was directed to draft a Request for Proposal to help find the right consultant. In other business, the City Council decided to pause its discussion on reallocating $5 million in Urban Renewal Agency funding for a public swimming pool until after it receives presentations on Caveman Pool and the Caretaker's Cottage at Riverside Park. Some of the money could be redirected to those projects as well as providing infrastructure to the Spalding Industrial Park.