Local News

Grants Pass Police cited a young motorist after she lost control of her vehicle and crashed into a utility pole at the intersection of Redwood and Williams highways last night. Police officers and emergency crews responded to the single-vehicle wreck near the South Y on Wednesday around 9:15 p.m.. Police said a 17-year-old female subject was driving a Mazda sedan too fast for the conditions and lost control of the car, causing it to collide with a utility pole. The metal pole fell across the merge lane onto Redwood Highway, but no one was hurt. The Oregon Department of Transportation and Pacific Power were notified about the mishap and they sent crews to affect repairs. Total damages were estimated at well over $2,500 and the young driver told police she did not have any insurance on the vehicle, which was heavily damaged and towed from the scene. The motorist was cited for Careless Driving and No Insurance.

 

A man who inherited a Medford-based shipping business from his father and mailed thousands of pounds of marijuana across the country apologized as he stood before a federal judge for sentencing Wednesday. "I felt an absolute duty to take care of everything that he left behind, and clearly it was more of a mess than I anticipated having to clean up," Matthew Sachen told US District Judge Michael J. McShane. The Oregonian reports Sachen's defense lawyer said his client was unaware his dad had been shipping the marijuana for customers, but he continued to do so. In June, the 30-year-old Sachen pleaded guilty to use of interstate facilities to promote or facilitate a racketeering enterprise, a felony. Assistant U.S. Attorney John Brassell sought a sentence of three years of federal probation while Sachen's lawyer, Justin Rosas, argued for the "smallest sanctions available." Rosas said Sachen has worked to help people every day as a wildland fire paramedic since he sold his dad's business and dreams of becoming a firefighter paramedic. The judge appeared to side with the defense. McShane questioned whether the US Attorney's Office had considered a diversion program instead to avoid Sachen from having a felony conviction on his record, considering he has no criminal history. Describing the crime as the "definition of circumstance," McShane gave the government a choice: He'll put Sachen on one year of probation if the government considers either a diversion program for Sachen or reducing the conviction to a misdemeanor at the completion of the probationary year. Otherwise, the judge said he'll close the case with Sachen's felony conviction but not issue any further penalty or supervision, essentially what's called a "sentence of discharge." The US Attorney's Office has until next Wednesday to provide a response, before a formal sentence is entered.

 

A Williams teenager was seriously injured in a motor vehicle accident that occurred on Highway 238 near Murphy this week. The Oregon State Police reports troopers and emergency personnel responded to the single-vehicle rollover crash near milepost 7 of Williams Highway on Tuesday night. Troopers said an investigation determined a 17-year-old boy was driving a Ford Mustang when he lost control of the car, went over an embankment and was ejected into blackberry bushes. They said the young driver was transported by ambulance with serious injuries to Three Rivers Medical Center. Upon contact at the hospital, troopers observed signs of impairment. A search warrant for the driver's blood was applied for, granted and executed. It showed the boy's blood-alcohol level exceeded the legal driving limit. The teen suspect was charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Driving. He was cited to appear in court and released to the care of the hospital. His wrecked car was impounded.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed two people on outstanding warrants following an early morning contact on the east side of the city yesterday. The Police Department reports officers arrested 44-year-old James William Pierre Dorsey and 33-year-old Hope Susan Hoover in the Elmer's Restaurant parking lot off NE Agness Avenue on Wednesday around 3 a.m.. Police said they were conducting a patrol check in the area of Elmer's when they observed a suspicious Chevrolet Blazer with no license plate or temporary tag parked behind the business. They approached the vehicle and spotted two females sitting in the front seats of the vehicle. Officers recognized Hoover and placed her into custody on a Eugene warrant for failing to appear in court for Methamphetamine Possession. They asked her about her boyfriend Dorsey and she said she was no longer dating him. That was a lie as Dorsey was found hiding behind a large speaker box in the back of the Blazer. Dorsey was wanted on an Oregon State warrant for Parole Violation related to a conviction for Methamphetamine Possession and he also was wanted on a Eugene warrant for failing to appear in court for Meth Possession. Dorsey and Hoover were lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrants. A bag full of drug paraphernalia was found inside the vehicle -- but neither suspect would admit ownership, so it was logged into evidence for further investigation.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a well-known criminal offender on two local warrants plus a new charge after a downtown patrol check this week. The Police Department reports officers arrested 39-year-old Travis Randal Davenport in the Grasshopper Parking Lot on Tuesday afternoon. Police said they spotted Davenport and recognized him from several previous law enforcement contacts. They also knew he was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for Methamphetamine Possession and a Josephine County warrant for failing to appear in court for Disorderly Conduct. During a consent search, Davenport was found to be in possession of two glass pipes containing a crystal residue that field-tested positive as meth. They were seized for destruction. Davenport was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the outstanding warrants plus a new charge of Meth Possession. He was being held on $50,000 bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man early yesterday after he got stranded on top of one of the arches on Caveman Bridge. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a report of suspicious activity on the 6th Street span over the Rogue River on Wednesday at 12:16 a.m.. Police said 30-year-old Dustin Michael Fontana told them he climbed onto the Caveman Bridge archway to "get high and look at the stars." He then panicked because he is scared of heights and had an anxiety attack, hanging himself up on the bridge's pigeon spikes where he could not free himself. Officers were able to talk Fontana through detaching himself and getting down -- but his behavior had already created public alarm, resulting in calls to 9-1-1 and shutting down one lane of traffic. Fontana was arrested and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Disorderly Conduct.

 

A real estate company based in Grants Pass and Rogue River has presented a holiday donation to an organization in Cave Junction. Windermere Real Estate Southern Oregon recently donated $1,000 to the Illinois Valley Family Coalition. Windermere Project Coordinator Marian Szewe said the funds will help support a critical one-stop center by offering essential services for families and individuals in need. The coalition provides prevention, education, advocacy and referral services in partnership with other community resources to enhance the stability and quality of life in the Illinois Valley. The donation is part of the Windermere Foundation's commitment to supporting local communities. Since 1989, the foundation has donated over $50 million to programs assisting low-income and homeless families. For the past 34 years, Windermere has donated a portion of the proceeds from every home purchased or sold toward these programs.

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners on Wednesday confirmed the sale of seven properties during a November 14th Sheriff's Auction and then approved the sale of one more property not named "Pipe Fork." The Board first approved an order confirming the Sheriff's Property Sale held last month and authorized the distribution of proceeds from the sale. County Property Manager Helene Lulich testified that two of the properties sold during the auction were purchased with cash, four were purchased with contracts to be paid off within 30 days and one was purchased with monthly installments. She said the proceeds from the sales go to the General Fund, Property Management, Parks and Forestry, with surplus funds from property tax foreclosures available to the prior property owner by request, per Oregon Statute. The Commissioners then approved an order regarding properties that were not sold during last month's auction. One of them at 33223 Redwood Highway near O'Brien has since been purchased in an over-the-counter sale with the total amount due by the end of the month. The total from all the sales exceeded $3.5 million. In other business, the Board approved a resolution establishing the Josephine County Rural Fire Protection District Fund. Commission Vice-Chair Herman Baertschiger secured start-up funding of $1.5 million for the new district when he was a member of the Oregon Senate.

 

Mount Ashland Ski Area has announced the opening of the Lithia Chair will take place on Saturday morning. It will be first chairlift opening for the local ski resort in over 35 years and is a revival of easier terrain that guests enjoyed for the first few decades of the area's history. The new five-tower chairlift with fixed-grip, triple-seat chairs was manufactured by SkyTrac. The chairlift utilizes an all-electric auxiliary motor as opposed to the traditional diesel -- one of the first in the United States to use this technology. The Lithia Chair will serve both easy and more difficult terrain. From the Mount Ashland Lodge, skiers can access the lift by skiing down Aisle 1 to the loading area which is near the Center Stage Terrain Park. The Lithia Chair project has been a priority this year due to the need for a more well-rounded beginner program and learning progression for novice skiers and snowboarders. Additionally, the new chair will be more resilient in higher winds that sometimes close the Sonnet Chair. The Lithia Chair was made possible by the largest gift in Mount Ashland history -- a $2 million donation from the Sid & Karen DeBoer Foundation and an additional $500,000 donation from Sid & Karen DeBoer.