Local News

Board Approves 1st Readings of Ordinances Repealing Outdated Rules in Code
The Board of Commissioners continued its effort to remove outdated ordinances from the Josephine County Code during its weekly business session this morning. Following four brief public hearings, the Board voted unanimously to repeal rules pertaining to the payment of attorney fees, utility consumer choice, sanitary landfills and the designation of county property for sanitary landfills. The second readings and approvals of the new ordinances are scheduled for September 4th. Assistant County Legal Counsel Leah Harper testified all of the existing rules are outdated and need to be removed from the County Code. She said attorney fees were never paid to witnesses who cooperated with the District Attorney, the case against Pacific Power's Smart Meters was settled and the former Marlsan Landfill has been closed for many years. There was no public testimony in the hearings. Under Administrative Actions, the Board also voted unanimously to approve an order outlining general fund appropriations in various county departments. The department heads are expected to watch both their spending appropriations and revenues in the same manner as departments not paid for by the general fund. Scott Blower of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest presented the Board with a certificate of appreciation for the efforts of Josephine County Public Works in the Bear Camp Road Project. The Commissioners reminded citizens of the Fire Hazard Map Meeting scheduled for Monday afternoon in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium. The Grants Pass & Josephine County Chamber of Commerce opened the meeting with a presentation on the recent Lemonade Day event. New Chamber CEO Terry Hopkins said around 300 local children participated in the program with more than 80 lemonade stands in Grants Pass and Cave Junction. Young entrepreneur Reese Tappan said she donated $50 from her stand to the Rogue Valley Humane Society.
Posted on 8/21/24 11:51AM by Sam Marsh
 

GP Police Jailed Woman for Threatening Boyfriend with Knife in Downtown Area
Grants Pass Police jailed a woman who allegedly threatened her boyfriend with a knife outside a downtown business yesterday. The Police Department reports officers responded to a reported disturbance near an unnamed business on SE H Street on Tuesday at 2:35 p.m.. Police said a 61-year-old female subject and her boyfriend got into an argument while parked at the incident location. They said she admitted to taking out a knife and stabbing the seat next to her boyfriend, stating that she would cut him. No one was hurt and no physical contact occurred. According to the report, the woman drove away in a maroon Buick sedan while screaming. Officers searched the area, located her at 11th and I streets, and placed her into custody. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon and Menacing. She was being held without bail. Josephine County Animal Control was called in to take possession of a cat that was inside the suspect vehicle. It was taken to the Animal Shelter.
Posted on 8/21/24 11:50AM by Sam Marsh
 

GP Police Arrested Man on Nine Out-of-County Warrants at Bridge Street Home
Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a total of nine out-of-county warrants at a home on the west side of the city early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers were assisting Jackson County Corrections when they located the 31-year-old male subject in the 900-block of SW Bridge Street on Tuesday around 11 a.m.. Police said the subject was wanted on two Jackson County Circuit Court warrants for failing to appear in court for Reckless Endangering, Criminal Mischief and other alleged crimes. They said he was also wanted on a Klamath County Corrections warrant for failing to appear in court for 4th-Degree Assault and two Clackamas County warrant for failing to appear in court on unspecified charges. Officers said the man identified as "Tyler Alexander Hopkins" was cooperative and came out of the house at the request of law enforcement. Hopkins was initially lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the outstanding warrants, but he has since been transferred to the Jackson County Jail in Medford.
Posted on 8/21/24 11:48AM by Sam Marsh
 

GP Police Incarcerated Man for Drinking Alcohol & Eating Food Inside Walmart
Grants Pass Police arrested a man for multiple crimes after he entered Walmart and began drinking alcohol and eating food early yesterday. The Police Department reports officers responded to a trespassing complaint at the store on NE Terry Lane on Tuesday at 9:31 a.m.. Police said a 30-year-old male subject they identified as "Jacob Levi Reeder" entered Walmart after being previously trespassed from the store on May 5th. They said loss prevention observed him drinking alcohol and eating food that was valued at about $16. They confronted him and he fled the store on foot. A Walmart manager advised they wanted to pursue both theft and trespass charges against the subject. He was located near Taco Bell and placed into custody. Reeder was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 3rd-Degree Theft and Criminal Trespass plus the resulting Felony Parole Violation. He was being held without bail. Jail records show Reeder has been arrested six times for violating his parole since March 2023.
Posted on 8/21/24 11:45AM by Sam Marsh
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OSP Arrested Idaho Man for Moving Violations on Highway 238 in South GP
The Oregon State Police arrested an Idaho man for moving violations during a traffic stop on Williams Highway in south Grants Pass late yesterday. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a multi-colored Chevrolet sedan driven by a 39-year-old Spirit Lake man on Highway 238 near New Hope Road on Tuesday at 4:38 p.m.. Troopers said they stopped the car for traffic violations and quickly learned that the driver had a suspended license and no insurance. He was placed into custody. The man identified by OSP as "Jason Allen Eldred" was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for the traffic violations. His vehicle was impounded and hauled away by Oregon Towing.
Posted on 8/21/24 11:42AM by Sam Marsh
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GP Police Arrested Man for Suspected Crimes Committed against Woman
Grants Pass Police jailed a man for probable cause of crimes he committed against a woman two weeks ago. The Police Department reports officers arrested a 41-year-old male subject in the 700-block of NE 12th Street on Tuesday at 12:18 a.m.. Police said they responded to a trespassing complaint at that address after a woman reported the subject was at her house repeatedly knocking on the window while calling her name. The caller stated officers came to her home two weeks ago after he broke in and attacked her, but he fled the area and was not located. According to the report, the subject's Chevrolet Silverado pickup was in the woman's driveway and a BOLO had been issued for his arrest. Officers arrived on scene and placed the subject into custody. He was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for probable cause of 1st-Degree Burglary, Strangulation and Physical Harassment. He was being held without bail.
Posted on 8/21/24 6:18AM by Sam Marsh
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Troopers Jailed Suspect for Road Rage Incidents on Grants Pass Parkway
The Oregon State Police jailed a suspect for alleged road rage incidents on the Grants Pass Parkway this week. According to OSP, troopers responded to the reported incident on the Parkway near NE Agness Avenue late Monday afternoon. Troopers said were alerted to a male subject driving a Jeep Wrangler who was brandishing a firearm at other motorists. One of the victims called 9-1-1 and directed law enforcement to the suspect. The 46-year-old suspect -- identified by OSP as "Jon Michael Myers" -- was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon and Menacing. He was being held without bail. The Jeep was turned over to his passenger who was identified as a 40-year-old Rogue River woman.
Posted on 8/21/24 6:16AM by Sam Marsh
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Two IV Men Arrested for DUII after Motorcycle Crash on Caves Highway
Two Illinois Valley men were arrested for impaired riding this week after one of them crashed a motorcycle and the other rode it to a nearby residence. The Oregon State Police reports troopers and emergency crews responded to the single-vehicle wreck near milepost 6 of Caves Highway on Monday night. Troopers said the 47-year-old operator of a Kawasaki KLR 650 failed to negotiate a corner and crashed. His passenger -- a 23-year-old man with the exact same name -- rode the motorcycle back onto the road and to a residence where it was parked. According to OSP, both riders were transported by ambulance to Three Rivers Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. Both riders also displayed signs of impairment and performed poorly in field sobriety tests. The motorcyclists were subsequently charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Driving. The older of the two was also charged with Reckless Endangering. They were cited to appear in court and released to hospital staff.
Posted on 8/21/24 6:12AM by Sam Marsh
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Ashland Police Snared Female Transient for Starting Grass Fire near I-5
The Ashland Police Department has arrested a female transient for starting a grass fire near Interstate 5. On Monday at about 8 p.m., a 9-1-1 call came in reporting a grass fire near I-5 southbound just north of Exit 14. Ashland Fire & Rescue responded as did the Ashland Police Department and several partner agencies. The fire was quickly contained, helped in part by recent wet weather. At no point were Ashland homes or other structures threatened. APD Chief Tighe O'Meara said a Medford area transient -- 43-year-old Jennifer Paulson -- was taken into custody and lodged at the Jackson County Jail on charges of Reckless Burning, Disorderly Conduct and Resisting Arrest. O'Meara said Ashland's first responders were assisted on this call by Jackson County Fire District #5, Jackson County Sheriff's Office, Oregon State Police, Talent Police Department, Phoenix Police Department and Emergency Communications of Southern Oregon.
Posted on 8/21/24 6:01AM by Sam Marsh
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Rural Metro Crews Scrambled to Separate Fire Incidents in GP & Murphy
Two separate incidents early yesterday had Rural Metro Fire Department running in different directions in the Grants Pass and Murphy areas. On Tuesday at 7:25 a.m., Rural Metro and Grants Pass Fire & Rescue responded to a report of a house fire on McVay Lane off Lower River Road. Crews arrived to find a fire in the contents of a furnace room that was quickly contained without damage to the structure. Rural Metro officials said it appeared to be caused by flammable materials too close to an incandescent light bulb that heated up the materials to the point of ignition. There were no injuries. On Tuesday at 7:28 a.m., Rural Metro units were directed to a vehicle on fire on Williams Highway at Ridgefield Road. The vehicle caught fire while stopped next to an Oregon Department of Transportation flagger crew working in the area. ODOT crews were able to use fire extinguishers and a neighbor's garden hose to knock down the flames. There was no spread to adjacent vegetation. The cause appeared to be mechanical. Officials said if the two fire incidents had occurred during the afternoon of a typically hot August day, the outcomes could have been much more severe.
Posted on 8/21/24 5:56AM by Sam Marsh
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Board of Commissioners to Hold Four Public Hearings at Business Meeting
The Josephine County Board of Commissioners is scheduled to hold four public hearings during its weekly business session this morning. The public hearings are on the first reading of ordinances related to the payment of attorney fees, utility consumer choice, sanitary landfills and designation of certain county lands for sanitary landfills. Second readings are set for September 4th. Under Administrative Actions, the Board will consider an order outlining general fund appropriations in the general fund departments. Appropriations of general fund money within departments would be treated as a not-to-exceed appropriation. General fund departments would watch both their spending appropriation as well as their revenues in the same fashion that all other county departments operate. The Board will open the session with a Chamber of Commerce presentation on the 2024 Lemonade Day event. Today's public meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium.
Posted on 8/21/24 5:54AM by Sam Marsh
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NPS Hosting Thursday Public Meeting for Oregon Caves Camping & Tour Fee Increases
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The Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve is hosting a public meeting this week for proposed changes in fees at Cave Creek Campground and Cave Tours. The Virtual Public Meeting will be held this Thursday from 1 to 2 p.m., at "Oregon Caves Public Meeting." The call-in information is +1 202-640-1187 and the phone conference ID is "930 249 985#." The park is proposing an increase of campsite fees at Cave Creek Campground to $20 from $10 for the next two years and an additional increase to $30 after several improvements -- including water and electrical at individual sites, accessible campsites, road improvements and new restrooms -- are completed. A proposed increase for Cave Tours is also being considered -- $20 for adults, $15 for children and $65 for off-trail. The current rates are $10, $7 and $45, respectively. Public engagement is an important part of the park's planning process. Public comments on the fee increases can be submitted to "parkplanning.nps.gov/ORCA-fees-24." Comments may also be submitted via mail to: Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve, Office of the Superintendent, 19000 Caves Highway, Cave Junction, OR 97523. All public comments on the fee increases will be accepted through August 30th.
Posted on 8/21/24 5:51AM by Sam Marsh
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