Local News

Commissioners Okayed Future Property Sale and Updates to Josephine County Code
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The Josephine County Board of Commissioners took action on a future property sale plus ordinances pertaining to the County Code following four public hearings on Wednesday. The Board voted 2-0 to approve the sale on nine county-owned properties, most of which were acquired through foreclosure for unpaid property taxes. Board Chair John West was absent so Vice-Chair Herman Baertschiger officiated the meeting. County Property Manager Helene Lulich testified two of the properties have been logged by the Forestry Department. They are 160-acre parcels on Caves Camp and Munger Creek roads. She said a Sheriff's Sale will liquidate all the properties, with sealed bids due on November 13th and the auction scheduled for November 14th. The Commissioners continued working on modifying the Josephine County Code by approving an order updating a 30-year-old chapter related to ballot measures to put it in line with Oregon Revised Statutes. They also repealed two ordinances regarding genetically engineered plants and loitering at the county jail. Assistant County Legal Counsel Leah Harper said both ordinances were outdated.
Posted on 10/3/24 6:11AM by Sam Marsh
 

2024 "Art Along the Rogue Festival" Kicks Off Friday in Downtown Grants Pass
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The 2024 Art Along the Rogue Festival starts tomorrow in downtown Grants Pass. Oregon's premier street chalk and music festival begins Friday at 5 p.m. and runs through Sunday at 6 p.m. at 5th & H streets. This creative event features local and regional street painters as well as a variety of great music from regional bands. The theme for 2024 is "Unsolved Mysteries." The goal behind the theme is to reminisce and embrace the unsolved mysteries of our world. Inspired by the 1990s television show "Unsolved Mysteries," this theme will allow artists to be creative while exploring our world history and culture. Art Along the Rogue is a yearly event that occurs on the first weekend of October. Its start this year coincides with the First Friday Art Walk in the downtown area. The hours are 5-9 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday. Art Along the Rogue is sponsor-supported and free to the public. Dozens of local and regional businesses sponsor the event. Grants Pass loves the arts – and it really shows. For more information, please visit "artalongtherogue.com."
Posted on 10/3/24 6:09AM by Sam Marsh
 

Commission Approved Property Sale and Updates to Josephine County Code
The Josephine County Board of Commissioners took action on a future property sale plus ordinances pertaining to the County Code following four public hearings this morning. The Board voted 2-0 to approve the sale on nine county-owned properties, most of which were acquired through foreclosure for unpaid property taxes. Board Chair John West was absent so Vice-Chair Herman Baertschiger officiated the meeting. County Property Manager Helene Lulich testified two of the properties have been logged by the Forestry Department. They are 160-acre parcels on Caves Camp and Munger Creek roads. She said a Sheriff's Sale will liquidate all the properties, with sealed bids due on November 13th and the auction scheduled for November 14th. The Commissioners continued working on modifying the Josephine County Code by approving an order updating a 30-year-old chapter related to ballot measures to put it in line with Oregon Revised Statutes. They also repealed two ordinances regarding genetically engineered plants and loitering at the county jail. Assistant County Legal Counsel Leah Harper said both ordinances were outdated. She said the citizen-approved ordinance related to genetically engineered plants was invalidated by a state court and the county jail was located in the basement of the Courthouse when that ordinance was approved in 1963.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:37AM by Sam Marsh
 

GP Police Incarcerated Woman for Attacking Husband in Front of Young Child
Grants Pass Police jailed a woman for attacking her husband in front on their child at a home in the Redwood area last night. The Police Department reports officers responded to a domestic disturbance at a residence on Raydean Drive on Tuesday around 9 p.m.. Police said a man called 9-1-1 to report his wife was attacking him, following him and would not leave him alone. The intoxicated caller said they both threw each other to the ground, adding that he was bleeding but did not want an ambulance. According to the report, the couple's 5-year-old child witnessed the altercation. Upon arrival, officers observed the male caller trying to get away from his wife as she was pursuing him and yelling. The woman admitted that her husband was trying to defend himself after she kept coming at him. She was placed into custody. The female suspect was found to be the primary aggressor. She was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony 4th-Degree Domestic Assault and was being held without bail.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:35AM by Sam Marsh
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GP Police Snared Pair for Drug Possession after Walmart Parking Lot Contact
Grants Pass Police arrested two people for drug possession last night following an encounter in the Walmart parking lot. The Police Department reports officers contacted a 31-year-old man and a 41-year-old woman while they were performing a patrol check at the store on NE Terry Lane. Police said David Anthony Wong was located on the northeast corner of the property, rummaging through a backpack and taking out items. They said he was surrounded with tin foil with burnt residue and he admitted the residue was from smoking fentanyl. According to the report, Mary Lynn Tognoni arrived on scene and she admitted ownership of the drug paraphernalia items as well. A consent search of both suspects yielded additional drug-related items that were seized for destruction. Wong and Tognoni were both placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Fentanyl Possession. Wong was being held without bail while Tognoni was eventually released.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:34AM by Sam Marsh
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GP Police Arrested Man for Causing Disturbance at Burger King Restaurant
Grants Pass Police arrested a man for causing a disturbance at a fast food eatery in the south part of the city early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers responded to the incident at Burger King in the 500-block of Rogue River Highway on Tuesday at 7:30 a.m.. Police said they contacted 41-year-old David Brian Rich at the south Burger King after reports he was banging on the counter, screaming and causing a scene. They said he had been previously trespassed from the restaurant in June. Officers placed Rich into custody and lodged him at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Criminal Trespass. He was being held without bail.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:32AM by Sam Marsh
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OSP Arrested Central Point Man for DUII in GP after Complaint on Interstate 5
The Oregon State Police arrested a Central Point man for impaired driving in east Grants Pass yesterday following a traffic complaint on Interstate 5 near the City of Rogue River. OSP reports troopers pulled over a Honda HR-V driven by a 58-year-old male subject on the Grants Pass Parkway near NE Agness Avenue at 2:09 p.m. Tuesday. Troopers said they responded to a driving complaint in the northbound lanes of Interstate 5 near milepost 40 and caught up to the suspect vehicle at I-5 Exit 55. After the traffic stop, they said the driver showed strong signs of impairment. The driver was transported to the Grants Pass Sobering Center where he provided a breath sample that was nearly four times the legal driving limit. The suspect was lodged at the Sobering Center for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and his vehicle was impounded.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:31AM by Sam Marsh
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OSP Nabbed Motorist for Impaired Driving in US Highway 199 Stop near GP
The Oregon State Police arrested a motorist for impaired driving last night following a traffic stop on Redwood Highway just west of Grants Pass. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Chevrolet C-15 pickup driven by a 54-year-old female subject on US Highway 199 near Redwood Vista Lane on Tuesday at 9:20 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 charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants. She was cited to appear in court and then released. Her vehicle was not impounded.
Posted on 10/2/24 11:29AM by Sam Marsh
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GP Police Jailed Woman for DUII and More after She Crashed at Babe's Bakery
Grants Pass Police arrested a repeat impaired driver after she crashed a vehicle at a north-city bakery and fled the scene this week. The Police Department reports officers were dispatched to the hit-and-run motor vehicle accident at Babe's Bakery on NE 6th Street on Monday night. Police said an investigation determined that 26-year-old Samantha Lee Smith crashed her Toyota Tacoma onto the bakery property, damaging a fence and a flowerbed. Officers later located the suspect vehicle which had its license plates removed since the crash and was parked among other vehicles at a retirement center in the 1,000-block of NE 10th Street. Witnesses described the driver. Smith returned with her boyfriend a short time later and tried to leave the center, but she was detained and placed into custody. She showed signs of impairment, but refused to cooperate with the investigation -- so a search warrant was obtained for a legal blood draw performed at Three Rivers Medical Center. Based on the results of the blood draw, Smith was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Hit-and-Run Causing Property Damage and Tampering with Evidence. She was also cited for No Operator's License and Failure to Install an Ignition Interlock Device on her vehicle. She lost her license and was ordered to install the device due to previous DUII convictions.
Posted on 10/2/24 6:15AM by Sam Marsh
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Deputies Snared GP Woman on Local Felony Warrants at Foothill Blvd. Home
The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a Grants Pass woman on two local felony warrants this week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 45-year-old Zara Heather Thomas at a home in the 2900-block of Foothill Boulevard on Monday. Deputies said Thomas was wanted on a Josephine County Supervisory Authority warrant for Parole Violation stemming from a conviction for methamphetamine possession and a Josephine County Circuit Court warrant for failing to appear in court as a material witness. Thomas was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on a no-bail detainer.
Posted on 10/2/24 6:14AM by Sam Marsh
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OSP Prevented Suicide Attempt on Williams Highway between GP & Murphy
The Oregon State Police likely prevented a suicide attempt on Williams Highway between Grants Pass and Murphy this week. OSP reports troopers responded to a report of a suicidal male subject in the 4,000-block of Highway 238 on Monday night. Troopers said it was reported that the 24-year-old man had cut himself with a knife and was threatening to kill himself by jumping in front of passing vehicles. Upon contact, the man resisted detainment and had to be Tased before he was subdued. According to OSP, evidence of suicidal intention was found on the man and he later admitted to being suicidal. The subject was transported to Three Rivers Medical Center where he was admitted on a Peace Officer's Mental Hold.
Posted on 10/2/24 6:12AM by Sam Marsh
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Rapid Response by Firefighters Corralled Small Wildfire Northwest of Trail
Rapid response by firefighters corralled a small wildfire in northeastern Jackson County early yesterday. On Tuesday morning, the Oregon Department of Forestry was dispatched to a reported fire in a remote area near Trail. It was located past West Fork Trail Creek and Highway 227. ODF initially responded with two engines, with additional resources on standby. Crews stopped the fire at just 1/100th of an acre and were mopping up by 10:35 a.m.. Investigators were looking into the cause of the blaze. ODF officials said please be aware of the potential for fires to start and spread, even in the cool morning hours. Local vegetation remains very dry and -- for that reason -- "high" fire danger is still in effect in Jackson and Josephine counties. To learn more about current fire season restrictions, please visit "swofire.com."
Posted on 10/2/24 6:10AM by Sam Marsh
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