Local News

The Oregon State Police arrested a woman on a felony warrant after a traffic stop Monday afternoon.

Troopers stopped a vehicle at 1:16 p.m. in front of the Rays in Selma for traffic violations. The driver of the vehicle then fled into a bathroom inside the grocery store.

Upon contacting the suspect, Jessica Pitts, troopers returned her to her vehicle where she provided false information. She was found to have a Failure to Appear Bench warrant out for her arrest.

Pitts was taken into custody and lodged in the Josephine County Jail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office was alerted to a disturbance involving a homeless man asking for money and making stabbing threats Monday afternoon.

At 3:52 p.m., a caller told dispatch that a transient was asking for money at the Shell Station at 397 Old Highway 99 in Wolf Creek. When confronted by the caller and asked to leave the property, the homeless man said he would stab him.

The caller told dispatch the transient was going in and out of the service station repeatedly, continued to harass customers for money, and was extremely intoxicated.

Deputies arrived and contacted the homeless man, identifying him as Troy Enloe. He was found to be wanted on a Jackson County Sheriff's Office warrant for Second Degree Disorderly Conduct, and a Medford Police Department warrant for Unlawful Use of a Motor Vehicle.

Enloe was taken into custody and lodged in the Josephine County Jail on the out-of-county warrants.

 

The Eagle Point Police Department received reports Monday of scammers calling residents and claiming to be with the Jackson County Sheriff's Office.

The callers would say there were "bench warrants" issued and that the person should not hang up the phone, or risk being arrested. The caller would then start asking questions about license plates, addresses, and eventually insist a payment was made to the "finance department".

The caller ID would show the call as coming from the Sheriff's Office, but the number was actually a "spoofed" number.

EPPD wants to let the public know officers do not call to report warrants, and they do not ask for money over the phone. If scammers tell you to wire money or send cash cards, hang up and do not share any personal information, bank account numbers, or credit card information.

 

The Grants Pass City Council heard Housing Loan Fund and Property Update presentations during Monday's workshop.

The Moderate Income Revolving Loan (MIRL) Program, a fund provided by OHCS, was presented as a loan fund for cities and counties to boost housing production for moderate income Oregonians at or below 120% AMI.

The council was told MIRL is designed to serve as a gap resource for eligible projects. The no-interest loan would be issued, a developer would then build or improve a housing property, the county tax assessor would collect the program fee, send the net program fee to OHCS, and the repaid loan funds would be recycled.

The board was called to either adopt a local resolution, wait for a request for MIRL funding from a private applicant, or hold another workshop for further elaboration. The board approved a motion for a memo to cover further questions.

The Hillcrest Drive and Beacon Hill Surplus Property Partition Update was presented to the council. Further work would have a cost implication of $9,800, with about $3,000 incurred to date. An additional $3 to $4,000 in fees was presented.

The council, following a motion by Councilman Rick Riker, moved to suspend the land survey, and proceed with public engagement on Beacon Hill amenities. The motion passed 5-3.

City Manager Aaron Cubic also presented the council with a Strategic and Work Plan third quarter update, highlighting many efforts put forth in the community supporting public safety, economic growth, fiscal stability, infrastructure, and housing and homelessness goals.

 

The Grants Pass City Council voted to move forward with Elk Island Trading Group's application after disqualifying Pathways to Stability at today's workshop. During a presentation of the current state of the Addressing Homelessness Grant Program, the council was given options on how to move forward. The first choice was to disqualify Pathways for not meeting contracting prerequisites and move forward with contract negotiations with Elk Island. The second was to invite all applicants to submit a final proposal for re-review and scoring. Other options provided, but not for immediate in-depth discussion, were to cancel the grant and consider alternative solutions, to create a new RFP, for the city to acquire property for a service provider, or to maintain the current resting sites. Councilman Erich Schloegl made a motion to obtain final offers from each of the applicants and re-score them. Following a discussion, the motion failed 5-3. Councilman Joel King then made a motion to disqualify Pathways and move forward with Elk Island Trading Group. Further discussion followed, with the motion passing 5-3.

 

Grants Pass Police officers were alerted to a shoplifting complaint at the local WinCo Sunday afternoon.

At 2:52 p.m., loss prevention had two women in custody at the 231 NE Terry Lane store. They were being cooperative, but wouldn't give their names. The value of items shoplifted was unknown.

Upon arrival, officers identified the suspects as Kierra Keene, and Dylan Pierce. They were both cited for Third Degree Theft, and trespassed from the property.

 

Oregon State Police troopers stopped a vehicle at the corner of E Watkins Street and US Highway 199 in Cave Junction late Saturday night.

At 10:57 p.m., while investigating, troopers observed a firearm partially hidden by the driver's leg inside the vehicle. The driver, identified as Christian Hipp, 26, of Cave Junction, was found to have a felony record and wasn't allowed to possess a firearm.

Hipp was taken into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felon in Possession of a Firearm. The vehicle was released to his passenger.

 

A traffic accident involving a rollover occurred in the 5300 block of Dick George Road in Cave Junction this morning.

At 8:45 a.m., the Illinois Valley Fire District, AMR-Josephine County, and the Josephine County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to a single-vehicle rollover incident.

The individual involved was extricated from the vehicle and transported with injuries that were not life-threatening.

The scene has since been released to the Sheriff's Department.

 

Just after midnight this morning, Rural Metro Fire was alerted to a fire alarm sounding at Hidden Valley High School.

At 12:12 a.m., as the crew made their way towards the Murphy area, they were alerted to a crash in the 8800 block of Williams Hwy.

It was reported as a rollover with injuries and powerlines down. This priority incident prompted the RMF crew to divert to the crash.

Due to the shortened response distance, firefighters arrived on scene of the crash where they observed a vehicle off the road, upside down with flames coming from the engine compartment. One occupant had self-extricated, however one occupant remained inside. The fire was quickly extinguished.

The trapped occupant was declared deceased at the scene. Burn injuries did not appear to be a factor. The other occupant was transported by AMR-Josephine County to a Medford-area hospital. Oregon State Police is investigating the cause of the crash.

Pacific Power worked over night and into today to restore power.