KRRM - Local News

WinCo Employee Arrested after Stealing Money from Register

Grants Pass Police lodged a WinCo employee found to be stealing money from the business Thursday afternoon.

Dispatch was notified by Asset Protection around 5:43 p.m. that the suspect, Shelby Finance, had been taking money from a register at the 231 NE Terry Lane grocer. It was requested she be trespassed from the store, and that a charge of Second Degree Theft be pursued.

Finance had been observed on surveillance camera footage concealing $350 from a cash register over the course of multiple transactions and pocketing it. Officers arrived to find Finance detained in the Asset Protection office.

She admitted after being read her rights to pocketing at least $250 over three different transactions. Officers took Finance into custody and transported her to the Josephine County Jail. She was lodged for Second Degree Theft and trespassed from the WinCo as requested, but was later released on her own recognizance.

Posted on 5/1/26 1:00PM by Alex Bauer

Grants Pass School District 7 Awarded State Summer Learning Funding

Grants Pass School District 7 is a recipient of the 2026 to 2028 State Summer Learning Grants, a $35 million annual investment established to expand access to high-quality summer learning programs for students.

This grant funding will help District 7 provide programs focused on literacy, enrichment, and school readiness for elementary and middle school students. Summer programming for high school students through High School Success funds will also be provided.

Kinder Camps for incoming kindergarten students will continue to be offered, and are open to all incoming kindergartners in District 7. At the elementary school level, the four-week Literacy Quest summer camp will be available for invited current first and second-grade students.

For middle schoolers, the grant will support a 5th to 6th Grade Transition Academy for invited students who need additional reading and writing support as they prepare for middle school. District 7 is partnering with Boys & Girls Clubs of the Rogue Valley to provide students with additional enrichment opportunities, including STEAM activities, art, and fitness.

Families of students invited to participate in Literacy Quest and the Transition Academy will be contacted soon. Space in all programs is limited.

Posted on 5/1/26 12:44PM by Alex Bauer

OSFM Awards Wildfire Staffing Grant Funds to Applegate Valley Fire District 9

The Oregon State Fire Marshal has awarded nearly $6 million in grants to boost response staffing across the state in preparation for the upcoming wildfire season.

The agency’s 2026 Wildfire Season Staffing Grant was awarded to 180 local fire agencies, including the Applegate Valley Rural Fire Protection District 9 in Jackson County. The grant provides up to $35,000 to bring on extra firefighters through October.

Fire agencies can use the funding to hire seasonal firefighters or pay for additional shift work. The goal of the grant is to reduce response times and keep fires small and from impacting Oregon communities.

Smaller, rural fire agencies that may depend on volunteers for response are prioritized in the grant process. The wildfire season staffing grant is in its fifth year and each summer proves to be a valuable investment in the Oregon fire service.

Posted on 5/1/26 11:50AM by Alex Bauer

City Council to Hear Main Street Metrics, Consider Contract at Workshop

The Grants Pass City Council will be presented with Main Street performance metrics at Monday's workshop.

Councilors will meet in the City Council Chambers, 101 NW A Street, beginning at 11:45 a.m., and will further consider a Destination Marketing Organization contract.

Following an agenda review, the workshop will adjourn. Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m., Councilors Seth Benham and Rob Pell are scheduled to appear on KAJO's Tuesday Talk Show.

Posted on 5/1/26 11:34AM by Alex Bauer

Oregon’s Unemployment Rate Unchanged at 5.2% in March

Oregon’s unemployment rate was 5.2% in both March and February. The U.S. unemployment rate was 4.3% in March and 4.4% in February.

According to the Oregon Employment Department, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted nonfarm payroll employment declined by 4,800 jobs in March, following a loss of 6,900 jobs in February. March’s gains were largest in retail trade (+900 jobs). Losses were largest in professional and business services (-2,400 jobs) and government (-800).

Retail trade added 800 jobs in February and 900 jobs in March, still 1,900 jobs, or 0.9%, below its March 2025 level. Since March 2025, motor vehicle and parts dealers cut the most jobs.

Government employment has declined over the past six months, peaking at an all-time high of 318,700 jobs in September, now down to 313,200 by March. Federal government continued to drop jobs, now at 26,700 in March. Local government, which employed 237,200 in March, has been trending downward over the past several months and is down 1,000 jobs, or 0.4%, in the past 12 months.

Professional and business services continued a three-year downtrend, cutting 2,400 jobs in March after a loss of 1,800 jobs in February. In the most recent 12 months, it cut 10,600 jobs, or 4.1%.

Posted on 5/1/26 11:25AM by Alex Bauer

Shots Fired Call Leads to Two Separate Arrests by JCSO Deputies

Jackson County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested two unrelated suspects following a shots fired menacing call Thursday at 8:44 p.m. Dispatch learned a man confronted a driver on Gold Ray Road, yelling about her speed before firing a gun into the ground and then toward her. Deputies responded and spotted a truck matching the suspect description leaving the area at a high rate of speed. The vehicle fled toward Gold Hill and, despite being successfully spike stripped, continued northbound on Interstate 5 on its rims. The vehicle eventually stopped, and

Posted on 5/1/26 11:13AM by Alex Bauer

National Association of Letter Carriers 'Stamp Out Hunger' Food Drive May 9th

The National Association of Letter Carriers will be conducting the nation's largest single-day food drive Saturday, May 9th, to help Stamp Out Hunger.

The United States Postal Service said in a release that, each year on the second Saturday in May, letter carriers across the country collect non-perishable food donations from their customers. These donations then go straight to local food pantries, providing food to people in need.

It's easy to participate, just leave your non-perishable, unexpired food donations in a bag by your mailbox on the 9th in time for your mail carrier to pick up.

Over the course of its 34-year history, the drive has collected over 1.94 billion pounds of food.

Posted on 5/1/26 10:57AM by Alex Bauer

No Decision Made in Airports Manager Open and Executive Sessions

The Board of County Commissioners held an Open and Executive Session in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium Thursday afternoon on the topic of the Airports Manager. According to the agenda, the sessions, beginning at 3 p.m., were held to consider the dismissal or discipline of, or to hear complaints or charges brought against a public officer, employee, staff member, or individual agent. Following the Executive Session, no decision was made. Staff was directed to take next steps, and the meeting adjourned.

Posted on 5/1/26 5:16AM by Alex Bauer

4-H/OSU Extension Presented Budget to Board of County Commissioners

The Josephine County 4-H and Oregon State University Extension Service presented their proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2027 to the Board of Commissioners. Regional Director Jamie Davis discussed how funding through the service district supports the organization. The planned investment in FY 2027 is over $400,000 in dedicated salaries for the faculty. It was proposed that 4-H Youth Development, Community Relations, and Master Gardner Program Manager Frank Boothby would move into the role of

Posted on 4/30/26 3:45PM by Alex Bauer

Man Reported Suspicious Activity at his Residence, Arrested by GP Police

Officers with the Grants Pass Police Department responded Wednesday to a suspicious activity report, resulting in the arrest of the complainant.

Tyler Hutchinson reported the incident at his residence in the 700 block of NE 8th Street around 12:20 p.m. He told dispatch he had heard a woman had been hurt upstairs, but he didn't know the name of the person who told him.

According to the police report, Hutchinson wouldn't give any details about her condition. He stated a man was following her, and that he was worried his son was going to get hurt.

Dispatch heard Hutchinson angrily talking to another male during the 911 call, and attempted to tell him to stay outside the location. When officers arrived, they took Hutchinson into custody, knowing he was wanted on an Oregon Parole Board warrant. No medical attention was needed at the scene.

He was charged with Intimidation, and during the arrest, was found to be in possession of a substance that field tested positive for Methamphetamine. Officers lodged Hutchinson in the Adult Jail Facility on his warrant and a charge of Meth Possession.

Posted on 4/30/26 1:21PM by Alex Bauer

GP Police Apprehended Man for Meth Possession and Parole Violation Detainer

A man was arrested by Grants Pass Police after he was reported to be stepping into traffic Wednesday morning.

The suspect, James Hall, was walking north on the intersection of NE 7th Street and NE D Street. Dispatch was notified he was stepping into traffic and staying around the nearby Vietnamese restaurant.

Law enforcement contacted Hall at Wells Fargo, where he was displaying indicators of recent stimulant usage. His parole officer was contacted, and a detainer was requested.

Officers conducted a consent search, and found a glass pipe with a white, crystalline residue. Hall told police the substance was Methamphetamine, which field testing later confirmed.

Hall was subsequently taken into custody and transported to jail. He was lodged on a charge of Meth Possession and his detainer.

Posted on 4/30/26 1:08PM by Alex Bauer

GP Police Contacted Erratic Driver, Arrested Passenger on GPPD Warrant

An erratic driver was reported to dispatch, and his passenger was later arrested by Grants Pass Police Wednesday afternoon on a warrant.

A call to dispatch around 4:15 p.m. reported the driver in a black truck with a green stripe pulling a small trailer. He had driven up on the sidewalk at one point near the corner of NE 6th Street and NE Evelyn Avenue, and had run a red light at Hillcrest.

Officers were soon able to contact both the driver and passenger, Jayden Poledna, in the parking lot of the North Safeway. According to the police report, there was no concern for intoxication with the driver, but Poledna was wanted on a Grants Pass Police Department warrant.

Charges against him included First Degree Burglary, and Criminal Mischief in the First Degree. Officers arrested Poledna, and transported him to the Josephine County Adult Jail Facility where he was lodged.

Posted on 4/30/26 12:55PM by Alex Bauer