Local News

Grants Pass Police jailed a man on an outstanding warrant along with two new felony-level crimes following a weekend traffic stop in the Redwood area. The Police Department reports officers pulled over a vehicle driven by 39-year-old Magdaleno Torres in the 1200-block of Redwood Avenue on Saturday shortly after 10 p.m.. Police said they stopped Torres for a traffic violation and he pulled into the parking lot of Dollar General. They quickly discovered that Torres was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for Driving While Suspended and Furnishing False Information to Police. A large amount of methamphetamine was found on him while he was being placed into custody. Magdaleno Torres was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant plus new charges of Felony Possession of Meth and Felony Driving While Suspended. His vehicle was legally parked and his dog was taken to the Animal Shelter.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a young shoplifter after he tried to steal merchandise from Walmart over the weekend. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a theft complaint at the store on NE Terry Lane on Saturday around 3:40 p.m.. Police said 19-year-old Jacob Warner Cross attempted to deprive Walmart of more than $167 worth of items by concealing them in an ice chest and passing all points of sale without paying. He was placed into custody in the store parking lot where it appeared he was waiting to be picked up by a vehicle. He was arrested instead. Jacob Cross was lodged at the nearby adult jail facility for 2nd-Degree Theft. He was being held without bail and the stolen merchandise was returned to Walmart.

 

A weekend patrol by police on the east side of Grants Pass resulted in the capture of a man wanted on two local warrants. The Police Department reports officers arrested 63-year-old William Ward Fleming, Jr., on railroad property near NE Agness Avenue at about 12:40 a.m. on Saturday. Police said they located Fleming during a patrol check on the railroad property and a routine check revealed that he was wanted on two warrants -- a Jackson County warrant for failing to appear in court for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender and a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear for 1st-Degree Criminal Trespass and Furnishing False Information to Police. After the warrants were confirmed, William Fleming was lodged at the Josephine County Jail.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested four motorists for impaired driving in Josephine County over the long holiday weekend. OSP reports the first incident occurred on Friday at 12:53 a.m. when state troopers pulled over a Toyota pickup driven by 68-year-old Sally Pritchard of Grants Pass on New Hope Road near Jaynes Drive. Pritchard showed signs of impairment, did poorly in field sobriety tests and was taken to the Sobering Center where she gave a positive breath sample. The second incident happened on Friday at 9:57 p.m. when troopers pulled over a Subaru Forester driven by 24-year-old Dillion St. Onge of Cave Junction. St. Onge displayed signs of impairment, performed poorly in sobriety tests and was taken to the Sobering Center where he provided a breath sample that was nearly three times the legal driving limit. The third incident took place on Saturday at 11:55 p.m. when troopers pulled over a Volkswagen Jetta driven by 48-year-old Raina Albainmack of Grants Pass near the intersection of NE 6th Street and Morgan Lane. Albainmack exhibited signs of impairment, performed poorly in sobriety tests and was taken to the Sobering Center where she provided a breath sample that was twice the legal driving limit. The fourth incident occurred on Sunday at 4:52 p.m. when troopers pulled over a Dodge Dakota driven by 48-year-old Samuel Pitts of Williams on Highway 238 near West Harbeck Road. Pitts showed signs of impairment, performed poorly in sobriety testing and was taken to the Sobering Center where he provided a positive breath sample.

 

A Grants Pass family and their pets escaped injury and their home was spared after a weekend fire broke out in the Redwood area. The Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center received an alert just before 8 p.m. Saturday of smoke filling the interior of a house on Leonard Road. The occupants had been alerted by smoke alarms, were able to make the call and escape quickly. Rural Metro Fire Department and Grants Pass Fire & Rescue converged on the scene and found smoke coming from behind the refrigerator. As firefighters worked to extinguish the flames, they found the fire had come from the exterior of the home. An investigation revealed the fire originated in a melted trash receptacle where woodstove ashes had been recently discarded. The hidden fire was traveling up inside the wall and would have entered the attic, had it not been detected. There were no injuries and the majority of the home was saved. When wood heating devices being used inside the home are cleaned, officials say to put ashes in a metal container away from the house, patio or deck, don't mix the ash with any other garbage and fill the container with water.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a man on a local felony warrant for domestic violence after responding to a weekend disturbance on Rogue River Highway. The Police Department reports officers arrested 45-year-old Michael Earl Tognoni for the incident in the 1400-block of Highway 99 on Saturday around 2:30 a.m.. Police said a woman called 9-1-1 to report Tognoni -- her ex-boyfriend -- busted open the front door, pushed her and spit on her. The caller said she had a "friend" over and she refused medical attention. She also said her ex-boyfriend was drunk. Upon arrival, officers searched the area and found Tognoni walking on Rogue River Highway near Florence Lane. He was found to be wanted on a Grants Pass felony warrant for Domestic Assault, Domestic Strangulation and Domestic Menacing from a separate incident involving the same woman. Michael Tognoni was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on $25,000 bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for violating his post-prison supervision late last week during a welfare check in the northwest part of the city. According to the Police Department, officers contacted 28-year-old Jacob Robert Thompson in the 1800-block of NW Washington Boulevard on Friday at 1 p.m.. Police said an employee of a nearby business called 9-1-1 to request a welfare check on Thompson who had been sitting on a retaining wall at that location for about six hours. He was hunched over and the worker wasn't sure if he was asleep. Upon contact, Thompson refused to speak with officers, identify himself or comply with orders to pick up his trash and leave the premises. He was taken into custody. Jacob Thompson was booked into the Josephine County Jail for Criminal Trespass and Offensive Littering along with the resulting Parole Violation stemming from previous convictions for Resisting Arrest, Escape and Disorderly Conduct. He was being held on a no-bail detainer.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man and his father for starting a fight inside a local bar on Redwood Highway late last week. The Police Department reports officers were alerted to a disturbance at JD's Sports Pub on Friday shortly before 2 p.m.. Police said 38-year-old Shawn Baldwin and his father -- Richard Baldwin -- caused a disturbance inside the bar when they got into an argument with an employee. They said Richard Baldwin punched the worker in the face during the argument, and the worker responded by punching the man and knocking him out. According to the report, Shawn Baldwin then started throwing chairs and bar glasses around the business. He reportedly threw one glass through a glass door, causing significant damage before he walked outside JD's. He initially denied being involved in the fight, but was quickly identified by other employees. Shawn Baldwin was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief and Disorderly Conduct. Richard Baldwin was taken to the hospital for evaluation. He was cited to appear in court for Disorderly Conduct and then released to the care of hospital staff.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on an outstanding warrant and city code violation after a weekend patrol check at a parking lot in the downtown area. According to the Police Department, officers contacted 57-year-old Larry Drake Knight in the Grasshopper Parking Lot on Friday at about 8:50 p.m.. Police said Knight was sleeping on a city sidewalk at the downtown parking lot when they contacted him. He was placed into custody after officers discovered that he was wanted on a Josephine County felony warrant for Parole Violation related to convictions for Offensive Littering and Criminal Trespass. Larry Knight was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on a no-bail detainer. He was also cited to appear in court for Sleeping on a Downtown Sidewalk. His personal belongings were logged into evidence for safekeeping.