Local News

A 36-year-old Eagle Point woman was arrested for felony assault, misdemeanor assault and impaired driving after she crashed a vehicle and injured two of her young children this week. The Jackson County Sheriff's Office reports deputies and emergency personnel were dispatched to the single-vehicle crash near the intersection of Rogue River Drive and Buckingham Circle late Tuesday night. Deputies said Amanda Lynn Padilla was arrested after two of her children were injured and she showed signs of impairment at the scene. She was lodged at the Jackson County Jail for 2nd-Degree Assault, 4th-Degree Assault, Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, Reckless Driving and Reckless Endangering. A Mercy Flights helicopter flew the 5-year-old child to a local hospital in serious condition. A ground ambulance transported the 2-year-old child with lesser injuries to a local hospital. Padilla was not hurt. The Jackson County Serious Traffic Accident Reconstruction (STAR) team responded to the scene along with the Jackson County District Attorney's Office to investigate the incident. An initial investigation revealed lack of proper child restraints was a major factor to the injuries suffered by the children. The case remains under investigation.

 

Grants Pass Police captured an out-of-county fugitive last night after he wrecked his vehicle into another vehicle and fled the scene. The Police Department reports officers tracked down and arrested 41-year-old Stephen Nathaniel Lockett, IV, near the corner of NE 7th and Steiger streets with the help of an Uber driver on Wednesday at 8:09 p.m.. Police said a motorist was in the right turn lane at the F Street and Grants Pass Parkway intersection when both vehicles tried to turn right at the same time and Lockett crashed into the driver-side of the other vehicle. They said Lockett stopped momentarily and then fled, but he was followed by an Uber driver who witnessed the incident. The bystander called 9-1-1 and led police to the suspect. Upon contact with Lockett, police discovered that he was wanted on a Clackamas County felony warrant for failing to appear in court for three counts of 3rd-Degree Robbery and one count of 2nd-Degree Theft. Stephen Lockett was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant and for Hit-and-Run Causing Property Damage. Fortunately, no one was hurt -- but the victim's vehicle had a broken steering wheel and had to be towed.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested an uncooperative woman for two crimes late last night during an encounter on Interstate 5 just north of Grants Pass. OSP reports troopers responded to a call for service regarding a disabled vehicle blocking a travel lane on southbound I-5 near milepost 61 on Wednesday shortly before midnight. Troopers said they located 55-year-old Rhonda Bentley-Lewis and her 14-year-old son in the disabled Honda Odyssey. They said the woman became agitated and refused to obey commands to get off I-5 to a safe location. She had to be physically moved off the freeway. Bentley-Lewis resisted arrest and troopers were forced to use custody techniques in order to subdue her. She was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Resisting Arrest and Disorderly Conduct. Her minivan was towed into Grants Pass. According to OSP, the male juvenile was placed into protective custody and taken to the Hearts With A Mission Youth Shelter in Medford.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for returning to a park and breaking into his trailer after being evicted from the premises in October. The Police Department reports officers responded to the trespassing complaint involving 71-year-old Russell Dewitt Coe at the Royal Trailer Park on Lewis Avenue on Wednesday shortly after 9 a.m.. Police said the park maintenance manager called 9-1-1 to report that Coe was intoxicated and had broken a window to get into his trailer. The manager had been told to call police if Coe returned after he had been previously served by the courts and legally evicted. Upon arrival, officers arrested Russell Coe and lodged him at the Josephine County Jail for Criminal Trespass. His trailer and vehicle have been filed as abandoned and they will be removed by the property owner.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for stealing a beer from a Rogue River Highway convenience store and then harassing the manager when he attempted to stop her late yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a theft complaint at the Market & Deli in the 1,000-block of Highway 99 on Wednesday around 4:45 p.m.. Police said 41-year-old Gayle Lee Hooper proceeded past all points of sale with a beer valued at $3.89 and proceeded to drink it just outside the store. They said the store manager took the beer from the suspect and ordered her to leave. That's when she stepped on the manager's foot and punched him. Hooper was located a short time later at Morrison Centennial Park where she was placed into custody. She was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Physical Harassment and 3rd-Degree Theft.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for the brazen act of stealing a beer from Walmart and drinking it inside the store early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers were alerted to a theft complaint involving 35-year-old Travis Carrasco Boget at the big box retailer on NE Terry Lane on Wednesday at 7:47 a.m.. Police said Boget selected an adult beverage from the shelf at Walmart, went into the restroom at the rear of the store and consumed it before disposing of the can in the garbage. They said the value of the beer was $3.37. Travis Boget was contacted, placed into custody and transported to the nearby jail facility where he was booked for 3rd-Degree Theft. He was held without bail.

 

Mail theft is on the rise this holiday season in Jackson County along with the rest of Southern Oregon and across the country. Nationwide from 2018-2023, United States Postal Inspectors have arrested almost 9,000 suspects for the theft of mail and packages. The Jackson County Sheriff's Office reports the biggest risk in our area is unlocked mailboxes along rural roadways, but thieves steal mail in cities as well. There are some steps you can take to protect your mail. Use a locking mailbox, get informed delivery to know what mail is arriving and when, promptly pick up your mail and try not to leave letters or packages in your mailbox or at your door for any length of time. Inquire about overdue mail. If you do not receive a check, credit card other valuable mail you're expecting, contact the sender as soon as possible and ask about it. Don't risk sending cash and be careful about what you send. Arrange for prompt pickup. If you cannot be home to receive a package, make another arrangement or use USPS Hold Mail Service. When shipping packages, use the Hold for Pickup option and the recipients can collect the package at their local Post Office. When mailing something important, consider requesting Signature Confirmation for the intended recipient. For more information on preventing mail and package theft, go to the US Postal Inspection Service website at "uspis.gov/tips-prevention/mail-theft."

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners has put all library annexation and withdrawal requests on hold, including five annexation petitions on the agenda Wednesday and four withdrawal petitions that were continued from last week. Based on advice from Legal Counsel, the Board voted 3-0 on Tuesday to place all petitions pertaining to the Josephine Community Library District on hold for at least 60 days. During the weekly business session yesterday, Library Director Kate Lasky argued that all five petitioners had fulfilled the procedures required for annexation and said she considers blocking annexation petitions "suspect," adding that the laws for adding properties to an existing service district are different than laws for removing them. One of the library annexation petitioners commented that the deadline for the Board to take action on the requests is January 18th, which is sooner than the end of the 60-day moratorium. As part of the Consent Calendar, the Board reappointed Jennifer McGowan to a three-year term on the Josephine County Fair Board and it approved an order cancelling the December 27th business session due to a lack of a quorum. In Requests and Comments from Citizens, the Board heard from a large number of proponents for the sale of the Pipe Fork timber property near Williams.

 

The Homeowner Assistance and Reconstruction Program (HARP) will be the first assistance available directly to 2020 Labor Day disaster survivors administered by Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS). The program is part of ReOregon, which is funded by a $422 million Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HARP assistance will help low- and moderate-income homeowners who still need to repair, rebuild or replace their homes. Those who have already completed repairs or rebuilding may be reimbursed in a future phase of HARP, if funds are still available. OHCS will begin accepting applications for HARP by the end of March 2024. One Southern Oregon organization will be conducting outreach and providing in-person support to help survivors work through the application process. ACCESS of Jackson County, NOWIA Unete Center for Farmworker Advocacy and Firebrand Resilience Collective are working on the Remake Talent project. In addition, Unite Oregon in Jackson County will be assisting with outreach work. OHCS recognizes how challenging this disaster has been and wants to work with survivors to ensure they have the resources they need to apply to the appropriate ReOregon program.