Local News

The Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles has announced the Cave Junction DMV office will close permanently later this month. The last day the office will serve customers is Friday, December 22nd. The Cave Junction DMV -- located at 103 South Kerby Avenue -- is a one-person office that has served the Illinois Valley community since January 1982. The lone employee is set to retire by the end of the year. Beginning December 26th, Cave Junction customers may go 30 miles away to the Grants Pass DMV office located at 162 NE Beacon Drive, Suite 127, for in-person services. All DMV offices across the state will be closed on Christmas Day. Hours at the Grants Pass DMV are Mondays and Tuesdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursdays and Fridays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.. DMV's decision to close the Cave Junction office and refer customers to Grants Pass was made by balancing multiple factors including an expiring office lease, building and technology constraints, and a desire to provide consistent customer service to the region. DMV officials said Cave Junction customers should consider conducting their business online at "DMV2U.Oregon.gov."

 

Actor Patrick Duffy's longtime Southern Oregon residence along the Rogue River, currently for sale at $10,995,000, is heading to the auction block, with no minimum starting bid. Potential buyers can make any offer to Sotheby's Concierge Auctions from December 7th-14th for the 329-acre Duffy Ranch. Although there is no pre-set reserve or minimum bid for the ranch at 436 Staley Road outside of Eagle Point, starting bids are expected to be between $3 million and $5 million, said Charlie Engel of Concierge Auctions, which specializes in marketing luxury real estate worldwide. The auction house is partnering with Duffy's listing broker, Alan DeVries of Cascade Hasson Sotheby's International Realty.
The Oregonian reports a webcast at ConciergeAuctions.com of the live auction at Sotheby's Auction House in New York is scheduled for December 14th. Duffy has the right to cancel the auction on Dec. 6, before bidding opens based on the size and strength of the field of bidders we have put together up to that date.

 

Investigators were looking into the cause of a weekend fire that damaged a home near a city park in southeast Grants Pass. On Saturday at 11:32 p.m., Grants Pass Fire & Rescue, Grants Pass Police, Rural Metro Fire Department and American Medical Response were dispatched to the reported structure fire on SE Lela Lane near Portola Park. Emergency units arrived on scene to find a large two-story home with a working fire on the second floor and smoke showing. A line was pulled and a transitional attack with the exterior spraying of water was performed until additional resources arrived to assist. Engines arrived and assisted in extinguishing the flames, a search of the home, ventilation and salvage operations. All Grants Pass engines from the Parkway, Hillcrest and Redwood stations were committed to the scene for approximately two hours, during which time Rural Metro engines covered the city and an "All Call" for off-duty personnel was made. The cause of the fire was under investigation. Grants Pass fire officials would like to remind the community about maintaining working smoke alarms and having an escape plan from your house.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office apprehended a local fugitive following a weekend traffic stop on Redwood Highway near the Applegate River. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies pulled over a Kia sedan driven by 48-year-old Jessica Kelley on US Highway 199 at Riverbanks Road around 9:45 p.m. Friday. Deputies said they stopped Kelley for a traffic violation and discovered that she was wanted on a Jackson County warrant for Driving Under the Influence of Cannabis, Reckless Driving and Resisting Arrest. Jessica Kelley was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant.

 

One person was injured when they crashed their vehicle over an embankment in the Fort Vannoy area over the weekend. Rural Metro Fire Department, American Medical Response and the Josephine County Sheriff's Office were dispatched to the single-vehicle rollover wreck in the 3300-block of Lower River Road on Saturday at 9:42 p.m.. Rural Metro officials said arriving units found a vehicle that had overturned and landed approximately 20 feet over an embankment. They said one person was transported to the hospital with what appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries. The Sheriff's Office was investigating the cause of the crash. A short time later, another rollover crash was reported to the 9-1-1 Dispatch Center near the intersection of Redwood Highway and Neill Road. Dispatchers said a caller thought they heard a crash and stated that they saw flames and smoke. Additional units from Rural Metro and AMR rushed to the scene and did not find a crash. Emergency crews found an open burn instead. It was unclear if any citations were issued for burning after dark.

 

With an abundance of rain in the forecast this week, a lot of projects involving prescribed burning are currently underway in southwest Oregon. The Oregon Department of Forestry reports smoke and flames may be visible as this work continues and all prescribed fires are under control. According to ODF, prescribed fire is done when weather conditions don’t support rapid fire growth, typically from late fall through early spring. Different than residential debris burns, this large scale or industrial work helps to reduce fuels during a safer time of year. It requires the landowner in charge of the burn to control, mop up and patrol any prescribed fire used as a tool. If a fire escapes, the responsible party can face paying up to $300,000 in fire suppression costs.

 

The Medford Police Department has arrested a Grants Pass teenager for attempted murder and other crimes following an investigation into a weekend shooting at a local restaurant that critically injured another person. On Friday at 11:25 p.m., an MPD officer was on routine patrol near the parking lot of Buffalo Wild Wings on Delta Waters Road when multiple gunshots were heard coming from the front of the restaurant. According to MPD, the officer found a victim lying on the ground next to the front door and immediately began providing medical aid. Several individuals were seen running to a vehicle and then fleeing toward Highway 62. A description of the suspect vehicle was broadcast to other officers who located and stopped it on Crater Lake Highway near Bullock Road. The vehicle occupants, including the suspected shooter -- 18-year-old Joseph Larry Lopez of Grants Pass -- were detained and interviewed. Joseph Lopez was placed into custody and lodged at the Jackson County Jail for felony charges of Attempted Murder, Unlawful Use of a Weapon and 1st-Degree Assault. He was being held without bail. Police believe that a confrontation between two groups of people precipitated the shooting. As of Saturday, the unidentified victim was in critical condition and undergoing surgery. A Sunday night update stated the victim remains in very serious condition.

 

The Medford Police Department is investigating a double-homicide that occurred early yesterday at a local apartment complex. On Sunday at about 5:40 a.m., MPD officers responded to a reported disturbance with shots fired at the Charles Point apartment complex on Highgate Street in south Medford. Upon arrival, officers located two individuals with gunshot wounds in the parking lot near an apartment. Both subjects were transported to a local hospital where one of them was pronounced deceased and the other succumbed to their injuries later in the day. According to MPD, names or any other specifics of the victims will not be released at this time. Officials confirmed the case is not related to the shooting incident that occurred late Friday night at Buffalo Wild Wings. Medford police detectives and detectives from assisting agencies continue to work the case to determine the circumstances surrounding the disturbance that led to the deaths of the victims. Officials said there is no further information at this time and additional details will be released as they become available.

 

A weekend fight at a south Grants Pass bar resulted in the arrests of a man and his wife. The Grants Pass Police Department reports officers were alerted to a disturbance at the 238 Bar on Williams Highway on Friday around 10:20 p.m.. Police said they responded to reports of a large physical altercation at the bar and they were advised that subjects were starting to disperse after the fight spilled out of the bar and into the parking lot. An investigation determined that 37-year-old Dustin Quentin Simas was involved in a confrontation with another group inside the bar. He claimed he was hit when he came out of the restroom and witnesses said he was wildly swinging at anyone he could find in the business. Meanwhile, his wife -- 37-year-old Rebecca Christine Simas -- started engaging in threatening behavior toward another woman and started yelling at individuals in the bar. The victim advised Simas struck her with a closed fist and another patron had video of the woman grabbing his phone while he was recording. Dustin Simas and Rebecca Simas were placed into custody. He was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Disorderly Conduct while she was jailed for Physical Harassment and Disorderly Conduct. Both were being held without bail.