Local News

Southern Oregon Regional Economic Development, Inc. (SOREDI), is pleased to announce that Pacific Wall Systems has been expanded to its new headquarters based in Phoenix and will hold a celebratory ribbon-cutting on Monday. All are invited to attend the celebration beginning at 10 a.m., Refreshments and tours are planned. Established in 2007, Pacific Wall Systems is a family-owned entity led by President and CEO Konny Knecht. Its first location was in Medford within an indoor facility that it quickly outgrew before moving to a new location in Central Point. For numerous years, they wanted to expand which meant finding a larger permanent home for the business. Director of Marketing Nancy Mansfield said when the building that formerly housed Boise Cascade in Phoenix became available to lease, they jumped on it. The company now has over 80 employees and serves Oregon, Washington and California. The company expansion was particularly welcome to the City of Phoenix, which continues to rebound from the wildfire disaster of 2020. SOREDI was introduced to this expansion project in October 2021 after a referral from the City of Ashland, noting the company was considering developing a new facility there and needed assistance.

 

Rogue Community College recently announced that Dan Ruby has been selected as the new executive director of the RCC Foundation. His appointment is effective on December 1st.With a background in higher education and a strong commitment to community engagement, RCC officials said Ruby brings a wealth of experience to his new position. RCC President Randy Weber said Ruby is going to be a great addition to the Foundation and college leadership team. He said they're confident his existing relationships in the Rogue Valley will serve them well as they grow their efforts in helping students realize their educational goals. Ruby's career began at the University of Nevada-Reno where he worked as an instructor and eventually became the director of the Fleischmann Planetarium and Science Center in the College of Extended Studies. He was also the director of K-12 Engagement and Public Outreach for theCollege of Education. With a master's degree in secondary education and a focus on connecting high school students to careers and technical education through hands-on experience, Ruby is dedicated to education. He continues to participate in space science research and is actively involved in the community including serving on the board of the Ashland School District. In 2018, Ruby moved to Ashland to lead ScienceWorks Hands-On Museum. In 2020, he transitioned to helping with fire recovery efforts and integrated health, housing and human services as the Senior Director for Rogue Community Health.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman this week for causing a disturbance at a downtown bar. The Police Department reports officers responded to a trespassing complaint involving 43-year-old Diana Marie Reynolds at River City Grill on SE K Street late Thursday night. Police said they contacted Reynolds and she displayed signs and symptoms of being under the influence of a narcotic stimulant. They said she was yelling racially insensitive comments toward bar patrons at the top of her lungs and refused to leave the business when asked to so by an employee. A records check showed that Reynolds had previously been trespassed from the bar on October 18th. She reportedly displayed aggressive behavior toward officers and pulled away from them before they placed her into custody.

 

A Grants Pass Police Department investigation has led to the arrest of a woman on a felony assault charge. According to the Police Department, officers arrested 59-year-old Marjorie Rose Anderson in the 2200-block of Rogue River Highway on Thursday. No details about the investigation have been disclosed, but Anderson was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony 2nd-Degree Assault and she was being held without bail. Anderson has at least four arrests on her record since September 29th when deputies found her sitting in a ditch near the intersection of Upper River Road and Azalea Drive Cutoff. She walked away from deputies and was eventually arrested for Disorderly Conduct. More recently, Anderson was arrested Monday for shoving another woman to the ground in downtown Grants Pass. The incident was witnessed by several people and resulted in her arrest for Physical Harassment and Disorderly Conduct.

 

An arrest made by the Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement (MADGE) team in Klamath County this week yielded 117 pounds of the deadly narcotic fentanyl. On Wednesday evening, MADGE intercepted a vehicle on Highway 97 outside of Chiloquin after investigators received information that the vehicle was transporting large amounts of narcotics between Southern California and Washington state. With assistance from the Oregon State Police, investigators stopped the vehicle and Medford Police K-9 "Brodie" alerted to the presence of narcotics. A search of the vehicle uncovered 117 pounds of fentanyl in powder and pill form. A loaded 9-millimeter handgun was also located in the vehicle. The arrested suspect was identified as 20-year-old Jothan Paul Barrios-Chable of Portland.The MADGE team is a multi-jurisdictional narcotics task force that identifies, disrupts and dismantles local, multi-state and international drug trafficking organizations using intelligence-driven, multi-agency prosecutor support.The team is supported by the Oregon-Idaho High-Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA), which is composed of members from the Medford Police Department, Jackson County Sheriff's Office, Jackson County District Attorney's Office, Jackson County Parole & Probation, Homeland Security and the FBI.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for attacking two people with a machete near a regional addiction treatment center yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers arrested 39-year-old Frank Charles Williams for the incident outside ADAPT in the 300-block of NE Beacon Drive on Thursday at 2:40 p.m.. Police said Williams was unprovoked when he approached two people who were standing in front of the center and tried to assault them. They said the first victim blocked the strikes with his arms and believed the weapon must still have been sheathed as he sustained a very minor injury before fleeing from the suspect. The second victim was unharmed after he fled from the attack. Williams then returned to his home across the street, came out on his own when police arrived on scene and was placed into custody without incident. Frank Williams was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for two counts each of Felony Attempted 2nd-Degree Assault and Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon, plus the resulting Parole Violation stemming from a criminal mischief conviction. He was being held without bail and the machete was seized as evidence.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a felony weapons charge while performing a welfare check at Home Depot yesterday. The Police Department reports officers responded to the incident at the store on NE Mill Street around 12:20 a.m. Thursday. Police said a Home Depot employee called 9-1-1 to report two male and female subjects passed out in a Subaru Forester in the store parking lot. The caller said the vehicle had no license plates and the subjects had not moved for about 30 minutes. Responding officers contacted 39-year-old Michael Cecil Mokres and a woman identified as McKayla Harris in the Subaru. Mokres was found to be in possession of a firearm that was concealed in his waistband. Police also found a large amount of drug paraphernalia in the vehicle that was seized and destroyed. Michael Mokres was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felon in Possession of a Firearm. He was being held without bail. Mokres and Harris were also cited to appear in court for the narcotics violations. Both were trespassed from Home Depot.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a motorist for felony impaired driving last night after multiple traffic complaints that started in the city and ended on Interstate 5. According to the Police Department, officers pulled over a Nissan Crossover driven by 37-year-old Matthew Gary Beard in the northbound lanes of I-5 near milepost 56 on Thursday around 9:30 p.m.. Police said Beard had been called in as a traffic complaint because he could not maintain his travel lane and nearly struck several motorists. The reports began on the Grants Pass Parkway near SE M Street and continued on the Parkway when one motorist followed the suspect vehicle onto the freeway. OSP was notified. Beard reportedly struck a guardrail on I-5 and nearly crashed with several other cars before he was pulled over. He showed indicators of impairment due to the use of multiple narcotic substances and performed poorly in field sobriety tests. Matthew Beard was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Reckless Endangering and Driving While Suspended. His vehicle was towed to the impound yard.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a woman for causing a disturbance at a Merlin area supermarket yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies responded to a report of suspicious activity at Ray's Food Place on Merlin Road around 2:45 p.m. Thursday. Deputies said a male caller reported that 50-year-old Shannon Leann Peterson showed up at the store half-naked and advised her husband had been abusing her. They said she was contacted a short time later at the nearby Dollar General store and she was covered with dried blood from small cuts. Peterson was given a blanket to cover herself while deputies investigated and determined that her claims of spousal abuse were unfounded. American Medical Response arrived on scene to help, but she declined medical treatment. Shannon Peterson was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Disorderly Conduct.