Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for stealing merchandise from WinCo Foods this week. The Police Department reports officers responded to a shoplifting complaint at the store on NE Terry Lane on Wednesday afternoon. Police said 47-year-old Ashley Nichole Delongpre deprived WinCo of more than $238 worth of makeup and food items by intentionally concealing them underneath other groceries she paid for. She was detained by loss prevention officers. According to the report, Delongpre admitted to knowing right from wrong and that what she did was wrong. She was arrested and stolen items were returned Delongpre was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Theft.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for stealing merchandise from an eastside supermarket late last night. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a shoplifting call at WinCo Foods on NE Terry Lane on Thursday shortly before midnight. Police said 30-year-old Robert Malcolm Lovett-Shields attempted to leave the store without paying for more than $86 in goods. They said he passed all points of sale before being stopped by WinCo loss prevention. Lovett-Shields had been trespassed from WinCo in December of last year. Lovett-Shields was placed into custody and lodged at the nearby jail for 2nd-Degree Theft and 2nd-Degree Criminal Trespass. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police had their hands full during patrols of homeless resting sites near City Hall on Thursday. Officers arrested 47-year-old Britta Marie Nielsen at the NW 5th Street resting site at 2:30 p.m. yesterday. Nielsen was observed there after being trespassed recently. She was lodged in jail for Criminal Trespass and her exclusion was extended. About two hours later, officers cited Amber Rockwell for Utilization of Park Space at the NW 5th Street site. Her tent measured 11-feet-by-11-feet and she had more property outside the tent. She was given until Monday to dismantle the large tent. Laurie Momney was issued her second citation for Utilization of Space and she was trespassed from the site for 30 days. At the 6th and A Street resting site, Clint Palomino, Joseph Wilder, Mary Tognoni and David Rodriguez were all issued citations for Utilization of Park Space. All their tents were found to be well over the 8-foot-by-8-foot space limitation. All four were advised that a second citation would result in them being trespassed.

 

US Senator Ron Wyden has announced he will hold town halls this weekend in Coos, Curry and Jackson counties. The Coos and Curry county town halls will include US Representative Val Hoyle. The Jackson County Town Hall is scheduled for Sunday at 4 p.m. at the Medford Armory, located at 1701 South Pacific Highway. The Coos County Town Hall is slated for Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at the North Bend Middle School Gym and the Curry County Town Hall is set for Saturday at 6 p.m. at the Driftwood Elementary School Gym. Although these were the largest venues available for these town halls on these dates, space may still be limited. Doors will open for attendees one hour before the town hall start times. Heading into these open-to-all town halls, Wyden has held a total of 1,117 town halls in keeping his promise to hold at least one town hall every year in each of Oregon's 36 counties.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a dirt bike rider who attempted to elude deputies in the Merlin area this week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies eventually caught up to and arrested 26-year-old Cole Raymond in the 11,200-block of Lower River Road on Wednesday night. Deputies said the incident began when they spotted two men riding dirt bikes on a public roadway and they refused to stop. One of the riders took off on Azalea Drive while the other continued down Galice Road. They followed one bike down Azalea to Robertson Bridge Road where it turned right and made several U-turns, stopping long enough to "flip-off" law enforcement. According to the report, Raymond went into a residential yard during the pursuit and then continued on until the final stop on Lower River Road. Raymond was placed into custody, transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Attempt to Elude Police and Reckless Driving. His Kawasaki dirt bike was impounded and towed away.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for allegedly attacking her husband at their northwest city residence this week. The Police Department reports officers responded to a domestic disturbance at a home in the 100-block of NW Sinclair Drive late Wednesday night. Police said a man called 9-1-1 to report that his 28-year-old wife punched him twice during an argument over family issues. The man said this had happened before, but he never reported it. There were three children in the home at the time of the incident, but the man said he didn't believe they witnessed any violence. Upon arrival, officers contacted Emillie Rose Thompson and she told them she had been drinking when the fight started. She claimed her husband was screaming at her and she pushed him away. After officers observed redness and swelling on the man, she was placed into custody. Thompson was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 4th-Degree Domestic Assault.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a Coos Bay man for two crimes this week after an investigation into a road rage incident on Interstate 5 in the North Valley area. According to OSP, state troopers were flagged down by a 60-year-old Oak Harbor, Washington, man who reported that the driver of a Ford F-150 pickup pointed a firearm at him while they were heading south on I-5 near milepost 63 on Wednesday afternoon. Troopers tracked down the Ford and placed the driver -- 57-year-old Jason Regis Hill -- into custody. Hill was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Unlawful Possession of a Firearm and Menacing. His vehicle was impounded and a cat in the pickup was taken to the Animal Shelter.

 

An investigation by the Oregon State Fire Marshal has determined the cause of a barn fire just south of Grants Pass this week was linked to an electrical failure. Rural Metro Fire Department reports evidence at the scene suggests that rodents chewed through wiring in the barn located on Williams Highway near Allenwood Drive. The fire initially threatened nearby homes before it was fully-contained. Rural Metro officials said fire agencies strive to release the cause of fires when it is known and reasonable to do so. When fires are listed as "under investigation," it's typically due to an ongoing effort that could take days, weeks, months or even years. The investigation can involve laborious digging through rubble, collection of evidence, lab-testing of the evidence, interviews and sometimes waiting on credible witnesses to come forward. Officials said the release of information is often controlled by the sensitive nature of an investigation in order to maintain confidential integrity of a case that may lead to convictions or cost-recovery collections. Information release also considers if there is a public need-to-know due to public safety concerns, which is rare. However, in cases where there is a lack of evidence or complete destruction of evidence from the fire, a cause may remain "unknown" or "undetermined."

 

An open burn west of Sunny Valley got out of control this week when flames moved beyond reach of a garden hose. On Wednesday afternoon. Rural Metro Fire Department and the Wolf Creek Rural Fire Protection District responded to the reported fire in the 5600-block of Lower Grave Creek Road. Rural Metro officials said crews converged on the fire and quickly contained it to just under 1/10th of an acre. The Oregon Department of Forestry announced on Thursday that the 2025 fire season in Josephine and Jackson counties will begin on June 1st. Anyone opting to continue using fire as a tool to reduce combustible hazards around their property is urged to follow all basic requirements for safe burning. Construct a vegetation-free ring down to the dirt around any burn piles. Have a reliable water source on site. Have a shovel or other tools on site. Carry a charged cell phone to call 9-1-1 quickly in case of spread. Stay in attendance with the burn. Fully extinguish remaining ash with water and then check for heat using bare hands to prevent the chance of rekindling and escape.