Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a Kesterson Park camper for violating her post-prison supervision agreement by relieving herself at a nearby church yesterday. The Police Department reports officers responded to a trespassing complaint at New Song Christian Fellowship in the 100-block of NE Evelyn Avenue at about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. Police said the property owner provided surveillance video that showed the 38-year-old woman stepping onto the church grounds and urinating in a fountain. The suspect then returned to her campsite at the nearby city park. Officers contacted the woman, warned her for Criminal Trespass and charged her with 3rd-Degree Criminal Mischief. The suspect was lodged in jail for the vandalism incident plus the resulting Felony Parole Violation stemming from a previous criminal conviction. Jail records show the woman has been arrested six times for Parole Violation since last August. She was being held on a no-bail detainer.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a local felony warrant at a southwest city residence last night. According to the Police Department, officers arrested the 38-year-old man at a home in the 900-block of SW L Street on Wednesday at 8:09 p.m.. Police said they were notified that the man was wanted on a Grants Pass felony warrant for Probation Violation related to an arrest for Domestic Menacing. An investigation led to the suspect's whereabouts and his subsequent arrest. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant and he was being held on a no-bail detainer.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for attempting to steal merchandise from Fred Meyer yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a shoplifting complaint at the store on the Grants Pass Parkway on Wednesday around 2:45 p.m.. Police said the suspect selected more than $217 worth of items from Fred Meyer, passed all points of sale and tried to leave the store before he was confronted by loss prevention. The man dropped the stolen items and fled the scene on foot. Officers searched the area and located the 44-year-old suspect hiding behind Parkway Christian Center on the other side of the Parkway. He was placed into custody. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 2nd-Degree Theft. He was also trespassed from Fred Meyer.

 

The Jackson County Sheriff's Office is investigating a suspicious death after skeletal remains were discovered last weekend in the southern Applegate Valley. Detectives and medical examiners responded to the location outside Jacksonville to investigate on Sunday. Jackson County Public Information Officer Aaron Lewis said the rugged terrain and remote area required the Search & Rescue team to assist in recovering the remains. He said due to the ongoing investigation, the exact location will not be released at this time. Investigators are working to identify the subject as well as the cause and manner of death. Due to the advanced stages of decomposition, state medical examiners will conduct additional testing. The cause is under further investigation with detectives following additional leads. No further information is available at this time.

 

Two people were hospitalized early yesterday for injuries sustained in a southwest Grants Pass structure fire. Grants Pass Fire & Rescue, Rural Metro Fire Department, American Medical Response and the Grants Pass Police Department were dispatched to a house fire in the 1400-block of Shady Lane off Redwood Avenue. Grants Pass fire officials said arriving units found the single-story home heavily involved with flames. They said firefighters were able to bring the blaze under control by 6 a.m. and the extensive overhaul effort continued until about 11 a.m.. Two occupants were able to exit the structure prior to the arrival of firefighters and they were transported by ambulance to Three Rivers Medical Center for treatment of unspecified injuries. Officials said the cause of the fire was under investigation.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a Grants Pass man on an outstanding warrant this week while he was fishing along the Rogue River. OSP reports Fish & Game troopers contacted the 29-year-old angler near the intersection of Robertson Bridge Road and Azalea Drive on Tuesday morning. Troopers said they observed the man fishing and he admitted that he did not have a fishing license. The subject was run through a routine records check and it was discovered that he was wanted on a local warrant regarding an unspecified crime. The suspect was cited to appear in court and then released.

 

Firefighters from Rural Metro and Jackson County Fire District #1 took to the calm water at the Grants Pass Family YMCA last weekend to refresh the skills they might need in much different water this summer. Joining the training session were 10 lifeguards from the Y. Under the guidance of two of Rural Metro's fire professionals, an internationally known rescue instructor and a retired US Coast Guard rescue swimmer, tasks included flipping an overturned raft, contact rescues of a panicked and combative victim, and the extraction of an unconscious or injured victim using a backboard. Warmer weather is coming soon and so will the urge to swim in deceptively cold and swift water -- especially in the Rogue River. Every year, tragedy strikes those who are not prepared, sometimes with fatal consequences. As an "all-hazard" service provider, Rural Metro's mission is to be as prepared as possible for when the call for help is made.

 

The Boys & Girls Clubs of the Rogue Valley held a celebratory "Switch-On" event last week as its new solar power installation on the Illinois Valley clubhouse in Kerby is complete. Board members, community members and special guests joined representatives from Pacific Power, which helped fund the installation through a Blue Sky award. The event featured a mock switch-on celebration as the panels already had been generating electricity since last December. As part of their ongoing support in STEAM education and career-based learning in after-school programs, Pacific Power representatives assisted club members in a hands-on STEAM project focused on renewable energy. STEAM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math.

 

The Grants Pass City Council last night moved an ordinance slated for action to an upcoming executive session. The ordinance pertains to the Regulation of Humanitarian Service Events on Publicly Owned Property. It would create a registration process to use city parks while prohibiting individuals, nonprofits or charitable organizations of engaging in the dissemination of drug paraphernalia and combustible materials. The City Council then approved the annexation of two parcels at 3322 Leonard Road into the city limits. The vote was 5-1 for the annexation. Planned future development of the parcels includes the creation of 54 separate lots for single dwelling residential units. Since the approval of the ordinance was not unanimous, it will appear before the panel at their next regular meeting. The five-year Annual Action Plan-required public hearing to obtain Community Development Block Grants from the federal government was held. The plan will be submitted to the Department of Housing and Urban Development this summer. Councilors approved designating two Dawn Redwood trees as Heritage Trees, with one located at 1995 NW Vine Street and one at Riverside Park. Councilors also approved the naming of the baseball stadium at Agnew-Lytle Field in Reinhart Volunteer Park as Chapman-Reese Stadium.