Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a motorist for crashing into another vehicle outside a south-city bar before fleeing the scene early yesterday.

The Police Department reports officers responded to the incident at the 238 Bar in the 1600-block of Williams Highway on Sunday around 1:30 a.m..

Police said an investigation revealed that 22-year-old Esai Angel Alvarez became intoxicated at the bar and was cut off. They said he snuck back in, got another beer and was kicked out. He broke a bottle in the parking lot, was confronted by staff and fled in his Lexus sport utility vehicle, but not before striking a Honda Accord belonging to a bartender. Damage was estimated to be more than $1,000.

Officers searched for Alvarez at his residence on SE 8th Street, but he was not there. He was eventually located in the 1200-block of River Lane and placed into custody.

Alvarez was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Hit-and-Run Causing Property Damage and 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. He was also trespassed from the bar.