AP-OR–3rd NewsMinute,277
Here is the latest Oregon news from The Associated Press
ST. HELENS, Ore. (AP) – An Oregon judge says the man accused of
gunning down Rainier Police Chief Ralph Painter a year ago can aid
in his own defense and has been “gaming the system.” Columbia
County Circuit Court Judge Ted Grove’s ruling yesterday means the
criminal case against 22-year-old Daniel Butts of Kalama, Wash.,
can proceed. Butts is accused of shooting Painter with Painter’s
own gun after the chief responded to a report of a suspicious
person at a Rainier car stereo shop on Jan. 5, 2011.
ONTARIO, Ore. (AP) – An inmate serving time for robbing a
Portland check-cashing store and severely beating a clerk has been
found unresponsive in his cell at the Snake River Correctional
Institution in Ontario. A prison spokeswoman says Michael Hagen was
found yesterday and sent to a hospital. His condition was not
revealed.
SALEM, Ore. (AP) – Oregon Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian says
he’ll seek another term. Avakian (uh-VAHK-ee-un) is a Democrat who
lives in Beaverton. He’ll face Republican Bruce Starr, a state
senator from Hillsboro. Avakian was named labor commissioner in
2008 and was elected statewide later that year to a full four-year
term. He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for the
U.S. House seat vacated by David Wu, who resigned in a sex scandal.
CANNON BEACH, Ore. (AP) – People who share bits of their
sandwiches with the gulls along the Oregon coast would be rule
breakers under ideas the state Department of Parks and Recreation
is considering. New rules would prohibit feeding wildlife to
protect animals from food that’s bad for them or makes them
dependent and from hazards such as getting hit in parking lots.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
AP-NY-02-03-12 1030EST
