Date: 04/13/2016 04:00 AM
AP-OR–Right Now/1762
WAMBACH PLEA
Soccer star Abby Wambach pleads guilty in DUI case
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Court records show U.S. soccer star Abby Wambach pleaded guilty to driving under the influence of intoxicants Tuesday afternoon in a county courtroom in Portland.
The Oregonian reports ( http://bit.ly/1Xu7fwg ) the plea means Wambach could see her charges dismissed within a year by enrolling in a diversion program available to first-time offenders. A Multnomah County Circuit Court judge also ordered a breathalyzer be installed in Wambach’s vehicle and that she undergo drug and alcohol treatment, the Oregonian reported.
The 35-year-old retired soccer player and two-time Olympic gold medalist was arrested April 2 after police said she ran a red light in downtown Portland and failed field sobriety tests. Her blood alcohol content was .13 percent, above Oregon’s limit of .08 percent. Wambach was later released on her recognizance and has since apologized publicly.
RANCHING STANDOFF-SHERIFF
Sheriff who met refuge occupiers plans to sue city
PENDLETON, Ore. (AP) – An Oregon sheriff under investigation for meeting with those who occupied a national wildlife refuge has filed notice that he plans to sue the city of John Day.
The East Oregonian newspaper reports that an attorney for Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer alleges that a dispatcher breached a contract by withholding information about the Jan. 26 traffic stop that led to the arrest of standoff leader Ammon Bundy and the shooting death of occupier Robert “LaVoy” Finicum. Palmer was traveling toward the roadblock, and the notice says the lack of information put his life in danger.
Palmer twice met with occupiers who traveled to visit him, generating some complaints he was supporting lawbreakers.
One complaint was filed by Valerie Luttrell, John Day’s manager of emergency communications. She said federal and state authorities viewed Palmer as a security leak, and that’s why the dispatcher was hesitant to provide information.
DOJ-HASHTAG INVESTIGATION
Report: Oregon DOJ needs training to prevent profiling
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A new report says Oregon Department of Justice employees don’t receive enough training on preventing racial profiling.
The Bend Bulletin reports that Portland attorney Carolyn Walker released a report Monday after a four-month independent investigation of the department’s surveillance of Black Lives Matter supporters last fall.
She looked into an incident in which a Criminal Justice Division employee created a report on a fellow DOJ employee who expressed support for the racial equality movement on his public Twitter page.
Walker concluded that the report violated First Amendment protections. She also noted that some investigators she interviewed weren’t aware of laws and guidelines that protect free speech online and hadn’t received enough training to recognize racial bias or prevent profiling in their work.
OVARY LAWSUIT
Oregon woman sues doctor, says he removed wrong ovary
BEND, Ore. (AP) – A Bend woman is suing a doctor she says removed the wrong ovary, causing her to face menopause at age 40.
The Bulletin reports that Dr. James Carlson, an obstetrician-gynecologist, denies removing the incorrect ovary. The lawsuit is set for trial April 26.
According to the suit filed in Deschutes County in 2013, Shelly Morton went into surgery in October 2011 because of a complex cyst on her right ovary. She says she didn’t realize until she visited the emergency room three days later that Carlson actually removed the left ovary.
Morton later had the right ovary removed by a different doctor. She is asking for $100,000 in economic damages for medical expenses and $750,000 in non-economic damages.
Carlson’s attorney says he will prove in court that the doctor didn’t remove the wrong ovary.
LNG PIPELINE
Hickenlooper asks feds to reconsider Oregon LNG terminal
GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (AP) – The Colorado governor has asked the federal government to reconsider a proposal for a liquefied natural gas pipeline that would give his state access to markets on the West Coast.
The Daily Sentinel reports that Gov. John Hickenlooper has asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to take another look at the Jordan Cove and Pacific Connector Pipeline Project.
The commission turned the project down last month, saying there wasn’t enough interest from purchasers.
Veresen Inc., the company seeking the project, says it has preliminary agreements for at least half its initial capacity.
The West Slope Colorado Oil and Gas Association praised Hickenlooper’s leadership. The organization says the $7 billion LNG terminal on Coos Bay, Oregon, would allow Colorado and Oregon to ship natural gas to customers in Japan.
TIMBER HARVEST
BLM plans to boost timber harvest in western Oregon
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – The U.S. Bureau of Land Management released its long-awaited plan for managing roughly 2.5 million acres of federal forestland in western Oregon, and the counties that rely on timber for revenue wasted no time criticizing it.
The BLM has spent years revising the 1995 Northwest Forest Plan, trying to strike a balance between the interests of the timber industry and environmentalists.
The proposal released Tuesday calls for 75 percent of the land to be protected in reserves for fish, water and wildlife. The agency estimates it provides for 278 million board feet of timber per year, up from the current 205 million.
Counties that get a chunk of the revenue from timber sales contend that’s not nearly enough and announced plans to sue.
RESERVOIR OPERATIONS
Wilder weather means tricky times for reservoir operators
BOISE, Idaho (AP) – Some reservoir operators in the Northwest say wilder swings in weather patterns in the last decade are making it trickier to fill reservoirs for irrigation and power generation while also avoiding the risk of flooding homes downstream.
Upper Columbia Senior Water Manager Joel Fenolio with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says they’re struggling with recent weather patterns, but statistical data from past years is still reliable for making predictions.
On the eastern side of the Continental Divide, the agency’s Missouri River Basin Water Management Division Chief Jody Farhat says nine of the basin’s 10 highest runoff years have occurred since 1970.
That includes an unusual combination of weather events in 2011 that led to widespread flooding.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is working on a study trying to better understand runoff variability.
OREGON EMPLOYMENT
Oregon jobless rate tumbles to 4.5 percent
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Oregon’s unemployment rate fell to 4.5 percent in March, the lowest mark since comparable records began in 1976.
State Employment Department statistics show 1.94 million Oregonians were employed in March. That’s up from 1.84 million at this time last year, when the jobless rate was 5.7 percent.
The tightening of the labor market has led to rising wages. The average pay rate for private sector payroll employees hit $24.45 per hour last month, an increase of nearly 5 percent from a year ago.
TRAIL CLOSED
Logging operation will close Tumble Creek Trail
SALEM, Ore. (AP) – A popular hiking trail will be closed this spring and summer because of a logging operation in the Willamette National Forest.
Tumble Creek Trail in Detroit will be closed for several months starting Tuesday. Hikers, however, can still access Tumble Lake and Dome Rock from a more remote trailhead on French Creek Road 2223.
Forest spokeswoman Jude McHugh tells the Statesman Journal the closure is necessary because the logging will be close to the trail and hikers could get hit by a tree.
The logging operation stems from the 2014 Power Thin timber sale. The 316-acre sale was for 7.4 million board-feet and was purchased by Lyons-based Freres Lumber Co. Most of the logging will involve helicopters to remove the timber.
WINSTON-SEX ABUSE
Court papers detail Winston sex abuse allegations
(Information in the following story is from: The News-Review, http://www.nrtoday.com)
ROSEBURG, Ore. (AP) – Court documents say a woman accused of sexually abusing a 15-year-old Winston girl told police the incident happened while the girl’s mother was in the shower.
The Roseburg News-Review reports the 31-year-old woman had been staying with the girl’s family on April 4. According to a police affidavit, the woman told detectives she cuddled and kissed the girl, and asked if she wanted to do more.
The woman told police the 15-year-old said yes.
But the teen told detectives the woman climbed on top of her, inappropriately touched her for about 20 minutes and placed a hand over her mouth to prevent her from calling for help.
Later that night, the girl’s mother told the woman’s husband about the incident.
The woman checked herself into a hospital on a mental hold, and was arrested after the police interview.
EUGENE CITY HALL
Proposed City Hall in Eugene is $6 million over budget
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) – The estimated price of a new Eugene City Hall has climbed to nearly $25 million – more than $6 million over the authorized budget.
The Register-Guard reports that city councilors will decide next week whether to go ahead with the four-story building. Construction is expected to start this fall.
The higher price has been chalked up to rising construction costs, a seismic upgrade and the addition of individual offices for councilors.
The newspaper reports that some councilors appear to be taking the new estimate in stride, but Councilor Greg Evans said the project may need to be scaled back and George Brown characterized it as “out of control.”
TIMBERS-NAGBE
Nagbe has sprained ankle from de Jong, return uncertain
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Timbers midfielder Darlington Nagbe has a sprained left ankle and won’t play in Portland’s game against Dallas Wednesday night, becoming the latest player to miss time because of a Nigel de Jong challenge.
Coach Caleb Porter confirmed Nagbe’s injury following practice on Tuesday. Nagbe also is likely to miss Saturday’s game against New York City.
Nagbe, who made his U.S. national team debut in November, was taken from the field on a stretcher following de Jong’s hit in the game against the Los Angeles Galaxy. Nagbe left StubHub Center in a wheelchair.
De Jong broke the legs of American midfielder Stuart Holden and Newcastle’ winger Hatem Ben Arfa in 2010, the same year the Dutchman kicked Spain’s Xavi Alonso in the chest during the World Cup final.
Referee Allen Chapman gave de Jong a yellow card Sunday. Major League Soccer’s disciplinary committee could issue a suspension.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.