Date: 06/02/2016 06:20 AM
AP-OR–2nd Right Now/1286
FOSTER CARE-SHUTDOWNS
Oregon shuts down 4 Medford-area adult foster homes
(Information from: Mail Tribune, http://www.mailtribune.com/)
MEDFORD, Ore. (AP) – Officials in Oregon have shut down four adult foster care homes, including one that accepted extra Medicaid funds but didn’t hire the necessary caregivers.
Oregon Department of Human Services Director Ashley Carson-Cottingham told The Mail Tribune that it is rare for adult foster homes to be shut down immediately. She says there have been 12 homes shut down statewide this year, including four in Jackson County.
Carson-Cottingham says the agency normally works with providers to help them achieve compliance. According to license suspension notices sent to the Jackson facilities, DHS shuts down homes that pose a risk to clients, don’t operate according to regulations or show evidence of abuse, neglect or exploitation of residents.
The Mail Tribune was unable to reach patients or caregivers for comment.
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POLICE SHOOTING-BEND
Authorities identify man killed by police at Bend museum
BEND, Ore. (AP) – Authorities have identified the man who was fatally shot in a Bend museum Wednesday.
Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel says 36-year-old Nicholas Berger was shot after Berger allegedly held a knife to a woman’s throat and threatened to kill her inside the High Desert Museum.
Hummel says Berger grabbed a 38-year-old woman working in the museum gift shop. A struggle followed as the woman fought Berger while being forced through various exhibit halls. Approximately 30 other museum-goers were in the vicinity of the incident, some of whom Hummel says tried to help the employee.
Police say she was able to get away from Berger before police encountered him. An Oregon State Police trooper used a Taser and then fire three shots at Berger. It’s unclear exactly what occurred before the shooting.
Berger died at the scene. A major crimes team is investigating.
BOATS COLLIDE
3 hurt when boats collide on Oregon lake
(Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com)
DEXTER LAKE, Ore. (AP) – Three women were injured when a motor boat collided with a crew boat on Dexter Lake.
The Register-Guard newspaper reports that two women went to Pleasant Hill Urgent Care and the other went to a Springfield hospital. The injuries ranged from an arm abrasion to whiplash.
Crew member Margot McDonald says the eight-person team was practicing when the collision occurred Tuesday evening.
According to McDonald, the driver of the motor boat appeared to be looking toward Dexter Park and didn’t see the crew boat until right before impact.
The motor boat was not damaged in the crash. The boater followed the rowers to the dock and helped the team lift its boat from the water.
The Lane County Sheriff’s Office says it doesn’t appear that anyone was impaired by alcohol or drugs.
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CARBON CAP-WASHINGTON
Washington state aims to limit carbon pollution
SEATTLE (AP) – Washington state’s largest industrial polluters would be required to reduce carbon emissions gradually over time under a proposed rule.
The measure released Wednesday is a key piece in Gov. Jay Inslee’s efforts to tackle climate change and reflects other efforts in California and the Northeast.
After failing to win passage of a plan to charge a fee for emissions, Inslee directed the state Department of Ecology to limit greenhouse gas emissions under its existing authority.
Under the rule, large emitters would be required to reduce carbon emissions by an average of 1.7 percent annually.
The rule would initially apply to about two dozen oil refineries, power plants and others that release at least 100,000 metric tons of carbon a year. More facilities would likely be covered by the rule as the threshold is lowered over time.
It’s the state’s second attempt at an emissions rule.
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This story has been updated to correct that emitters would have to reduce carbon emissions by an average of 1.7 percent annually, not every three years.
KLAMATH SHERIFF
Ex-detective files $685K suit against Klamath County
(Information from: Herald and News, http://www.heraldandnews.com)
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. (AP) – A former Klamath County Sheriff’s Office detective has filed a lawsuit against the county, alleging she faced retaliation after discussing the actions of Sheriff Frank Skrah with state investigators.
The sheriff was charged with nine misdemeanors after an investigation into whether he mistreated suspects. He has denied wrongdoing and remains on the job.
The detective, Geneva Lewis, says Skrah eliminated her job following her interview with state investigators.
The Herald and News reports that at least seven deputies have complained of retaliation, but Lewis is the first to file a lawsuit. She seeks $685,000 and reinstatement to her detective position.
Lewis’ husband, Steve Lewis, is running for sheriff. He says his candidacy and his wife’s allegations are unrelated.
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TEMPLE STABBING
No bail for Oregon man accused of Buddhist temple stabbing
(Information from: Statesman Journal, http://www.statesmanjournal.com)
SALEM, Ore. (AP) – A man who authorities say tried to kill a woman at a Buddhist temple near Salem will remain in jail.
The Statesman Journal reports that Marion County Judge Janet Klapstein denied bail to Jose Murillo on grounds that the 23-year-old man is a danger to the public.
Murillo was provided a court-appointed attorney at Tuesday’s hearing. He has yet to enter a plea to the charges of attempted murder and assault.
Police investigators say Murillo and the woman broke into the Buddhist Temple of Oregon and smoked methamphetamine. They say Murillo then stabbed the victim more than 10 times with a pocket knife and forced a ring down her throat.
Monks reported the break-in Saturday and discovered the victim hiding in bushes.
The woman was sent to OHSU Hospital for surgery to repair a wrist and a severed finger.
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WIND POWER-SAGE GROUSE
Sage grouse concerns nix Oregon energy project
(Information from: The Bulletin, http://www.bendbulletin.com)
BEND, Ore. (AP) – A federal appeals court has nixed a large wind energy project in southeast Oregon.
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last week that an environmental review by the Bureau of Land Management failed to adequately assess the population of greater sage grouse during winter at the proposed facility in Harney County.
Brent Fenty is executive director of the Oregon Natural Desert Association, a Bend-based environmental group that brought the lawsuit. He tells The Bulletin newspaper the wind project is the “right idea in the wrong place.”
Columbia Energy Partners proposed the project for roughly 10,500 acres of private land. The project called for 40 to 69 wind turbines and a 230-kilovolt transmission line to bring the energy to the electrical grid.
Harney County Judge Steve Grasty said the decision represents a lost opportunity for the community.
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SCHOOL GRAFFITI
Officials quickly cover Nazi graffiti found at Ore. school
(Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com)
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) – Officials have quickly painted over Nazi graffiti that was discovered at a former school in Eugene.
Joshua Burstein tells The Register-Guard that he and his 8-year-old daughter were outside the former Crest Drive Elementary School on Memorial Day when they noticed swastikas and other Nazi graffiti scratched into the paint of a shelter near the baseball field.
Burstein emailed the Eugene School District superintendent’s office, the Eugene Police Department and the Lane County Sheriff’s Office.
By Tuesday, fresh white paint covered the graffiti.
Eugene police spokesman John Hankemeier says the department is investigating.
The Eugene School District closed Crest Drive Elementary in 2001 because of budget cuts. It’s unknown when the vandal placed the graffiti.
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Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
