AP-OR–2nd Right Now/1227
WOLF DELISTING
Wolf delisting lawsuit against Oregon reinstated
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Court of Appeals has decided to reconsider a lawsuit against the state that was dismissed in April over its decision last year to remove the gray wolf from the endangered species list.
The decision Tuesday means environmentalists will have another chance to argue for a judicial review of the delisting decision, which they say was premature. They may also challenge the validity of House Bill 4040, the controversial new law that prompted the court to toss the case.
The bill was among the most controversial issues this year at the Legislature. It was crafted to block the lawsuit by upholding the delisting decision into state law and therefore render moot the request for judicial review, which environmentalists say could be unconstitutional.
State officials did not immediately respond for comment.
PATROL VEHICLE THEFT
Police: Woman steals, crashes patrol car
NORTH BEND, Ore. (AP) — Authorities say they’ve arrested a woman who stole a patrol car and led officers on a chase before crashing it into multiple vehicles on the Oregon coast near Reedsport.
The Coos County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that a deputy responded to a home Tuesday morning to check on a 33-year-old woman who called 911 and asked for a gun, saying people wanted to hurt her.
The sheriff’s office says the woman was OK but found a man in the home who had a warrant for failing to appear in court.
Authorities say the deputy was about to put the man in the patrol car when the woman jumped into the driver’s seat and drove off. Douglas County deputies then located and began chasing the vehicle. It crashed soon after, striking at least four other vehicles, authorities said.
Multiple agencies are investigating.
PORT OF COOS BAY-FEDERAL GRANT
Port of Coos Bay receives $11 million grant for rail repairs
(Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com)
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded the Port of Coos Bay $11 million to repair nine aging tunnels along its rail line from Eugene to Coquille.
The Register-Guard reports that U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio said Tuesday the federal grant is being provided through the department’s Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects program.
The Port of Coos Bay’s grant application was among 18 selected out of more than 200 applicants nationwide to receive the program’s funding.
The port’s nine tunnels along the 134-mile rail line are all around 100 years old. DeFazio’s office says age and weather conditions have caused deterioration and drainage issues in the tunnels and along the rail line, known as the Coos Bay Rail Link.
The port should receive the award money within 60 days.
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OREGONIAN REPORTER-HARASSMENT
State sides with Oregonian reporter in harassment case
(Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The state Department of Justice has determined that an Oregonian/OregonLive reporter did not harass a woman by contacting her for a story about a recall effort against a Grant County official.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that Julie Carr had been the chief petitioner in the effort to get Grant County Commissioner Boyd Britton removed from office. Reporter Les Zaitz had made attempts to the woman by phone and email.
Carr accused Zaitz of harassing her, saying he had contacted her after she asked him to stop.
Senior Assistant Attorney General Daniel Wendel said in a memo to District Attorney Jim Carpenter that there was no evidence to support a harassment charge against Zaitz. Wendel said Zaitz had contacted Carr “in support of a journalistic endeavor.”
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DOWNED AIRCRAFT SEARCH
Coast Guard halts search for 3 aboard downed aircraft
BROOKINGS, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. Coast Guard says it has suspended its search for three people after more than 12 hours of looking for survivors from a downed aircraft in southern Oregon.
The agency says in a news release issued late Tuesday that pilot John Belnap, his son Max, 17, and a friend Ryan Merker, 17, remain missing after the reported crash of a Cessna 172F near Brookings. No hometowns were given.
A report Tuesday morning said that a backpack believed to belong to someone on the plane was found washed ashore near the Brookings airport.
Coast Guard searches by helicopter, plane and boat failed to find the aircraft, which had been flying from Brookings to Grants Pass. The Curry County Sheriff’s Office and the Civil Air Patrol also participated.
Officials say family members reported the plane missing. No other information was released.
GUBERNATORIAL DEBATE
Brown agrees to first gubernatorial debate
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Kate Brown has agreed to face her Republican opponent, Bud Pierce, in a public debate on Sept. 24.
The gubernatorial debate in Bend, Oregon, was announced Tuesday by the Society of Professional Journalists’ Oregon chapter, which is hosting the event. The hour-long discussion will focus entirely on issues facing Oregon’s rural communities.
It marks the first debate that Brown has agreed to so far ahead of the November election. She’s been facing public scrutiny in recent weeks for declining another debate slated for July 22, which Pierce has agreed to appear solo.
Brown and Pierce are vying to finish the last half of former Gov. John Kitzhaber’s four-year term that he vacated in February 2015 amid influence-peddling allegations involving his fiancé.
LOGAN KITZHABER-CRASH
Son of ex-Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber injured in car crash
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — The 18-year-old son of former Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber has been critically injured in a car crash at the Oregon Coast.
State Police Lt. Bill Fugate says Logan Kitzhaber of Portland was driving a Toyota Prius that sideswiped a motorhome after crossing the centerline on Highway 101 near Lincoln City.
Fugate says Kitzhaber was flown to OHSU Hospital in Portland after the Fourth of July crash. A hospital spokeswoman said Tuesday the teenager was not listed in the patient directory.
The motorhome was driven by a 67-year-old man from Port Angeles, Washington. He and a passenger were taken to a coastal hospital for injuries that are not life-threatening.
Fugate says the investigation isn’t over, and detectives want to hear from anyone who witnessed the Prius before the collision.
LOG SPIKING
Group claims to have sabotaged Oregon lumber mill’s logs
(Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com)
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — A lumber mill west of Eugene has been on high alert since learning that an environmental group may have put metal spikes inside some of its logs.
The Register-Guard reports that some environmentalists turned to such tactics during logging debates in the 1990s. They’d pound the spikes into live trees, making them potentially dangerous for loggers to cut down.
A group called SAP claimed on an Earth First! website that it placed spikes in logs at the Swanson Brothers mill on June 11.
Swanson Brothers president Larry Konnie says the mill operated as usual for two days before learning about SAP’s claim. He says no one has found any spikes.
The editor of Earth First! Newswire says the people behind the website don’t know who is involved with SAP.
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Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
