AP-OR–2nd Right Now/1218
MISSING KAYAKER
Search underway for missing kayaker along Oregon Coast
WALDPORT, Ore. (AP) — Authorities are searching a 50-square-mile area between Haceta Head and Waldport on the Oregon Coast for a missing kayaker.
The U.S. Coast Guard said in a news release that officials received a report around noon Thursday of a kayak washed ashore on the Alsea Bay Inlet.
Officials say they linked the registration number on the kayak to experienced kayaker Michael Carosella.
Carosella’s wife told authorities her 69-year-old husband left at 7 a.m. and was expected to return home at noon.
Multiple agencies are searching for the man.
Authorities encourage mariners and beachgoers to keep an eye out for a wooden kayak paddle and anything that can assist response efforts. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Sector North Bend command center at 541-756-9220.
POLICE SHOOTINGS-PROTEST PORTLAND
Man with gun at Portland rally indicted
(Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man arrested for displaying a loaded gun during a Portland rally to protest the deaths of two black men fatally shot in Minnesota and Louisiana has been indicted by a grand jury.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports the jury on Thursday returned a 21-count indictment against Michael Strickland.
The indictment charges the 36-year-old Portland resident with 10 counts of unlawful use of a weapon, 10 counts of menacing and one count of disorderly conduct.
He’s scheduled to be arraigned Friday morning.
Strickland was released from jail July 19 after posting 10 percent of his $250,000 bail. He was among 18 people who testified before the grand jury.
Strickland previously said he showed the weapon because he was being surrounded by “anarchists.”
Strickland’s attorney Chris Trotter has said in court that Strickland was a journalist with a concealed weapons license.
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SEAPORT AIRLINES-FINE
SeaPort Airlines fined for operating uninspected planes
(Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland-based SeaPort Airlines is facing federal fines for operating three planes without having them inspected.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports that the Federal Aviation Administration proposed the $50,000 penalty because it claims the airline flew planes that weren’t cleared to fly. The inspections are intended to prevent failures that could cause an engine to lose power.
President Tim Sieber says the employee responsible for the incident has been terminated and that changes have been made to the entire maintenance division. He says the mishap is not representative of the company today.
SeaPort, which primarily operates out of its Portland and Memphis hubs, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February.
Sieber says the fine would have no impact on the company’s plan to emerge from bankruptcy later this year.
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ALBANY HOMELESS-TUNNELS
Homeless campers build elaborate tunnel system in Albany
(Information from: KATU-TV, http://www.katu.com/)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Officials in Albany are moving forward with plans to restore an area along the Willamette River, where homeless people have found shelter by constructing an elaborate tunnel system.
KATU-TV reports that work on the homeless camps, which police discovered months ago, will start Friday.
Police say the campers have built caves and tunnels large enough to stand in. The space also included floorboards, window coverings and a bathroom that dumped into the river.
The tunnels were built under old oak trees, which the city parks department will remove.
Police Lt. Alan Lynn says repairing the site will cost about $2,000.
Police say the District Attorney’s Office is reviewing the case.
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EUGENE CHILD ABUSE
Eugene woman arrested in child abuse case
(Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com)
EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — A Eugene woman has been arrested on child abuse charges related to an incident in which she’s accused of severely injuring a child.
The Register-Guard reports the 31-year-old woman is charged with assault, criminal mistreatment and coercion.
An indictment filed Tuesday in Lane County Circuit Court says she abused a boy younger than 6 on at least four occasions between September and November last year. The document says the boy suffered serious injury to parts of his lower body.
Court records say the alleged victim is not the woman’s biological child.
Records also show the woman’s ex-husband filed for immediate temporary custody of their two children, saying they were in danger of potential abuse.
The woman filed a petition against the claim, saying she has never hurt her children.
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ANIMAL NEGLECT-CATS
Authorities find 18 cats dead, rescue 10 at Lake Oswego home
LAKE OSWEGO, Ore. (AP) — Authorities say a rescue team with a search warrant cleared a path through trash and other waste to seize 10 cats from the home of a Lake Oswego resident under investigation for animal neglect.
The Oregon Humane Society said in a news release that investigators on Wednesday also removed the bodies of 18 dead cats from the property south of Portland.
Officials say many of the seized cats were emaciated, dehydrated and infested with fleas.
The cats will remain in the protective custody of the humane society in Portland pending the resolution of the case.
Officials went to the home after a citizen who suspected neglect at the home alerted authorities.
Under Oregon law, it is a crime to fail to provide food, water, shelter and veterinary care to pets.
MARIJUANA CASE DROPPED
Feds agree to dismiss minor pot case against Oregon teen
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Federal prosecutors have agreed to dismiss a small-time marijuana case against an Oregon teenager following an outcry that got the attention of the state’s congressional delegation.
In a court filing Thursday, an attorney for 19-year-old Devondre Thomas said the government has agreed to dismiss the charge as long as he works or attends school and doesn’t break any laws for the next two months.
Thomas was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession in April after prosecutors said he bought a gram for $20 from another student at the Chemawa Indian School in Salem.
The case — with its potential for a yearlong jail term — outraged many people in Oregon, which has voted to legalize marijuana for adults.
U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer and Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley sent a letter to Oregon U.S. Attorney Billy Williams expressing concern about the office’s drug prosecution priorities.
TAX MEASURE
Gov. Brown endorses corporate tax measure
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Gov. Kate Brown has endorsed labor unions’ ballot proposal this fall for the largest tax increase on big business in Oregon history.
Initiative Petition 28, which will appear as Measure 97 on the November ballot, would raise an estimated $3 billion in additional annual state revenue from the largest 1,000 companies doing business in Oregon.
Brown endorsed the proposal Thursday after facing pressure in recent months to take a position. The governor said the fact that Oregon has some of the lowest corporate tax rates in the nation is unfair to the working families who rely on public services.
The Legislature could spend the proposal’s additional revenue however it pleases, although it earmarks the money to education, health care and senior services. Brown said she’ll “make sure” the spending will be spent as voters expect.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press.
