OFFICER-DUI ARREST
Portland officer arrested on suspicion of DUI in Washington
(Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A longtime Portland police officer was arrested on suspicion of DUI after a deputy saw him driving the wrong way on Highway 99 in southwestern Washington.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reports Rodney Gustafson was off-duty when he was arrested early Saturday in the Hazel Dell area.
Sgt. Chuck Christensen of the Clark County Sheriff’s Office says a deputy stopped Gustafson after seeing him driving north in the highway’s southbound lanes.
Christensen says two sobriety tests returned blood alcohol content readings of .135 and .137 percent, respectively. The legal limit for driving is .08 percent.
Gustafson was cited and taken home while his vehicle was towed.
Portland Police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson says Gustafson has been assigned to the bureau’s telephone report unit, which is standard practice, until the case is resolved.
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RANCHING STANDOFF TRIAL-NEVADA-THE LATEST
The Latest: Jury ends day of deliberations in standoff trial
LAS VEGAS (AP) — A jury has ended a second full day of deliberations with no verdict in the federal trial of six men who brought assault-style weapons to a standoff that stopped government agents from rounding up cattle near Cliven Bundy’s ranch in April 2014.
A court official said Tuesday the U.S. District Court jury will return to work Wednesday.
The jury deliberated about three hours Thursday before returning for a full day Monday.
Trial took two months, and each defendant faces 10 charges including threatening and assaulting a federal officer, extortion, obstruction, weapon violations and conspiracy.
The standoff near Bunkerville ended when the federal Bureau of Land Management gave up the roundup.
That was seen as a victory by states’ rights advocates in an ongoing battle over federal control of vast rangelands in the West.
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OREGON UNEMPLOYMENT
Oregon jobless rate drops below 4 percent
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s unemployment rate has plunged to less than 4 percent.
The state Employment Department said Tuesday the March jobless rate was 3.8 percent, the lowest mark since comparable records began in 1976. The unemployment rate at this time last year was 4.9 percent.
The agency says government, manufacturing and professional and business services enjoyed strong job growth last month. Construction has been the fastest-growing sector over the past year, adding more than 8,000 jobs.
Another unemployment measure, known as U-6, fell to 8.6 percent in March — down from 9.1 percent in February and 10.4 percent a year ago. The figure includes discouraged workers who stopped looking as well as part-time workers who want but can’t get full-time jobs.
EASTERN OREGON-DEER DECIMATED
Winter deer losses prompt major cuts to Oregon hunting tags
(Information from: Baker City Herald, http://www.bakercityherald.com/)
BAKER, Ore. (AP) — State wildlife officials are cutting in half the number of deer tags allowed for this fall’s hunting season in Baker County following the winter deaths of hundreds of deer.
The Baker City Herald reported Monday that the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will only sell 1,450 deer tags this fall. The 50-percent tag reduction applies to all four of the county’s hunting units.
The department’s decision marks the county’s most severe reduction in deer tags in more than 20 years.
The agency is also cutting the number of buck tags in neighboring counties. Malheur County will see a 40-percent reduction in deer tags in some units, while the number of tags in some Union County units will be cut by 35 percent.
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WOMAN’S BODY FOUND
Woman found dead from apparent gunshot in Oregon woods
CORVALLIS, Ore. (AP) — Authorities are investigating the death of a woman whose body was found in an Oregon forest.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Office says the unidentified body is that of a woman in her 20s, and it was discovered Monday night by someone from a timber company outside the town of Alsea.
Benton County Sheriff Scott Jackson told the Corvallis Gazette-Times the death appears to be from a gunshot wound, but an autopsy will be performed. Investigators have yet to estimate how long the body had been in the woods before it was discovered.
FATAL PARK SHOOTING-PORTLAND
Police say attempted belt theft led to Portland shooting
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Authorities say one of two teenagers arrested after a fatal shooting in a Portland park told a homicide detective they had wanted to steal the victim’s belt.
An affidavit filed by a Multnomah County prosecutor says a 17-year-old boy charged with robbery told Detective Erik Kammerer that stealing the belt was the reason they approached Shawn Scott Jr., a 17-year-old who died last week of a single gunshot wound to the head. Scott was from Vancouver, Washington.
Kammerer said surveillance video taken from a nearby business showed a gun being pointed at the belt before the shooting.
Police arrested 18-year-old Kole Jones of Gresham last week on charges of murder and robbery. A preliminary court hearing is scheduled for next Tuesday.
BRIDGE SUICIDE SUIT
Family sues over Astoria Bridge suicide
(Information from: The Daily Astorian, http://www.dailyastorian.com)
ASTORIA, Ore. (AP) — The family of a woman who jumped off the Astoria Bridge seeks nearly $1 million in a lawsuit filed against Clatsop County’s mental health contractor.
The lawsuit alleges Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare was negligent in not providing an adequate treatment and recovery plan for Carrie Barnhart as her mental health deteriorated.
The suit also names the county, Columbia Memorial Hospital and an emergency room doctor who treated Barnhart before her April 2015 suicide.
Amy Baker, the executive director of Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare, told The Daily Astorian she can’t comment on litigation but her heart grieves for anyone who loses a relative to suicide.
The newspaper reports Astoria police responded to the woman’s threats of suicide four times in early 2015.
Police pulled her off the bridge one night in April 2015 and brought her to Columbia Memorial, where she was evaluated and then released after a few hours.
Barnhart died the following week. She was 54.
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TRUMP PROTEST-MOLOTOV COCKTAIL
Oregon man sentenced for throwing Molotov cocktail at crowd
(Information from: The Oregonian/OregonLive, http://www.oregonlive.com)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to three years of probation and anger management for throwing a Molotov cocktail at a crowd of Trump protesters in Portland.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reported Tuesday that 27-year-old Christopher Joseph Gourneau threw the flaming device toward a crowd of 30 to 40 people in November.
A witness says the device sailed 5 feet above Gourneau’s head before landing on the ground without injuring anybody.
Another witness had told police that Gourneau had been acting irrationally and hid the device under his shirt.
Police reports show officers were not in the area but did see a small group of people chasing him.
Gourneau pleaded guilty as part of a plea deal to attempted second-degree assault and unlawful possession of a destructive device.
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Copyright 2017 The Associated Press.
