Local News

Grants Pass Police arrested a man on a local warrant after finding him hiding inside a vehicle at a north city watering hole last weekend. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a disturbance at or near the Quality Inn on NE 6th Street on Sunday around 10:40 p.m.. Police said a woman called 9-1-1 to report that 42-year-old Amos Joe Nance had threatened her. She identified him as her boyfriend and said the confrontation was verbal. She advised he left the scene and went across the street to the Purple Parrot. Responding officers searched the area and found Nance hiding inside a friend's vehicle in the Purple Parrot parking lot. They decided no crime was committed, but encouraged the woman to seek a restraining order against her boyfriend. Meanwhile, a records check revealed that Nance was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for 1st-Degree Theft. He was placed into custody and lodged in jail on $40,000 bail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a woman on a local warrant while performing a welfare check in Cave Junction yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies were alerted to a female subject sleeping in the backseat of a vehicle parked in the 400-block of Fir Drive on Monday around 3:35 p.m.. Deputies said the caller reported the woman had been inside the car all day and they were unsure if she was sleeping or had overdosed on drugs. The caller told dispatchers the car was parked at a well-known drug house. Upon arrival, deputies contacted 35-year-old Jessica Lee Pitts and discovered that she was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for Probation Violation related to an arrest for 1st-Degree Theft. They said she was cooperative while being arrested. Pitts was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant. She was being held on $25,000 bail.

 

The Illinois Valley Fire District had a busy weekend responding to outdoor fires. On Saturday, IVFD crews extinguished an abandoned campfire on Tarter Gulch Road near Cave Junction and an escaped debris burn on Deer Creek Road near Selma. On Sunday at 3:13 p.m., IVFD was dispatched to a grass fire in the 4,000-block of Holland Loop Road. Firefighters discovered an uncontrolled open debris burn had spread to nearby grass and they quickly contained it and mopped it up. No injuries were reported and the size of the fire was not disclosed.

 

A Cave Junction man was killed when he crashed his motorcycle off Redwood Highway near O'Brien late last week. The Oregon State Police reports troopers and emergency personnel responded to the single-vehicle wreck near milepost 35 of US Highway 199 on Friday shortly after 9 a.m.. Troopers said the preliminary investigation indicated a southbound Harley Davidson motorcycle operated by 37-year-old William Robert Murphy of Cave Junction crossed over the northbound lane, entered a pullout area and left the improved portion of the highway. They said he traveled into a ditch and struck a tree. According to OSP, Murphy was declared deceased at the scene. The highway was impacted for about one hour during on the on-scene investigation. OSP was assisted by the Illinois Valley Fire District and Oregon Department of Transportation.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a Grants Pass man for allegedly attacking his family members near Tom Pearce Park last weekend. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 27-year-old Christian Anthony Bartell for the incident in the 2900-block of Pearce Park Road at 8:10 p.m. Sunday. Deputies said a woman called 9-1-1 to report her brother was attacking her and also hitting their mother. Details were sketchy in the report which mentioned that Bartell had a shovel and sustained a laceration on his left hand. The sister advised no ambulance was needed, but her brother also caused a great deal of damage. Upon arrival, deputies interviewed the involved parties and then placed Bartell into custody. They also contacted his corrections officer as he is a convicted felon. Bartell was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony 1st-Degree Criminal Mischief and the resulting Felony Parole Violation. He was being held on a no-bail detainer. Jail records indicate that Bartell has been arrested for violating his post-prison supervision five times since last October.

 

Grants Pass Police apprehended a man wanted on a statewide felony warrant during a weekend patrol check in the downtown area early yesterday. The Police Department reports officers arrested 46-year-old Joseph Aaron Mendivil at the 7-Eleven store on SW 6th Street on Monday at 2:48 a.m.. Police said they were on patrol when they observed Mendivil and a woman standing in the turn lane at the intersection of 6th and M streets. Based on their behavior, officers considered their presence suspicious and made contact with both subjects. They said Mendivil was recognized from prior law enforcement contacts. Mendivil was wanted on an Oregon State warrant for Parole Violation stemming from a previous assault conviction. He was also found to be in possession of a white crystal substance that field tested positive as methamphetamine. Mendivil was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the no-bail warrant. A voicemail was left for his corrections officer to follow up with his client.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a motorist for impaired driving after a weekend traffic stop on Williams Highway near Provolt. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Subaru Crosstrek driven by a 43-year-old Medford man near milepost 13 of Highway 238 on Sunday at 4:46 p.m.. Troopers said they stopped the driver for a traffic violation and he showed signs of impairment. They said the driver refused to perform field sobriety tests and asked for representation from an attorney. He was arrested and transported to Three Rivers Medical Center for a legal blood draw after a search warrant was obtained. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants, Reckless Driving and Reckless Endangering because there was a 46-year-old Medford woman in his vehicle. The vehicle and passenger were turned over to a sober driver.

 

Authorities are investigating a fire that destroyed the old US Postal Service office in Merlin early yesterday. Rural Metro Fire Department, Grants Pass Fire & Rescue and American Medical Response were dispatched to the structure fire in the 300-block of Merlin Road on Monday at 7:54 a.m.. Rural Metro officials said firefighters got a quick knockdown on the blaze, but the building sustained heavy damage. There were no injuries reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Oregon State Fire Marshal and Josephine County Sheriff's Office. Additional assistance was received from the Applegate Valley Fire District.

 

The Portland Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has announced it will be honoring Rogue River Police Chief Dave Rash at their upcoming annual FBI Community Leadership Awards Ceremony. The annual awards ceremony is a time when the FBI honors community partners for their exemplary service and recognizes them for their continuing partnership with the federal law enforcement agency. Chief Rash has dedicated over 30 years of service in law enforcement to protecting communities in Oregon. He served communities in Milwaukee, Hubbard and now Rogue River where he serves as the Chief of Police. Chief Rash is a past president of the Oregon Chapter of the FBI National Academy Association, but his service to the chapter did not end when his time on the board was over. He remains a trusted and valuable partner who is known for his acts of service, historical knowledge and willingness to step up when needed most. He continues to volunteer by organizing regional gatherings across the state and consistently recognizes promotions or retirements of chapter members.