Local News

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a sex offender this week for not complying with his registration requirements. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 44-year-old Joseph Michael Correia at the corner of Merlin Avenue and Pleasant Valley Road late Monday night. Deputies said they spotted Correia while patrolling the Merlin area. They said a routine records check revealed that he was wanted for Felony Failure to Report as a Sex Offender. According to the Sheriff's Log, Correia has a history of assaultive behavior and he is a risk to escape. However, he was placed into custody without incident. Correia was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail without bail.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office arrested a motorist for leading deputies on a pursuit early yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies eventually caught up to 44-year-old Robin Joseph McCafferty in an unspecified location on Tuesday just after midnight. He was booked into the Josephine County Jail at 12:58 a.m. yesterday. No details were available about the incident. As is often the case, there was no entry in the Sheriff's Log and the information came from jail bookings. McCafferty was charged with Felony Attempt to Elude Police and Reckless Driving. He was being held without bail after being arraigned in Circuit Court on Tuesday afternoon.

 

An investigation into a hit-and-run crash that occurred last week in west Grants Pass resulted in the arrest of the alleged offender last weekend. Grants Pass Police were alerted to the incident that occurred in the 900-block of SW Laurel Street last Thursday afternoon. Police said a motorist later identified as "Kevin Haugen" crashed his white Ford Explorer into a vehicle parked in front of the victim's residence. The suspect left the scene without stopping and did not attempt to contact the victim. According to GPPD, the incident was caught on video from a surveillance camera which led them to the suspect's home in the 1900-block of Rogue River Highway on Sunday afternoon. Haugen admitted to hitting the parked vehicle and driving away. He was cited to appear in court for Hit-and-Run Causing Property Damage and No Insurance.

 

Grants Pass Police cited a motorist last weekend after she crashed into two parked vehicles in a northwest city neighborhood. According to the Police Department, officers and emergency crews responded to the three-vehicle collision in the 1,000-block of NW Washington Boulevard late Sunday afternoon. Police said an investigation determined that 33-year-old Tarren Thomas was driving a Lincoln SUV north on Washington Boulevard when she wrecked into a Honda CRV and a Ford Focus parked along the curb. They said they contacted Thomas at the scene and there were no signs of impairment. Thomas was subsequently cited to appear in court for Failure to Maintain Lane and No Insurance. Her SUV sustained moderate damage and it was towed away. Crash reports were supplied to all the involved parties.

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners will hold its weekly business session this afternoon instead of this morning. The Board gave no reason for the later time on its agenda and several calls to the Commissioners' Office yesterday went unanswered. Under Administrative Actions, the Board is scheduled to consider a collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Two weeks ago, it was denied by the Board. In other business, the Commissioners will consider an order setting a public hearing for fees charged by the Recreation Department, an order terminating a memorandum of agreement that authorizes Josephine County to provide on-site sewage services on behalf of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and approval of a final plat map for Fruitdale Cottages.Today's public meeting begins at 2 p.m. in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium.

 

US Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley of Oregon announced that they and two Idaho senators along with 17 other Senate colleagues have reintroduced bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Program (SRS). SRS is administered for counties hosting both US Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management forested lands. If passed, the bill would be extended through Fiscal Year 2026. Wyden, Merkley and Republican Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch introduced the legislation in the 118th Congress and the Senate unanimously passed it in November 2024. However, it did not receive a vote in the US House of Representatives before the end of the congressional session. The senators say the program needs to be reauthorized as soon as possible to avoid a gap in funding for rural counties that rely on the program for needed services. Congress first enacted SRS in 2000 to financially assist counties with public, tax-exempt forestlands. The US Forest Service and BLM administer the funds. SRS payments are critical to maintain education programs for many rural counties that contain federal lands exempt from property taxes. More than two-thirds of the land in Josephine County is federally-managed.

 

The roof of North Medford High School's gymnasium collapsed Tuesday morning under the weight of snow following a strong winter storm last week. The Oregonian reports no one was injured in the collapse, a spokesperson for the Medford School District said. School officials had noticed a crack in a roof-supporting beam on Friday and closed the gym and the surrounding area to students as a precaution, according to the district. "The structure has performed well for 60 years, and the crack developed under the extreme weight of approximately 700,000 pounds of snow -- a significant load," the district said in an email to parents on Tuesday morning. The school's approximately 1,700 students were sent home early following the incident. Footage provided by the school district shows the roof's gym starting to sink at 10:46 a.m. yesterday. It quickly collapsed moments later, sending dust and some materials into the air. The incident occurred just months after the district completed summer renovations on the gym to make the building earthquake-proof. The district said it is consulting with engineers and developing a plan to repair the gym.

 

The Pacific Power Foundation knows local organizations who provide music, theater, community festivals and connections to local history are vital to their communities. The local organizations create beauty, unite people across cultures, generate jobs and foster the creativity needed to tackle complex problems. To support this crucial work, the Pacific Power Foundation is donating more than $175,000 in new grant funding to community-serving organizations in Oregon, Washington and northern California. A total of 64 grants were awarded to local organizations in the most recent round, which is focused on art and culture. Local recipients included the Illinois Valley Family Coalition in Cave Junction and the Rogue Valley Art Association in Medford. The Pacificorp Foundation -- doing business as Pacific Power in Oregon, Washington and northern California -- is one of the largest utility-endowed foundations in the United States.

 

The Josephine County Board of Commissioners will hold its weekly business session tomorrow afternoon instead of tomorrow morning. The Board gave no reason for the later time on its agenda and several calls to the Commissioners' Office today went unanswered. Under Administrative Actions, the Board is scheduled to consider a collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Two weeks ago, it was denied by the Board. In other business, the Commissioners will consider an order setting a public hearing for fees charged by the Recreation Department, an order terminating a memorandum of agreement that authorizes Josephine County to provide on-site sewage services on behalf of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and approval of a final plat map for Fruitdale Cottages. As always, there will be Requests and Comments from Citizens in which residents are given three minutes to address the Board on virtually any topic pertaining to Josephine County. Wednesday's public meeting begins at 2 p.m. in the Anne G. Basker Auditorium.