Local News

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for harassing his mother at a home in the southwest part of the city. The Police Department reports officers responded to a domestic disturbance on SW Grant Street late Friday afternoon. Police said a woman called 9-1-1 to report her 50-year-old son was intoxicated and tearing apart her home while acting violently. The caller also advised that her son took her phone when she first attempted to call for help. He locked her out of the house, so she went to a neighbor's home to make the call. Officers arrived on scene, contacted the son and placed him into custody. He was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Interfering with Making a Police Report. Additional charges were pending further investigation.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a motorist for impaired driving during a weekend traffic stop in southeast Grants Pass. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a vehicle driven by a 22-year-old male subject near the corner of Cloverlawn and Fruitdale drives on Saturday at about 10:30 p.m.. Troopers said they stopped the vehicle for doing 66 miles per hour in a 30 mile per hour speed zone. They said the driver displayed signs of impairment, performed poorly in field sobriety tests and was taken to the Grants Pass Sobering Center where he provided a breath sample that well over twice the legal driving limit. The suspect was charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Driving. He was cited to appear in court and released, but his vehicle was impounded.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man for stealing a small amount of merchandise from Home Depot late last week. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a shoplifting complaint at the store on NE Mill Street on Friday afternoon. Police said 34-year-old Jonathon Thomas Bodouroglou concealed $20 worth of items in his clothing, passed all points of sale and failed to pay for the items. He was stopped by loss prevention and escorted to an office where he proceeded to argue with them. He was wearing a necklace with a knife hanging from it. Because of his uncooperative nature, Bodouroglou was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 3rd-Degree Theft and was being held without bail. He was also trespassed from Home Depot. His knife and backpack were seized for safekeeping.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman for stealing a large amount of merchandise from Walmart over the weekend. The Police Department reports officers were alerted to a shoplifting call at the big box retailer on NE Terry Lane on Saturday around 4:30 p.m.. Police said 46-year-old Freedom Clayburn-Walker concealed more than $333 worth of items in a bag at Walmart and proceeded to pass all points of sale without paying. She was stopped by loss prevention, cooperated with the investigation and all the stolen items were returned. Because Clayburn-Walker was cooperative in nature, she was cited to appear in court for 2nd-Degree Theft and then released. She was trespassed from Walmart.

 

Grants Pass police officers and firefighters kept their vow to protect and serve this community during a very wet week. According to the Weekly Report filed by Grants Pass City Manager Aaron Cubic, police officers responded to a total 512 calls for service along with 272 officer-initiated calls last week that resulted in 46 arrests, 33 citations, 41 warnings and five highly-intoxicated people being lodged at the Sobering Center. Cubic also reported that officers conducted a total of 61 traffic stops in the city and they made 29 referrals to the Oregon Department of Human Services. The GPPD Community Response Team (CRT) made contact with 25 potential troublemakers while arresting one person and warning six others. Grants Pass firefighters responded to a total of 108 calls last week including 48 for emergency medical service, three for reports of fire or smoke, 17 lift assists, 17 rescue situations, 10 assists to other agencies and six false alarms. Firefighters also performed 10 business inspections, led three public education/prevention programs and assisted the public 10 times. The Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center fielded a total of 1,048 emergency calls. They're hiring. Click the link for "Jobs" at "grantspassoregon.gov."

 

The Oregon State Police arrested a man for felony murder and weapon crimes over the weekend. OSP reports troopers arrested 29-year-old Keandre Demetrius Blanding Saturday morning. No information about the arrest was disclosed, but Blanding was lodged at the Josephine County Jail at 5:40 a.m. Saturday. He was charged with Felony 2nd-Degree Murder and Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon. Unconfirmed sources report the victim was a Texas man and the incident occurred on Placer Road in Sunny Valley. Blanding was being held without bail and was scheduled for arraignment in Josephine County Circuit Court at 1:30 p.m. today.

 

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for his violent weekend behavior both at a local supermarket and at the Josephine County Jail. The Police Department reports officers arrested 34-year-old Jeffrey Keith Whitspeare at WinCo Foods on NE Terry Lane on Saturday shortly after 5 p.m.. Police said a WinCo manager called 9-1-1 to report an intoxicated Whitspeare was inside the store making threats and refusing to leave. They said he was detained by loss prevention and began to resist control holds, so restraints had to be used. He tried to kick officers and made threats to kill them and rape their children. According to the report, Whitspeare was transported to the jail facility where he was placed in a restraint chair because he continued to threaten to kill police. Jeffrey Whitspeare was eventually booked into jail on charges of Resisting Arrest, Disorderly Conduct and Criminal Trespass. He was being held without bail.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a felon for his mischievous behavior at a downtown work site late last week. According to the Police Department, officers were alerted to a trespassing call at People's Bank on SE 7th Street on Friday morning. Police said they received a call from a contractor who was installing an HVAC system at the bank that a male transient kept disconnecting their power. Officers arrived on scene and contacted 44-year-old Nicholas John Knox Knowles whom they confirmed was cutting off electricity, causing inconvenience to the contractor and employees. Knowles reportedly admitted to pulling a lever multiple times and seeing sparks come out of the conduit box. Knowles was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 3rd-Degree Criminal Mischief and the resulting Felony Parole Violation. He was being held on a no-bail detainer. Jail records show Knowles has been arrested for Parole Violation seven times since last December.

 

One person was injured in a motor vehicle accident near Cave Junction late last week. The Illinois Valley Fire District and American Medical Response were dispatched to the single-vehicle crash at the intersection of Holland Loop and Hays Cutoff roads on Friday morning. IVFD officials said a vehicle veered off the road and collided with a wire fence, causing minor damage to the fence and a power pole. One occupant of the vehicle was transported by ambulance to a local medical facility while the other occupants left the scene in the still-drivable vehicle. The Josephine County Sheriff's Office was investigating the cause of the wreck.