Local News

The Oregon State Police apprehended a Wolf Creek man who was wanted on multiple local warrants yesterday during a traffic stop just north of Grants Pass. OSP reports troopers pulled over a Chrysler Cirrus driven by a 74-year-old male subject near the intersection of Highland Avenue and Merlin Road on Thursday at 11:25 a.m.. Troopers said they stopped the car because the registered owner had multiple arrest warrants and was flagged as being felony suspended. Upon contact, they learned that he was wanted on four local warrants for three counts of Felony Driving While Suspended and one count of Felony Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants. The suspect was placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County on the warrants plus an additional count of Felony Driving While Suspended. He was being held without bail and his vehicle was impounded.

 

The Oregon State Police arrested an Azalea woman on an outstanding warrant during a traffic stop on Interstate 5 in the North Valley area early today. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Subaru Legacy driven by a 45-year-old man in the northbound lanes of I-5 near milepost 65 at 12:24 this morning. Troopers said they stopped the vehicle for a traffic violation and learned that the driver had a suspended license and no insurance. They contacted the 28-year-old female passenger and discovered that she was wanted on a local bench warrant for failing to appear in court for 2nd-Degree Theft. The passenger was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrant while the driver was cited for the moving violations. His vehicle was impounded.

 

Firefighters from multiple agencies in Southern Oregon and Northern California extinguished a small blaze just north of the state border late yesterday. The Oregon Department of Forestry said crews responded Thursday afternoon to a report of smoke in a remote area southwest of Colestin near the Oregon-California border. ODF, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest and the Siskiyou Unit of Cal-Fire sent resources to the incident. Firefighters engaged in an aggressive initial attack and were successful in holding the blaze to just 1/10th of an acre. In a 5:15 p.m. update, ODF said crews had 90% of the fire lined and 40% mopped up. Additional resources arrived and continued mopping up last night. The cause of the fire was under investigation.

 

After a year-long investigation, the Jackson County Sheriff's Office busted a burglary ring targeting licensed marijuana businesses in Jackson and Josephine counties. The Sheriff's Office reports the suspects committed 16 known burglaries at local marijuana farms and storage facilities from April 2023 to June 2024. The suspects accumulated 65 total criminal charges during their crime spree. Deputies, detectives and the Illegal Marijuana Enforcement Team (IMET) served two simultaneous search warrants on August 13th at locations in Central Point -- the 1,000-block of Glengrove Avenue and in the 500-block of Mazama Street. Search warrants were also served at two storage units in the 1400-block of 2nd Avenue in Gold Hill. The Oregon State Police assisted with the search warrants which resulted in the arrests of three suspects and the seizure of burglary evidence, eight firearms and 520 pounds of marijuana. The suspects are 35-year-old Mitchell Jeffrey King of Central Point, 31-year-old Dylan Buck McNerney of Central Point and 48-year-old Kenneth Alan Parker, II, of Gold Hill. The 65 charges included 32 for King, 23 for Parker and 10 for McNerney. Parker was also charged with Felon in Possession of a Firearm. The case is under further investigation with detectives following additional leads. It has been referred to the Jackson County District Attorney's Office for prosecution. Additional charges from the Josephine County burglaries will likely be added at later time.

 

Grants Pass Police apprehended an out-of-state fugitive during a drug investigation on the southeast side of the city this week. The Police Department reports officers and emergency crews responded to a possible drug overdose in the 2500-block of Overland Drive on Wednesday night. Police said they contacted a 32-year-old male subject at the scene who refused medical attention. They said he was under the influence of narcotics, so they took him to the Grants Pass Sobering Center where he provided them with false names. According to the report, the subject became unresponsive and he was transported by ambulance to Three Rivers Medical Center for evaluation. Further investigation revealed that the man was wanted on an Apache County, Arizona, felony warrant for Aggravated Assault Causing Serious Physical Injury, 3rd-Degree Assault with a Deadly Weapon and 3rd-Degree Assault. The warrant was confirmed by the Apache County Sheriff's Office. The suspect was medically released from the hospital and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the out-of-state warrant. He was being held without bail pending extradition proceedings that will likely send him back to Arizona.

 

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office apprehended a man wanted on state and local warrants while investigating a trespassing complaint in the Merlin area this week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested a 47-year-old male subject in the 3,000-block of Merlin Road on Wednesday. Deputies said a woman who is a friend of the property owner called 9-1-1 to report seeing a man walking from the shop area while carrying a large black case on his shoulder. The caller said the man left the property and walked toward Merlin. She wasn't sure if he had stolen anything, but knew he was not supposed to be there. A short time later, the subject returned to the property and went to a trailer in the back. That's where deputies contacted him and discovered that he was wanted on an Oregon State warrant for Parole Violation stemming from a burglary conviction as well as a Josephine County warrant for 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. The suspect was placed into custody, transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the warrants. He was being held on a no-bail detainer.

 

Grants Pass Police arrested a man who was camping on railroad property on the east side of the city early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers contacted a 45-year-old male subject in a transient camp along the railroad tracks near SE Gladiola Drive on Thursday at 3:43 a.m.. The camp was destroyed by a grass fire that broke out last weekend. Police said the subject already had been trespassed from property owned by Central Oregon & Pacific Railroad earlier this year. He was placed into custody without incident. The suspect was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for 1st-Degree Criminal Trespass.

 

The Oregon State Police Fish and Wildlife Division was investigating the illegal killing of two elk in the Sunny Valley area. According to OSP, game troopers were alerted to the deceased elk in the 1700-block of Speaker Road last Friday morning. They responded immediately. Troopers said the elks' decomposition indicated their deaths were several days old. Evidence was collected and logged as the case remains open. Anyone with information in this case is encouraged to dial *OSP.

 

Two longtime members of the Josephine County Sheriff's Office were recognized by the Board of Commissioners this week for a quarter-century of service. Undersheriff Travis Snyder and Sergeant Jason Stanton were honored for 25 years of service to the community during the Commissioners weekly business session. Undersheriff Snyder started as a Reserve Deputy with the Sheriff's Office in March 1999. A few months later, he was hired as a full-time Deputy working patrol. In 2005, he became a Detective working narcotics. He was one of the few who stayed on during the 2012 layoffs, working in the adult jail and patrol. In 2014, he was promoted to Corporal and he was promoted to Lieutenant in 2016. After a year as Lieutenant, he became Sheriff's Dave Daniel's Undersheriff. Sergeant Stanton was hired at the same time as Snyder in August 1999. He survived the 2000 layoffs as a full-time Patrol Deputy. During his time as Deputy, he was a School Resource Officer and a BLM Contract Deputy for 16 years before being promoted to Corporal in 2019. He was promoted to Sergeant in 2021 and is currently the Training Coordinator for Patrol for the next generation of deputies. Sheriff Daniel thanks both Snyder and Stanton for their years of dedicated service to the Sheriff's Office and the citizens of Josephine County.