Train in wreck
BUCKS, DAWGS
KICK OFF DISTRICTS going 106 mph
TRACK&FIELD/1B
67/48
NATION/7A
TH8RS'AY, 0AY 14, 2015
139th Year, No. 150
WINNER OF THE 2013 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
One dollar
Criticism
mounts
against
sheriff’s
RI¿FH
FINDING A
WAY OUT
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Stephanie Miller went through Umatilla County Drug Court program eight years ago while battling with an addiction to
methamphetamines and other substances. Now she works as a court coordinator for that same drug court.
Drug Court helps defendants recover from addiction
EDITOR’S NOTE: In honor of
National Drug Court Month, the East
Oregonian is featuring the Umatilla
County Drug Court with two stories. The
¿ rst follows three Grug Fourt graGuates.
$ later reSort will Getail this weeN’s
graGuation anG Neynote sSeaNer *orGie
%ufton, whose Grug aGGiFtion lanGeG him
in a SsyFhiatriF warG.
By KATHY ANEY
East Oregonian
Tired of seeing the same parade of drug
addicts over and over, a group of Florida
judges created the nation’s ¿ rst drug court
in 1989. Defendants, instead of going into
lockup for their crimes, got treatment,
counseling and tough love.
The idea spread. Umatilla County’s
drug court, which started in 2006, is one
of almost 500 in the country. Data suggests
drug courts reduce criminal activity and
save tax payers money, but the biggest gain
may in terms of restored lives.
0eet Stephanie 0iller, Amy 0adrigal
and Craig Rodriquez — three drug court
participants who got clean.
Stephanie 0iller
One night 11 years ago, Stephanie
0iller perched on the %edford %ridge
looking at the Umatilla River below her.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Amy Madrigal looks for a Minecraft toy in a heating vent with her grandson,
Paul Madrigal, on Tuesday at her home in Pendleton.
“I remember sitting on the rail and
wondering whether it would kill me if I
jumped,” she said.
The 24-year-old drug addict wanted
to die, but had no gun. Suicide, she said,
seemed the only way to escape her depen-
dence on methamphetamines and other
substances.
Today, the mother of three has a master’s
degree, a job, a new husband and a sunny
outlook on life. She credits Umatilla
County Drug Court for the transformation.
0iller had started using drugs at parties
as a teenager, but stopped using when
See DRUG/8A
Hermiston Chief of Police Jason Edmiston
waded into uncharted waters Wednesday
night — open criticism of another police
agency.
His target was the Umatilla County Sher-
iff’s Of¿ ce, and the bone of contention was
his efforts to get a straight answer from the
sheriff’s of¿ ce about how it calculates the cost
to provide 9-1-1 and dispatch duties.
The issue of dispatch charges came up at
the city’s budget meeting. About 30 people —
city councilors, budget committee members,
city staff and a few onlookers — were
present at Hermiston City Hall. Councilman
John Kirwan asked Edmiston why the city
was paying about $9,000 more for dispatch
services than last year, when it merged its
dispatch and emergency call center with the
sheriff’s of¿ ce communications center in
Pendleton. The sheriff’s of¿ ce now handles
all 9-1-1 calls in the county along with
dispatch services for about 30 agencies.
“Are they gonna smack us with a $9,000-
$10,000 increase each year?” Kirwan asked.
Edmiston said he did not know, but he
prepared a statement on the matter.
“I’m a little nervous, but I’m a little ¿ red
up on this,” he told the crowd.
Edmiston said he sent emails Feb. 17 and
0arch 16 to the sheriff’s of¿ ce to make formal
requests of “the total expected operating cost
for the dispatch center and the annual contri-
bution from all entities paying for services
police and ¿ re including the 9-1-1 monies.”
Edmiston said he did not get a response.
Emails Feb. 27 and 0arch 10 asking for
updates about the requests also went unan-
swered. He eventually got an estimated bill
for dispatch services, but no explanation as to
how the county arrived at that amount.
“I am not unhappy with the dispatchers,”
Edmiston stated. “%ut I am extremely
unhappy with no acknowledgment of the four
emails I have sent requesting information.”
Those emails are public records, and the
East Oregonian asked Edmiston and the sher-
iff’s of¿ ce to hand them over. Edmiston did.
The sheriff’s of¿ ce is considering the request.
In an April 21 email to county undersheriff
Jim Little¿ eld, Edmiston mentioned the lack
See DISPATCH/8A
HERMISTON
City puts focus on code enforcement
By JADE MCDOWELL
East Oregonian
Hermiston’s free recy-
cling event in April marked
an increased focus on code
enforcement for the city.
Stepping up those efforts
was one of the top goals
for the city council in 2015.
Parks and Recreation director
Larry Fetter said that will
start with education.
“A lot of people just don’t
know what the law is,” he
said.
Currently the city only has
one part-time code enforce-
ment of¿ cer, 0ike 0arcum.
He dealt with 1,221 viola-
tions in 2014. The biggest
complaint he addressed
was parking issues, but top
priorities included weeds,
junk, abandoned vehicles,
yard sale signs and trees and
shrubbery complaints.
Fetter told the city council
0onday that with such
limited resources it made
sense to get other departments
on board instead of leaving
code enforcement to the
police department. Citizen
complaints could still come
through the police, he said,
but it might make more sense
for public works to address a
tree blocking a stop sign or
for the parks department to
pitch in on weed abatement.
“These code enforcement
issues relate to so many
departments ... it’s not just a
police activity,” he said.
The city held a free
recycling event on April 25,
where more than 60 tons of
materials were hauled away
for recycling and reuse. That
included 25 tons of tires and
1,275 gallons of paint that
will be taken to a factory for
See CODE/8A
Snowy blues
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Fresh snow caps the foothills of the Blue Mountains east of Pendleton on
Wednesday after a cold front brought rain and mountain snow to the region.
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