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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2016)
No answers for neighborhood suffering on-going nuisances HEPPNER G T 50¢ azette imes VOL. 135 NO. 16 10 Pages Wednesday, April 13, 2016 Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon City offers apologies, but no solutions to junk cars, trash and disturbances Neighbors came to city council Monday to complain about a worsening problem of junk cars, accumulating trash and late night noise and activity on property at Water Street in Heppner. -Photo by David Sykes -See NEIGHBORHOOD NUISANCE/PAGE TEN Getting to know your county candidates Morrow County Judge Father sentenced in death of infant Morrow County Commissioner Position 1 Editor’s note: While the position of Morrow County Judge remains on the ballot in name, a decision by the Morrow County Jim Doherty Leann A. Rea Court last September has changed the function of the position Age: 51 Age: 75 to that of a part-time commissioner without the traditional ju- Where are you from? I Where are you from? venile judicial duties of the county judge. The position remains While I was born in Port- was born and raised on Joe a six-year term. Greg Sweek Age: 63 Where are you from? I was born at Pioneer Memo- rial Hospi- tal. Heppner has always been my home. Educa- tional back- Greg Sweek g ro u n d : I graduated from Oregon State Uni- versity with a BS in agri- culture. Family: My son, Ian, and my daughter, Talia and her family, live in Boise. Prior government ex- perience: I was Morrow County Assessor and Tax Collector for a combination of 34 years. Why are you running for judge? I decided to run for Morrow County Judge, Melissa J. (Turner) Lind- say Age: 48 Where are you from? I am proud I was born and raised in Morrow County. My children are the ifth Melissa generation Lindsay to work on the family farm at Sandhollow/Base- line, in the middle of Mor- row County. Educational back- ground: Graduate of Hep- pner High School; Associ- ate Degree in social science from Mt. Hood Community College, Gresham, OR; and Bachelor of Science Degree in business administration, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA. By Andrea Di Salvo ground. Investigation began Nearly a year after the after the child became unre- death of his 10-month-old sponsive while in the care daughter, Travis Michael of her mother, KaSandra Martin, 22, of Irri- Martin; the mother gon was sentenced took her daughter to 10 years in prison to St. Anthony Hos- for his role in her pital in Pendleton death. on May 28, 2015. Martin ap- Savannah was then peared in Morrow transported by Life County Circuit Flight to Providence Court last Friday Travis Martin Sacred Heart Medi- and pled guilty to cal Center and Chil- one count of first-degree dren’s Hospital in Spokane, manslaughter, one count WA, where she died later of third-degree assault, and that afternoon. one count of first-degree Investigators deter- criminal mistreatment, all mined the mother had no felony counts. role in the child’s death, In May of 2015, Mar- but Martin was arrested on tin reportedly threw his multiple charges of man- 10-month-old daughter, -See MARTIN CONVICTED/ PAGE SIX Savannah Martin, to the P Doherty Sheep Ranch. Our home was in Uma- tilla County; however, our range and wheat land lay as much in Morrow as in Umatilla County. My family and I for the past 18 years have re- Jim Doherty sided along the mighty Columbia on the outskirts of Boardman. Educational back- ground: I have a two-year production agriculture de- gree followed by a BA in business and history. Family: My wife of 30 years, Kelly, and my son Bryce (who owns and oper- ates O’Doherty Outitters) A 15-year-old Irrigon make up my immediate male is awaiting arraign- family. Yet cast a stone any- ment in the alleged rape of an 18-year-old female in Irrigon -See COMMISSIONER CANDIDATES/PAGE SIX last weekend, according to a press release from Morrow County Sheriff Ken Matlack. On Sunday, April 10, Morrow County Sheriff’s De- tective Brian Snyder respond- ed to a call from Good Shep- herd Hospital in Hermiston, where an 18-year-old female had reported being sexually assaulted by a 15-year-old ju- venile. The incident reportedly occurred at the 15-year-old male’s Irrigon residence, where the victim and her boy- friend said they were visiting the 15-year-old. The victim land, I grew up in Morrow County. My husband and I lived in Condon, OR for a few years (1965-1969) be- fore return- ing to Mor- row County to farm ground in the area of Finley Land Leann A. Rea Fill. E d u - cational background: I graduated Valedictorian from Ione High School. Following graduation, I married my husband of 54 years. Dur- ing that time, I attended Blue Mountain Community College, with business law and bookkeeping being my major classes. Family: My husband of 54 years passed away in September of 2013, and -See JUDGE CANDIDATES/PAGE SEVEN Juvenile arraigned on rape, sex abuse charges Heppner man creates a living legacy with trees By Andrea Di Salvo Arbor Day is April 29, but local man Gerald “Jer- ry” Smith is a little ahead of schedule with his tree plant- ing—about 20 years ahead. Locals who drive down Cannon St. in Heppner may think nothing of the stand of evergreens by the site of the previous swimming pool, but those trees represent decades of care by Smith and his family. Smith, 75, was born in southern Colorado and worked in the oil fields during his early adulthood. In 1962, his wife, Sonja, an Oregon native, persuaded him to move to Heppner, where her father worked at the local mill. Smith also took a job at the mill, and the family put down roots in Morrow County. Daughter Vicki Ray- burn says her parents al- ways loved the outdoors. “When the weather started getting nice, they were always out there working in the yard,” she recalls. And out there working in his yard was where the Gazette-Times found Smith on a sunny day in April— though he works there alone since his wife’s passing a couple of years ago. The stand of trees tow- ers over the intersection be- tween Cannon and Chase, looking slightly out of place in the midst of their more deciduous neighbors. Smith says he has four varieties in the row of trees he planted along the creek, including With his health failing, Heppner’s Jerry Smith still cares for a yard full of roses. –Photo by Andrea Di Salvo Sequoia, Douglas ir, and a couple each of pine and blue spruce. Several of the trees come with memories at- tached. Smith says his personal favorite is the Lane County, one of the event organizers, bicyclists will set out this Sunday from the Eugene, Cascades & Coast Adventure Center in Springield, OR and then pedal through Central and Eastern Oregon, climbing more than 22,000 feet in elevation, before the trip culminates at the Oregon Governor’s Conference on Tourism at Wildhorse Re- sort & Casino in Pendleton. “Bicycle tourism is a signiicant part of economic growth in Oregon,” said Kari Westlund, President and CEO of Travel Lane County. “Routes and trails provide connectivity be- tween communities like Information sought on local poaching case The Oregon State Po- lice is seeking information regarding a deer poaching in which three mule deer does were shot and left to waste. The incident occurred on Dick Snider’s property on Brenner Canyon Road, approximately two miles off lower Rhea Creek Road. Police suspect the deer were shot Monday, March 21. Information leading to an arrest could qualify for a TIP (Turn-In-Poachers) reward. Anyone who has information regarding the incident should call Senior Trooper Brian Jewett at 541-980-6081. -See RAPE INVESTIGA- TION/PAGE TEN Serious injury North Morrow accident under investigation Sequoia, which he brought Morrow County Sher- home from Crescent City, CA. The larger of the pine iff’s Office is investigat- trees stands as a memorial ing a serious-injury motor vehicle accident involving to his son. -See LIVING LEGACY/ a pickup and a semi-truck PAGE TEN last Friday. According to Morrow County Undersheriff John Bowles, MCSO was alerted to the accident on Tower Road, Boardman around 9:40 a.m. last Friday. The McKenzie River and the caller advised that the ac- Oakridge/Westir area, and cident, which involved a continue to be a massive Dodge pickup and a Milky attraction to visitors from Way semi-truck, occurred across the nation. In fact, south of 1-84 on Tower bicycle tourism earned the Road near Loves Truck state nearly $400 million Stop. The driver of the Dodge was reported to be in 2012.” Throughout the ride, trapped inside the vehicle. The first emergency -See BIKE TOUR/PAGE responders arrived on the Bicycle enthusiasts to stop in Heppner during 360-mile bike tour Wheels will be roll- ing through Heppner next week—bicycle wheels, that is. Bicycling enthusiasts will be rolling into town next Thursday, April 21, as part of a six-day, 360-mile bike tour of the state’s sce- nic bikeways. According to Travel reported that she was sexu- ally assaulted by the juvenile around 1 a.m. that night; she informed her boyfriend the next morning that the 15-year- old had done something to her during the night but did not disclose the details. The victim said she was “upset, confused and didn’t know what to do,” accord- ing to Matlack. She said she called a friend, who advised her to tell her parents. She said she followed her friend’s advice, and her parents took her to the hospital. Detective Snyder initi- ated a sexual assault investi- gation and received suficient TWO scene about ive minutes af- ter the call. Crews removed the pickup’s driver from the wreckage and the driver was air-lifted by Life Flight to Kadlec Regional Medi- cal Center in Richland, WA. MCSO stated that, at last report, the patient was receiving medical attention and the family was being notiied. MCSO is currently in- vestigating the accident, and Oregon State Police is assisting with accident reconstruction. MCSO also was assisted by Boardman Police Department, Board- man fire, Boardman am- bulance, Morrow County Public Works, Discount Towing and J&J Towing. UP TO $2000 REBATES CALL JASON FOR MORE INFORMATION BEFORE APRIL 30TH Morrow County Grain Growers Lexington 989-8221 • 1-800-452-7396 For farm equipment, visit our web site at www.mcgg.net