Wednesday, August 28, 2019 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Oregon
defends past
jury verdicts
to high court
11
Forest Service prepares for prescribed fires
By Jim Cornelius
Editor in Chief
As summer rolls to an
end and fall chill creeps into
the morning air, the Sisters
Ranger District is preparing
for another round of pre-
scribed burning. The burning
is designed to improve forest
health conditions and to help
protect Sisters and outlying
forest communities from the
threat of wildfire.
Due to relatively mild con-
ditions and periodic moisture
through the summer, burning
may commence a little earlier
than it usually does in the fall.
<It seems the way the
weather is shaping up that
we could be burning by mid-
September instead of late
September,= said Jinny Reed,
Assistant Fire Management
Officer with the Sisters
Ranger District.
Burning won9t occur dur-
ing the period of high tem-
peratures in the immediate
forecast.
The District has about
1,000 acres on the docket
for fall burning from the
Metolius Basin to south of
town. However, the District
is seldom able to treat all of
the acres available during the
fall season.
By Andrew Selsky
Associated Press
SALEM (AP) _ Oregon9s
criminal justice system would
be <overwhelmed= if the U.S.
Supreme Court rules in an
upcoming case that nonunani-
mous jury verdicts are uncon-
stitutional, the state9s attorney
general has told the court.
Attorney General Ellen
Rosenblum said in an amicus
brief on Friday that if the
U.S. Supreme Court finds
nonunanimous juries uncon-
stitutional, it could invalidate
hundreds or even thousands of
convictions in Oregon.
Oregon is the only state
in America allowing 11-1 or
10-2 jury verdicts in criminal
trials, except first-degree mur-
der convictions.
Critics say Rosenblum is
defending a system that should
be abandoned, as voters in
Louisiana, the only other state
that permitted nonunanimous
verdicts, did in 2018.
See VERDICTS on page 25
T h e Me to liu s
Basin is a top pri-
ority for fire man-
agers, but location
of burning will
depend heavily on
conditions.
<It all depends on
the weather and the
direction the wind
blows,= Reed said.
<We like to keep our
options open.=
A 400-acre unit
along Highway 20
identified on the
accompanying map
will not be treated
until spring.
As
always,
those concerned
about
smoke
impacts can sign
up for text alerts.
Contact the Sisters
Ranger District at
541-549-7700.
Reed said that the
potentially earlier
fall burning actu-
ally has a positive
impact on smoke
considerations.
<The beauty of
lighting this early
in the year, we can
have more daylight
hours to lift smoke,=
she said.
Serving th e Sisters, Camp Sherman and Black Butte Ranch Areas
Ponderosa Properties
R E A L T O R S
541-549-2002
A N D
P R O P E R T Y
www. P onderosa P roperties.com
1-800-650-6766
L
LLC
M A N A G E M E N T
221 S. Ash St., Sisters
The Locals’ Choice
for Real Estate
Sales
Kevin R. Dyer
541-480-7552
Rad Dyer
541-480-8853
Carol Davis
541-410-1556
Catherine Black
541-588-9219
Shane Lundgren
541-588-9226
Debbie Dyer
541-480-1650
Greg Davidge
808-281-2676
Jackie Herring
541-480-3157
CRS, GRI,
Principal Broker
ABR, CCIM, CRB,
CRS, GRI,
Principal Broker
ABR, GRI, Broker
CRS, Broker,
Realtor Emeritus
40+ Years
Broker
GRI, Broker
Broker
Broker