S ERVING THE S ILVERTON A REA S INCE 1880
50 C ENTS
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A U NIQUE E DITION OF THE S TATESMAN J OURNAL
V OL . 136, N O . 22
W EDNESDAY , M AY 17, 2017
SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM
Silverton man charged with rape
Nurse faced previous
sexual assault charges
WHITNEY M WOODWORTH
STATESMAN JOURNAL
After being arrested on first-
degree rape and first-degree
sexual abuse charges May 9, a
Silverton man is being held
without bail at Marion County
jail.
Christopher Gerig, 34, is ac-
cused of raping and assaulting a
woman on Sunday. The woman,
according to court records, was
incapable of consent by reason
of physical helplessness and
mental incapacitation.
Gerig, a registered nurse,
was faced with the possible rev-
ocation of his license after sep-
arate sexual assault charges
surfaced in 2016. The Oregon
State Board of Nursing served
Gerig with a notice of proposed
revocation in July 2016 after
they were notified of allega-
tions that he sexually abused a
woman.
According to the complaint,
Gerig allegedly used his nurs-
ing education and knowledge to
establish trust with a woman
then planned a sexual encoun-
ter between himself and her,
claiming it was a therapeutic
exercise to help her recover
from past trauma.
Board members said Gerig’s
conduct was derogatory to the
standards of nursing. They also
alleged he failed to maintain
professional
boundaries and
acted outside his
scope as a regis-
tered nurse.
His nursing li-
cense is now ex-
Gerig
pired, according
to the board’s database.
Gerig was previously arrest-
ed on rape and sex abuse
charges in April 2016. He was
acquitted of those charges in
January.
Following his arrest by Sil-
verton police, Gerig was ar-
raigned on new rape charges
Wednesday.
He was ordered to have no
contact with his victim, a differ-
ent woman than the one listed in
the 2016 complaint.
Marion County Judge Rafael
Caso ordered Gerig held with-
out bail.
His next court appearance is
scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on May
19.
For questions, comments
and news tips, email reporter
Whitney
Woodworth
at
wmwoodwort@statesmanjour
nal.com, call 503-399-6884 or
follow on Twitter @wmwood
worth.
SPECIAL TO THE STAYTON MAIL
Don and Sue Harteloo
Couple
collects
care
packages
PHOTOS BY ANNA REED/STATESMAN JOURNAL
Payton Diller and Jonathan Schey, both juniors, hold hands as they approach the Silverton High School prom on Saturday.
STAYTON MAIL
STUDENTS MAKE
MEMORIES AT PROM
STATESMAN JOURNAL
Silverton High School students cele-
brated their prom at the Oregon Garden,
Saturday, May 13. Find more photos at
StatesmanJournal.com/photos.
Nick Engelfried, a junior, dances at Dallas’
prom at the Northwest Wine Studies Center at
Chemeketa Eola.
More prom photos, page 2A
SPECIAL TO THE APPEAL TRIBUNE
Should the City of Sil-
verton enact a 2-cent-per-
gallon local fuel tax to
generate an estimated
$173,000 per year to pay
for street maintenance
and improvement?
Voters will decide the
May is more than a month
for celebrating moms and ob-
serving Memorial Day.
To underscore this, fran-
chise owners of the Silverton
and Stayton Postal Connec-
tions, Don and Sue Harteloo,
have put together an annual
drive similar to others they’ve
conducted in the past intend-
ing to show some appreciation
to overseas military person-
nel.
According to Military.com,
May is National Military Ap-
preciation Month as designat-
ed by the U.S. Congress in
1999.
The National Military Ap-
preciation Month website
notes that this month includes
related designations of May 1
as Loyalty Day, May 8 as VE
Day, May 12 as Military
Spouse Appreciation Day,
May 20 as Armed Forces Day
and, finally Memorial Day on
May 29.
In a press release issued
earlier this month the Harte-
loos announced “in honor of
May being nationally recog-
nized as Military Appreciation
Month, Stayton and Silverton’s
Postal Connections stores are
hosting its second-annual
month-long, community-wide
donation drive to gather
much-needed items for mili-
tary members serving over-
Silverton students dance and chat during prom at the Oregon Garden on Saturday.
See PACKAGES, Page 2A
Silverton City Council ponders gas tax
CHRISTENA BROOKS
JUSTIN MUCH
question in the November
election if the Silverton
City Council opts next
month to put a fuel tax
measure on the ballot.
Councilors are scheduled
to discuss the idea at their
June 5 meeting, five
months before Election
Day, Nov. 7.
“Street maintenance is
Online at SilvertonAppeal.com
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our goal here. That’s pre-
cisely what we’d be get-
ting after with this tax,”
said Mayor Kyle Palmer.
“It would be an effort to
try and capture some in-
come from non-Silverton
residents, so the people
who live here aren’t the
only ones paying for our
roads.”
Silverr ton B usiiness of t he Y ear 2 016
All fuel stations in-
side the city limits
would be required to
add the 2-cent-per-gal-
lon tax if the ballot
measure passes. Sil-
verton would join a
growing number of
Oregon cities that have
See GAS TAX, Page 3A
INSIDE
Obituaries .............................3B
Sports......................................1B
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