Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Appeal tribune. (Silverton, Or.) 1999-current | View Entire Issue (July 19, 2017)
2B Wednesday, July 19, 2017 Appeal Tribune Oregon ballot initiatives can collect signatures during legal appeals, rule says CONNOR RADNOVICH STATESMAN JOURNAL Oregon ballot petitioners can con- tinue collecting signatures while legal appeals are pending instead of having to pause until the appeal is complete, under a state rule enacted Friday. Advocates say the new rule limits ma- nipulation of the initiative system, as- sisting small-scale petitioners, while others worry it opens the door for misin- formation reaching voters. Secretary of State Dennis Richardson presented the rule as a victory for grass- roots petitions, which often have fewer resources to gather signatures, particu- larly after extended court delays. He in- dicated some of those legal challenges are created with the intent to kill these petitions, often creating delays of three months or longer. “Grassroots petitions empower Ore- gonians to hold their government ac- countable,” Richardson said in a state- ment. “Since ballot initiatives are a key tool for direct democracy in Oregon, I am committed to making the process fairer, more straightforward, and less vulnerable to manipulation.” Jann Carson of the ACLU of Oregon said that when her organization chal- lenges an initiative, it’s to ensure the lan- guage of the proposal is clear enough that voters understand what they’re vot- ing for or against. To allow a ballot initia- tive to gather signatures before it’s known whether the language stands up in court is introducing more uncertainty into the system. “It’s most important for the integrity of the system that the voters know the in- formation that they need to decide,” Car- son said. “We are not in the business of bringing frivolous issues to any court.” Petitioners in the state have to gather 120,000 signatures to appear on the ballot -- more than is needed. But a percentage of those are always invalidated because of illegible handwriting or mistakes. For David Carlson, a chief petitioner on a ballot initiative currently delayed by an appeal filed by Our Oregon, this rule change could mean the difference between making or missing the ballot. “That would be a huge boost for us,” Carlson said. “As a grassroots campaign, every minute counts.” Carlson’s initiative, if it were to pass, would allow the Secretary of State’s of- fice to maintain a website that would host various petitions and allow people to sign them online. He said it would simpli- fy the process, increase the percentage of valid signatures per petition and be more environmentally friendly. According to publicly available com- ments from a lawyer on Our Oregon’s be- half, the majority of Our Oregon’s com- plaint is based on the wording of the ini- tiative. The complaint contends that the initiative doesn’t include the entirety of the law it would alter (as is required by the Oregon Constitution), and the cap- tion, “yes” statement and conclusion are flawed, incomplete or confusing. Our Oregon also had substantive com- plaints, contending Carlson’s initiative fundamentally shifts the onus of collect- ing signatures from the petitioners to the Secretary of State. “Our current process ensures consis- tency and accuracy in the ballot titles that voters sign and ultimately vote on,” Our Oregon said in a statement about the new rule. “The current process is thor- ough and well tested, and there’s no need to change it.” Contact the reporter at cradnovich@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6864, or follow him on Twitter at @CDRadnovich. AG warns of price gouging ahead of solar eclipse WHITNEY M. WOODWORTH STATESMAN JOURNAL With just over a month until a solar eclipse plunges parts of Oregon into darkness and fills the state with hun- dreds of thousands of visitors, Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum is urging eclipse chasers to confirm their hotel reservations to avoid unexpected can- cellations and price gouging. The Oregon Department of Justice reported an increase in consumer com- plaints from people who’ve had hotel reservations canceled or their room rates doubled or tripled. An estimated one million visitors are expected to travel to the eclipse’s path of totality, which passes over several Ore- gon cities including Lincoln City, Salem and Madras, on Aug. 21. “Travelers need to be able to trust that hotels will keep their reservation and honor the original price,” Rosen- blum said. “While most hotels play by the rules, we are concerned that some could try to make money off of this unique event, and increase the price of the hotel room without telling the cus- tomer.” In February, one Washington visitor and amateur astronomer canceled his reservation after he discovered his room rate at the Grand Hotel in down- town Salem had doubled from $200 to $400, even though he reserved rooms more than a year in advance. DOJ officials are working with 12 Oregon hotels to resolve consumer com- plaints involving price gouging or can- celed reservations. Seven of the hotels agreed to honor the original room price. The Justice Department sent letters of warning to all hotels in the eclipse path and all hotels with complaints de- tailing the state’s consumer protection laws. The letter instructed hotel managers to either honor visitors’ reservation with the originally booked price or give at least $500 to each consumer. “We want to make sure travelers know that hotels must honor their adver- tised prices, regardless of whether the prices are advertised directly by the ho- tel, or with a third party,” Rosenblum said. As many as 300,000 people are ex- pected to flood into the 6,000-person city of Madras for the once-in-a-lifetime event. An official at the Inn at Cross Keys Station in Madras said all of the hotel’s 72 rooms were booked in the days sur- rounding the eclipse. Many reserva- tions began trickling in about five years ago, and now, motels and hotels in the area were booked solid. A night at the Inn runs about $300 for eclipse visitors. Officials said the price is set upon reservation. Canceling a reservation or increas- ing the room rate constitutes a decep- tive practice under Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practice Act, which prohibits a business from making false or mislead- ing representations concerning an of- fering price of goods or services. Those who encounter problems with canceled reservations or price gouging should contact the Oregon Department of Justice’s consumer hotline at 877-877- 9392 or justice.oregon.gov/complaints. For questions, comments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwoodwort@statesmanjour- nal.com, call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth Marion County cadet charged with invasion of privacy in social media case New state law means life sentences for second-strike sex offenders COOPER GREEN WHITNEY M. WOODWORTH STATESMAN JOURNAL STATESMAN JOURNAL A Marion County cadet has been charged with in- vasion of personal privacy, a misdemeanor, after sharing “invasive images” of another cadet on a pho- to sharing application. Cadet Brooke Eshelman, 18, was placed on admin- istrative leave, according to Oregon State Police. The Marion County Sheriff’s Office was made aware of the incident on May 20 and forwarded the case to the Marion County District Attorney’s Of- fice. Charges were filed July 6. Eshelman is scheduled to appear at the Marion County Circuit Court Annex on July 19 at 9:30 a.m. PUBLIC NOTICE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE STATE OF OREGON FOR THE COUNTY OF MARION PROBATE DEPARTMENT In Re the Estate of LETIE MARY SHEPPARD Deceased. Case No. 17PB03967 NOTICE TO INTERESTED PERSONS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the undersigned has been appointed personal representative. All persons having claims against the estate are required to present them, with vouchers attached, to the undersigned personal representative at 85 The Green Lydd, Romney Marsh, Kent, England, within four months after the date of first publication of this notice, or the claims may be barred. All persons whose rights may be affected by the proceedings may obtain additional information from the records of the Court, the personal representative, or the lawyers for the personal representative, Jane Waters. DATED: June 21, 2017. /s/ Colin G. Andries _________ Attorney for Personal Representative Colin G. Andries Personal Representative: Jane Waters 85 The Green Lydd, Romney Marsh, Kent, England Lawyer for the Personal Representative: Colin G. Andries OSB No. 051892 111 SW Fifth Ave., Suite 1940 Portland, OR 97204 (503)417-7777 colin@slindenelson.com Silverton Appeal July 5, 12, & 19, 2017 PUBLIC NOTICES POLICY Public Notices are published by the Statesman Journal and available online at w w w .S ta te s m a n J o u r n a l.c o m . The Statesman Journal lobby is open Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. You can reach them by phone at 503-399-6789. In order to receive a quote for a public notice you must e-mail your copy to SJLegals@StatesmanJournal.com , and our Legal Clerk will return a proposal with cost, publication date(s), and a preview of the ad. LEGAL/PUBLIC NOTICE DEADLINES All Legals Deadline @ 1:00 p.m. on all days listed below: ***All Deadlines are subject to change when there is a Holiday. The Silverton Appeal Tribune is a one day a week (Wednesday) only publication • Wednesday publication deadlines the Wednesday prior LEGAL/PUBLIC NOTICE RATES Silverton Appeal Tribune: • Wednesdays only - $12.15/per inch/per time • Online Fee - $21.00 per time • Affidavit Fee - $10.00 per Affidavit requested Repeat rapists and cer- tain sex offenders can now be given a "two strikes and you're out" ticket to life in prison un- der a bill recently passed by the Oregon Legisla- ture. Senate Bill 1050 im- poses presumptive sen- tences for those convicted of first-degree rape, first- degree sodomy or first- degree unlawful sexual penetration if the defen- dant has been previously convicted of those crimes or an equivalent federal offense. It also gives judges lat- itude to impose lighter sentences based on "sub- stantial and compelling reasons." The bill handily passed the Oregon Senate 30-0 and the House with a 58-0 vote. "This bill will finally get at protecting our com- munity from the most dangerous of sexual crim- inals," Senate President Peter Courtney said in his testimony before the Sen- ate Committee on Judicia- ry. Courtney, who co-spon- sored the bill, has long worked to impose stricter sentences on predatory sex offenders. "This type of criminal has haunted me for years— since I served on Gov. Barbara Roberts’ task force regarding sex abuse crimes," he said. "Hearing about these hei- nous crimes— many com- mitted against children— really messed me up." His work on the task force led him to sponsor six bills in 1991 that be- came law that strength- ened Oregon statutes with regard to sex crimes, es- pecially against children. He later sponsored two bills requiring mandatory life sentences for violent DANIELLE PETERSON / STATESMAN JOURNAL Tall concrete walls with guard towers surround the Oregon State Penitentiary, the state's only maximum-security prison, along State Street in Salem. sex offenders. Both bills died in committee. "People were con- cerned that they went too far," he said in his testimo- ny. Oregon Voices, a non- profit community organi- zation that advocates for rational sex offender pol- icies and against manda- tory sentencing laws, voiced their opposition to the bill. "I think all of us can feel the emotional pull of (Courtney's) bill, because we share not only a revul- sion for the crimes it ad- dresses, but also a partic- ular revulsion when we (see) these crimes repeat- ed," wrote member Ken Nolley. However, he said, the bill undoes the shift the criminal justice system has made toward a risk- based model— a more practical and effective way to protect society. Locking people up for their senior years is cost- ly. Prisons have an expen- sive geriatric problem, and elderly offenders might not even pose a risk to society, he said. "Locking such people DENTAL Insurance Physicians Mutual Insurance Company A less expensive way to help get the dental care you deserve If you’re over 50, you can get coverage for about $1 a day* No wait for preventive care and no deductibles – you could get a checkup Keep your own dentist! NO networks to tomorrow worry about Coverage for over 350 procedures NO annual or lifetime cap o n the cash including cleanings, exams, fillings, crowns… even dentures benefits you can receive FREE Information Kit 1-877-599-0125 www.dental50plus.com/25 *Individual plan. Product not available in MN, MT, NH, RI, VT, WA. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO, NY; call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer. Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150(GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN) 6096C MB16-NM001Gc OR-0000393107 up in perpetuity may sat- isfy our sense of moral outrage, but it does not make good policy," Nolley said. Oregon is no stranger to sentencing sex offend- ers to life in prison. In 2001, the legislature passed a "three strikes and you're out" bill. The bill created a presump- tive sentence of life in prison for those convicted of three felony sex of- fenses. Under the law, even public flashers can be handed life sentences if they have previous con- victions. Dennis James Davidson, 40, was arrest- ed for masturbating at a Keizer park while in front of children. Due to his multiple previous convic- tions of public indecency and his lack of response to treatment, he was con- victed in 2011 and sen- tenced to life in prison. The Oregon Court of Appeals overturned his conviction and the Su- preme Court upheld the court of appeals ruling, finding that the life sen- tence was unconstitution- ally disproportionate to Davidson's crimes. He was resentenced in June to seven years and six months in prison. The Supreme Court ruled another Salem man's life sentence for public indecency was con- stitutional because of his previous sex abuse and sodomy convictions. Wil- liam Michael Althouse, 71, was arrested after being found pantless along a Sa- lem jogging path. A regis- tered sex offender, Althouse was about 150 feet from a mid- Althouse dle school and near children while he exposed himself. The Supreme Court found a life sentence— the second harshest sen- tence in Oregon— was al- lowable in light of the cir- cumstances his current offense and his history of committing similar crimes against other young children. The Criminal Justice Commission reviewed the Oregon Department of Corrections intake data from 2010 to 2016 and found 10 inmates with first-degree rape, sodomy or unlawful sexual pene- tration convictions who had previous serious sex crime convictions. Currently, the people convicted of these crimes are sentenced to a manda- tory minimum prison sen- tence of 25 years. The in- creased cost burden to the prison system would de- pend on an inmate's life expectancy. According to a legislative fiscal impact report, total cost in- creases could be $1.6 mil- lion to $2.7 million per bi- ennium. For questions, com- ments and news tips, email reporter Whitney Woodworth at wmwood- wort@statesmanjour- nal.com, call 503-399-6884 or follow on Twitter @wmwoodworth