S ERVING THE S ILVERTON A REA S INCE 1880 50 C ENTS ● A U NIQUE E DITION OF THE S TATESMAN J OURNAL V OL . 136, N O . 42 W EDNESDAY , O CTOBER 4, 2017 SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM Silverton considers solutions to nuisance deer CHRISTENA BROOKS SPECIAL TO THE APPEAL TRIBUNE What you need to know about Oregon's new distracted driving cellphone law New distracted driving laws go into effect Oct. 1 in Oregon. The new law, which will increase fines substantially, are more restrictive when it comes to electronic devices such as cellphones. STATESMAN JOURNAL FILE New law in effect "Obviously, if your eyes are down and WHITNEY M. WOODWORTH STATESMAN JOURNAL looking at your tablet or your phone, Oregon's upcoming distracted driving cellphone law has many residents nervous. Would navigation apps like GoogleMaps suddenly be illegal? Would drivers be forced to revert to using those pesky, pre-smartphone era printed out directions? Would they wind up with a ticket and $260 fine after listening to their favorite podcast or music station on their iPhone? The new law, which took effect Oct. 1, comes with steeper fines, stricter rules and even possible jail time for repeat offenders. But, as Salem police Senior Officer Mitch Mason said, drivers won't have to say goodbye to their favor- ite apps — as long as they use them correctly. During his 22 years at the Salem Police Depart- ment and 18 years as a traffic patrol officer, Mason has seen cellphone use and distracted driving-related crashes drastically increase. "Fatalities are just skyrocketing," he said. The Statesman Journal sat down with Mason to ad- dress some common concerns over the new law: Can I use GoogleMaps or other navigation apps if I have a dashboard mount? What if the phone is in my console, cup holder or on the seat? People can still use their usual navigation apps as long they follow a few guidelines, Mason said. Drivers will need to enter their destination address before they begin their trip. If they need to enter an address after they've begun driving, they'll need to pull over and legally park their car before keying in the address. Once you start driving, the only time you can touch your phone is a "single touch or swipe to activate or deactivate the device," according to the new law. Your phone can be mounted on the window or dash- board, on the console, in a cup holder or in your pocket — anywhere except in your hands. Are other GPS devices okay to use? Yes, if you follow the same guidelines: Enter the ad- dress before driving, pull over to type a new address, don't hold the device and refrain from touching ex- cept for a single tap or swipe. Previously, the law only mentioned "communica- tion devices," which Oregon courts interpreted to mean only cellphones used for talking and texting. Now, the wording has been changed to include all elec- your eyes aren't up looking at the traffic and what's happening out there." MITCH MASON SALEM POLICE SENIOR OFFICER tronic devices, including GPS devices, tablets and smartwatches. Can I listen to music, podcasts, audiobooks or sports streaming? Nothing makes a trip pass quicker than your favor- ite songs, a juicy audiobook or an interesting podcast. One reader voiced her concern over not being able to listen to baseball game broadcasts over her phone during trips. Another worried about having access to his iPhone music library. Thankfully, drivers will not have to sit in silence or settle for the radio. Mason said travelers can listen to music, podcasts, audiobooks and streaming apps on their phones or devices as long as they keep their lis- tening "hands-free." The "single touch or swipe" rule might not apply to switching stations or clicking "thumbs down" on a Pan- dora song, he warned. The wording of the law said the single tap is only allowed to activate or deactivate, so something shuf- fling through songs would be up to an officer's inter- pretation until there's an actual court ruling to go by. "I probably wouldn't be "thumbs-downing" stuff," Mason said. Can you wear headphones, earbuds or a Bluetooth earpiece while driving? Yes, all are acceptable as are any devices built into your vehicle, Mason said. Can I type in a phone number or address while I'm driving? What if I'm at a stoplight? Nope, those are all off limits. Drivers will need to be legally parked in a parking spot or alongside the See LAW, Page 2A It was still dark out- side, so the three early- morning runners didn’t notice they were being followed, not at first. Then a passing car’s headlights illuminated the sidewalk behind them, and Krista Kuenzi, Ste- phanie Traeger and Eric Rogers saw a deer chas- ing them down the street. It didn’t have antlers, and it didn’t seem threaten- ing. Instead, it was loping about 5 feet behind them like a dog following its master. “We did a double-take,” Kuenzi said. “It was like something straight out of a Chevy Chase movie.” Outrunning the crea- ture was laughable, so the joggers continued on their regular route from Webb Lake Estates to- ward Hwy. 214. Passing traffic didn’t faze the deer, and it stuck with them as they jogged past the school district’s bus barn and other businesses still closed for the night. “The deer continued to trail us, consistently and respectfully staying about 5 or 10 feet behind us, but it didn’t seem to have any intention of leav- ing us either,” Kuenzi said. After jogging nearly 2 miles with their new run- ning buddy, Kuenzi, Traeger and Rogers slipped into Silverton Fit- ness – leaving the deer staring at them through the glass door – and quiet- ly exited out the other side of the building. They maintained full communi- cation blackout until safe- ly clearing the far side of McDonald’s next-door. This saga is hardly the only “deer story” circulat- ing in Silverton, a small town with a visible urban deer population. Black- tailed deer are regularly seen walking down the street, bedding down in yards and munching resi- dents’ plants. Depending on whom you ask, they are a charming part of small town life, an annoyance or an outright danger. A new state law, passed overwhelmingly by state legislators and signed by the governor this sum- mer, allows the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife to cull nuisance deer in cities that ask for its help. The department is developing a 12-year pi- lot program that will start Jan. 1, 2019. How exactly nuisance deer might be killed hasn’t been clearly de- fined yet, but Senate Bill 373 prohibits the use of darts or lethal injections It also requires the har- See DEER, Page 2A Two dead in crash north of Monmouth JONATHAN BACH STATESMAN JOURNAL A head-on car crash north of Monmouth left two dead Sept. 22. Jacob Bailey, 24, of Dallas, and Elizabeth Hoke, 18, of Silverton, were both pronounced dead at the scene after their cars collided on Rid- dell Road north of Whi- teaker Road, the Polk County Sheriff’s Office said. Riddell Road runs alongside Highway 99W. Bailey was driving his silver 2007 Acura north as Hoke drove her black 2012 Volvo south, a pre- liminary investigation shows. The two slammed into one another, and Bai- ley was ejected from his car. The road was closed for about six hours, though the cause of the crash is still under inves- tigation, the sheriff’s of- fice said. Reach Jonathan Bach by email at jbach@states- manjournal.com or by phone at 503-399-6714. Follow him on Twitter @JonathanMBach and Facebook at https:// www.facebook.com/jona- thanbachjournalist/. Photographer captures epic aurora borealis ZACH URNESS STATESMAN JOURNAL The aurora borealis put on a spectacular light show for photographers across northern Oregon Sept. 27. Jeff Green, a Salem photographer, was one of those lucky enough to be prepared. He headed into the mountains above State Highway 22 and captured a stunning shot. “I've seen the Northern Lights a couple times, but never as strong as last night,” Green said. “With my naked eye, I could see the lights moving and dancing in the sky.” Green said the Face- book page, Aurora Alerts by Soft Serve News, was a great way to track good nights for the phenome- non. “They publish updates when a solar storm has oc- curred and a visible Auro- ra may be visible,” he said. “They detail the Aurora intensity measured in KPs. Sept. 27 was a strong KP6, which is very strong for our area.” To best see the lights, Online at SilvertonAppeal.com NEWS UPDATES PHOTOS » Breaking news » Get updates from the Silverton area » Photo galleries he also recommended: 1) KP5 (on the K-index of geomagnetic activity) or above. 2) Clear cloudless skies 3) Darkest skies possi- ble 4) Far away from city light pollution 5) No moon in the sky 6) Face North 7) Let your eyes adjust to total darkness for 15-20 minutes “My mind was blown,” Green said. “I can't wait for the next Aurora event!” This picture, taken by Salem photographer Jeff Green, showcases the aurora seen in Oregon on Wednesday night. JEFF GREEN / SPECIAL TO THE STATESMAN JOURNAL INSIDE Classifieds..............................3B Life in the Valley.................4A Obituaries .............................3B Sports......................................1B ©2017 Printed on recycled paper