Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Appeal tribune. (Silverton, Or.) 1999-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 6, 2021)
SILVERTONAPPEAL.COM | WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2021 | 3B Officers cleared in Santiam Canyon shooting Virginia Barreda Salem Statesman Journal USA TODAY NETWORK A grand jury ruled three Oregon State Police troop- ers and a Linn County Sheriff ’s deputy were justified in shooting and killing a suspected Bend robber fol- lowing a chase through the Santiam Canyon earlier this month. Marion County District Attorney officials said troopers Caleb Yoder, Joseph Sousa, and Michael Ia- cob, and Deputy Brandon Rathelegurche collectively fired 16 rounds at Brad Tyler Masters, 27, after he pointed and fired a bb gun at officers on Highway 22 east of Gates. Masters was struck three times. The officers were not injured. Law enforcement officials and victims of the two robberies in Bend were unaware at the time that the weapon Master used was a bb or pellet gun, district attorney officials said. On Tuesday, a Marion County grand jury heard tes- timony from six witnesses, including Salem Police De- partment detectives, who led the investigation, and Marion County Sheriff ’s Office deputies. According to the district attorney’s office, the grand jury found that all four officers “reasonably” believed the following: h Masters had committed and attempted to commit felonies involving the use or threatened use of physical force against a person; h Deadly physical force was necessary to defend a peace officer or another person from the use or threat- ened imminent use of deadly physical force; h Masters had committed felonies or attempted to commit felonies and under the totality of the circum- stances existing at the time and place, the use of such force was justified, and; h The officer’s life or personal safety was endan- gered in the particular circumstances involved. Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson praised the grand jury: “Their thoughtful, thorough, and careful deliberations in such an important case is essential for our community’s continued confidence in our law enforcement officers.” Rainy night chase through the Santiam Canyon ends with deadly shooting District attorney officials said events leading up to the shooting unfolded as follows: On Dec. 8, Masters brandished a black, semi-auto- matic pistol and demanded money from a Dutch Brothers in Bend. Shortly after, he robbed a Domino’s Pizza restaurant and demanded an employee’s vehi- cle. Bend police and Deschutes County Sheriff ’s Office deputies located Masters in the stolen vehicle, but he fled. Officials said Master drove at high speed toward the Santiam Pass, heading west on Highway 22. Deschutes County deputies stopped the pursuit around Suttle Lake and sent a “Be on the Lookout” no- tice to nearby law enforcement agencies. Linn County Sheriff ’s deputy Brandon Rathele- gurche was working patrol between Mill City and Ly- ons, when he heard the “BOLO” over his radio. A Marion County Sheriff ’s Office deputy also began following Masters. When Rathelegurche determined Masters’ location, he laid out spike strips on a curve on the highway. Rathelegurche was able to spike the tires of Mas- ters’ vehicle, but because of the speed of the chase, he wasn’t able to remove the spike strip before the Marion County deputy also drove over it. Rathelegurche took over the chase for several miles past Detriot Lake as Masters continued driving with deflated tires. As they reached the Big Cliff Dam area, Oregon State Police troopers Caleb Yoder, Joseph Sousa, and Michael Iacob responded from the Salem area. Yoder laid out another spike strip. Masters drove over the spike strip and kept going. Rathelegurche slowed down, giving the troopers time to pull in the strip before he continued following Masters. The three troopers joined in the chase. Masters drove for several miles on the rims of the stolen vehicle, causing him to slow down, officials said. The four officers drove with lights and sirens in a diamond pattern spread out across the road behind Masters. Iacob gave repeated commands over his loudspeaker for Masters to stop his vehicle. Several miles east of Gates, Masters pulled over perpendicular to the flow of traffic on the westbound lane of Highway 22. He got out of the car and walked to the center of the roadway. Officials said he ignored commands to “put your hands up!” Instead, he raised both hands in a shooter stance towards the officers, and then bladed his body, dropping one arm while firing at the officers. All four officers returned fire, using 16 rounds. He was struck three times. None of the officers were hit. Masters fell to the ground and didn’t follow the offi- cers’ commands to show his hands. But the proximity of the gun to Masters’ hands re- quired the officers to make a “slow, tactical approach.” Officers moved the gun away from Masters and pro- nounced him dead at the scene. Salem Police investigators later learned that Mas- ters’ gun was actually a bb or pellet gun, though depu- ty’s dash camera shows what appears to be smoke ejecting from the nozzle of Masters’ gun at the time the shot was fired. Officials said it is likely this was air displacing heavy rainfall, as the conditions were extremely wet. An autopsy by Oregon State Deputy Medical Exam- iner Dr. Rebecca Millius determined Masters’ cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head. Toxicology results showed Masters tested positive for amphetamines and cocaine. “I am most thankful that Troopers Yoder, Iacob, Sousa and Linn County Sheriff ’s Deputy Brandon Rathelegurche were not injured or killed,” Clarkson said. “This case highlights the very dangerous work our police officers engage in every day. I am proud of their work, their professional collaboration, and our continued relationship with local law enforcement agencies. “Although the weapon used was ultimately not a firearm, these officers responded to a dangerous situa- tion, and I am thankful that they returned home on that dark, rainy, and cold night,” Clarkson said. Troopers Yoder, Iacob, and Sousa have been with OSP for 5 years and 10 months, 4 years and 11 months, and 3 years and 10 months, respectively. Dep. Rathele- gurche has been with Linn County Sheriff ’s Office for 2 years and 10 months. The officers were placed on administrative leave during the investigation. Troopers Yoder, Iacob and Sousa remain on leave, according to OSP officials. Virginia Barreda is the breaking news and public safety reporter for the Statesman Journal. She can be reached at 503-399-6657 or at vbarreda@statesman- journal.com. Follow her on Twitter at @vbarreda2. Otis Continued from Page 2A them on the property to clear and catalog hazardous materials. This encourages people to understand that they’re entering a potentially dangerous area. The EPA already has cleared dangerous debris, like gas cans and propane tanks, and cut out natural haz- ards like logs, branches and other unsafe detritus. With well over 150 properties cleared, ODOT is sched- uled to begin moving out ash and debris. This is nor- mally a 12- to 18-month process for ODOT. “This is a big relief to me as the county is sort of sandwiched in between,” Miller said. “We want to in- crease the pace, but we can only move as fast as the state and the feds.” Concerns, though, for these do-it-yourself commu- nity rebuilders are proper protection and correct pro- cedure in handling materials that can cause any num- ber of injuries. There are no agencies with the capacity to make sure laborers are following safety guidelines, but it’s their town, so they’re allowed to handle the risk if they want to get it done. “If a person’s going to tackle this on their own, they've got to do it in a way that's compliant,” Miller said. “When I was up there with the EPA, I didn’t know how important tree safety could be. I wore a hard hat and learned to look at the whole 360 degrees of poten- tial hazards.” Miller said landowners also will have the opportu- nity to respond to a questionnaire that property own- ers can specify what they want to be removed. "What we've discovered is that people are fatigued out there, so we're making it as easy as we can," Miller said. While emergency officials keep a close eye on the grassroots cleanup, there have been no major issues to date. “The only complaints we’ve received so far are that our bins are too full,” Small said. From Lincoln City, Miller expressed his admiration for Otis volunteers. “It's been really reassuring to see, especially during these times, that people really do care about other people,” Miller said. A Christmas star lights up Don Stuart's property that was destroyed during the Echo Mountain Fire, on Monday, Dec. 14, 2020 on North Pony Trail Lane in Otis, Oregon. The display has become a symbol of hope for many community members. ABIGAIL DOLLINS / STATESMAN JOURNAL Bethany Howe, executive director of the Echo Mountain Relief Fund, looks toward the damage done during the Echo Mountain Fire, on Monday, Dec. 14, 2020 in Otis, Oregon. Howe, along with other volunteers, has worked to rebuild the town that lost nearly 300 single-family homes in the wildfire. ABIGAIL DOLLINS / STATESMAN JOURNAL Aspiring for an enduring bond Behind a blackened garden gnome on Rivera's prop- erty, his burned but stubbornly upright chain link fence now holds court over muddy, yet mostly cleaned ground, ready for a new fabricated home. “This is what properties will look like when they’re all clear,” Rivera said. Set to be delivered in April or May, Rivera's on-or- der, new home will be one of the first replacements in the sprawling community dotting Echo Mountain’s hillside. Even in December, just months after the ca- tastrophe, about a dozen local residents had RVs parked on lots, sitting amid piles of chopped wood, construction materials and debris. Over the past few months, people on the ground, along with myriad Lincoln City volunteers, have cleared a portion of the burned foundation and helped to sink new hope into the soil. “Taking back control of lives is what’s helped peo- ple not feel so hopeless and helpless,” Howe said dur- ing a tour of the town. “Even if it is only helping neigh- bors or pitching in a little bit, not even helping them- selves, it gives some semblance of control and connec- tion.” Volunteers will need supplies and construction crews will need capital to get Otis up and running again. The rebuilding effort has received a Habitat for Hu- manity grant, $7,000 from the Lincoln County’s Chal- lenge Grant and numerous donations from residents and organizations. This is in addition to government- funded EPA and ODOT cleanup. “We’ll take $20,000 now, but that money needs to keep coming in,” Small said. The Echo Mountain Relief Fund will remain on Facebook as long as it's generating interest. “It’s there for people in need, but I hope we can keep it going,” Brooks said. “I’m not sure if it will still be around a year from now.” The reality of rebuilding, however, is that it is going to take a lot of time and endurance. “And it’s going to take at least two-and-a-half years that we need to sustain that funding,” Rivera said. The Smalls, despite constantly working, have yet to begin clearing their own property, instead dedicating their efforts to helping dozens of neighbors. If anything, this diverse collective exhibits what humans can do when devoted to each other and are changing each other’s lives in the process. For some, like Brooks, it’s just the right thing to do. For Howe, the effort’s in thanks that when she needed the town to be decent to her, it was. For Rivera and the Smalls, this was and remains their home in the woods, away from the city’s bustle and bureaucracy. “Each one of us are out here for very personal rea- sons and all driven by the core of who we are,” Howe said. “In a day and age when nobody seems to be able to get along about anything, we agree on everything. When I felt myself coming apart, this has brought me together.” There is, of course, lots of work left, yet these deter- mined souls are restoring the critical component to re- building: Hope. “What I envision is five years from now everybody's back and everybody’s here on Labor Day weekend,” Small said, "and this whole thing just becomes a big ole’ block party.” Follow Matthew on Instagram @CAFE_541. Email him at mdenis@registerguard.com. Public Notices PUBLIC POLICY NOTICES 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