❋✱✲✳❆❨✴ ✵❆✱✶✷ ✸✸✴ ✸✹✺✾
❚✷✻ ✼✽✿✻✱❱✻✱ ❀ ❁❂
LOCAL
➔→➣↔↕➙➣ ➛➜➣➝→➣➞➣ ➟→➠➡➠➙➢➤➥➦ ➧➨➩➦➫➭➦➫
æ❐➻Ó➳Ð ç➳➬❐➳➷➮ ➻➴ ➪➲➳ è➸ é➷➸➚➱➳ ê➘➷➳ ë➳✃➸➷➪➬➳➚➪ ➼➳➷➳ ➻➚➳ ➻➴ ➪➲➳ ➴➘➷➮➪
➻➚ ➮❒➳➚➳ ➪➻ ➪➷➶ ➸➚➱ ❒➸➪❒➲ ➪➲➳ ❐➻➱➶ ❐➳➴➻➷➳ ➘➪ ❒➻➚➪➘➚➾➳➱ ➱➻➼➚➮➪➷➳➸➬❰
ÔÕÖ×ØÕ
Continued from Page 1A
cies teamed up to perform the re-
covery operation. La Grande Ru-
ral Fire Department, La Grande
Fire Department, La Grande
✁✂✄☎✆✝ ✞✟✄✁✟ ✠✁✡✟☛☞ ✌✍✆✎✄✏✑✒
✓✔☎✆✝ ✞✟✄✁✟ ✠✁✡✟☛☞ ✌✆✕✎☎✍ ✕✟✖
Rescue, Oregon State Police, and
Wallowa County Search and Res-
cue were all present.
Most of the search took place in
the rapids near Riverside Park be-
cause the body had not been spot-
☛✆✖ ✗✁✕☛✄✟✘ ✖✁✙✟✒☛✎✆✕✚ ✁✎ ✆✛✆✟
passing through the rough waters.
However, in case the body had
moved down the river, law enforce-
ment personnel were looking out
from the Highway 82 bridge in Is-
land City, according to Nick Vora,
Union County SAR lieutenant.
“The reason we looked (near
Riverside Park) was because based
on obstructions in the water, there
was a high likelihood a person
ticular spot, littering the riverbed
with large blocks of concrete with
protruding rods of rebar. Vora said
this, combined with the high water
level and low water temperature,
made for an extremely hazardous
search and rescue mission.
“The water right now is ex-
tremely cold and has a fairly high
✗✁✙ ✎✕☛✆✝✜ ✍✆ ✒✕✄✖✢ ✣✤✟ ☛✍✆ ✒✡✚ -
mertime, in that area where we
were working, someone could
walk across the river without hav-
ing a problem, but with the snow-
melt this time of year, there is a lot
of water moving through there.”
The Wallowa County Swift Wa-
ter Team, a branch of the coun-
☛☞✑✒ ✒✆✕✎☎✍ ✕✟✖ ✎✆✒☎✡✆ ☛✆✕✚✝ ✁✥ -
fered their support and expertise
on the scene with trained swift
water technicians who probed
the waters with long yellow rods,
✍✁✦✄✟✘ ☛✁ ✧✟✖ ☛✍✆ ★✁✖☞✢
Craig Kretschmer, La Grande
Rural Fire chief, said the swift
water team was paramount to the
✗✁✕☛✄✟✘ ☛✍✎✁✡✘✍ ☛✍✆✎✆ ✙✁✡✂✖ ✍✕✛✆ ☎✁✚★✄✟✆✖ ✆✏✁✎☛✒ ✁✥ ✩✆✖✟✆✒✖✕☞✑✒
gotten caught,” he said.
Remnants of a demolished bridge
remain just below the surface of the
Grande Ronde River in that par-
Õßàá×Ö
Continued from Page 1A
meetings law.
“I hope this will bring
light to the regulation
and that people will want
to learn more about it,”
she said.
Patterson, in her com-
plaint, said on June 15, 2017,
an executive session was
conducted in which a law
was violated because of a
procedural error. The Ethics
Commission found a viola-
tion possibly occurred when
the severance package for an
employee who had resigned
may have been unlawfully
discussed during the execu-
tive session.
The meeting was con-
ducted just two days after
Patterson indicated she
planned to step down in
✕ ✚✁✟☛✍ ✕✒ ✞✟✄✁✟✑✒ ☎✄☛☞
administrator after a 12-
year tenure. The months
following this announce-
ment was a controver-
sial and cloudy period in
✞✟✄✁✟✑✒ ✍✄✒☛✁✎☞✢
In a written statement
about her resignation
provided to The Observer
in the summer of 2017,
Patterson said, “I provid-
ed the notice (of resigna-
tion) based on concerns
about potential unethi-
cal actions taken by third
party(s) and which are
✁✡☛✒✄✖✆ ✚☞ ☎✁✟☛✎✁✂✢✜ Ù ✡☛
after consulting with her
attorney, she formally
retracted her decision
recovery operation.
“The Wallowa County Swift
Water Team was a huge asset and
gave us better equipment and more
in a letter dated June
15, 2017. That same day,
however, the city council
met in executive session
and agreed via consen-
sus to accept the terms of
✕☛☛✆✎✒✁✟✑✒ ✎✆✒✄✘✟✕☛✄✁✟✢
The Ethics Commis-
sion wrote in its March
7, 2019, Stipulated Final
Order that the June 15,
2017, meeting may have
violated law because sev-
erance pay is not a topic
permitted for discussion
in an executive session
under the statues cited in
an announcement adver-
tising the meeting.
“Discussion of the resig-
nation of a city employee
and the severance pack-
age to be offered to the
employee is not a topic
authorized for discussion
in an executive session
under ORS 192.660(2)
(a), 192.660(2)(f) or
192.660(h),” the Ethics
Commission wrote.
The commission also
wrote in its Stipulated Fi-
nal Order that discussion
of this topic in the June
15, 2017, executive ses-
sion would constitute one
violation of ORS 192.660.
The Stipulated Final Or-
der said state law autho-
rizes the commission to
assess civil penalties of up
to $1,000 for such a viola-
tion. There is no chance of
✕ ✧✟✆ ★✆✄✟✘ ✕✒✒✆✒✒✆✖ ★✆ -
cause of the settlement.
Flint said that he agreed
to a settlement because
➔→➣↔↕➙➣ ➛➜➣➝→➣➞➣ ➟→➠➡➠➙➢➤➥➦ ➧➨➩➦➫➭➦➫
➯➲➳ ➵➸➺➺➻➼➸ ➽➻➾➚➪➶ ➹➼➘➴➪ ➵➸➪➳➷➯➳➸➬ ➾➮➳➱ ➬➾➺➪➘✃➺➳ ➬➳➬❐➳➷➮ ➪➻ ➮➳➳ ➘➴ ➪➲➳ ❐➻➱➶ ➲➸➱ ❐➳➳➚ ❒➸✃➪➾➷➳➱
➘➚ ➪➲➳ ➷➻➾❮➲ ➼➸➪➳➷➮❰➯➲➳ ➮➳➸➷❒➲ ➼➸➮ ➮➾➮✃➳➚➱➳➱ ❐➶ ÏÐÑÒ ✃❰➬❰ ➵➳➱➚➳➮➱➸➶ ➼➘➪➲ ➚➻ ➷➳❒➻Ó➳➷➶❰
trained personnel to get in the rap-
ids and do a thorough search,” he
said. “Whenever you get the chance
to work with agencies like that,
✌✍✆✎✄✏✑✒ ✓✔☎✆✝ ✕ ✚✕✎✄✟✆ ✖✆✦✡☛☞
✥✎✁✚ ☛✍✆ ✩✕✂✂✁✙✕ ✠✁✡✟☛☞ ✌✍✆✎✄✏✑✒
✪☞✁✡ ✎✆✕✂✄✫✆✬ ✄☛✑✒ ✕ ★✂✆✒✒✄✟✘ ☛✁ ✭✟✁✙ ✓✔☎✆ ✕✟✖ ✕ ✌✮✯ ✛✁✂✡✟☛✆✆✎ ✙✕✄☛✆✖
☛✍✆☞✑✎✆ ✁✡☛ ☛✍✆✎✆ ✕✟✖ ✕✛✕✄✂✕★✂✆ ✄✥ ✙✆ downstream in a jet boat owned by
ever need them again.”
☛✍✆ ✩✕✂✂✁✙✕ ✠✁✡✟☛☞ ✌✍✆✎✄✏✑✒ ✓✔☎✆
While the swift water team was at ☛✁ ✆✟✒✡✎✆ ☛✍✆ ✎✆✒☎✡✆✎✒✑ ✒✕✥✆☛☞✢
work in its bright red boat, members
✣✰✍✆✎✆ ✙✆✎✆✟✑☛ ✕✟☞ ✕☎☛✄✛✄☛✄✆✒ ☛✍✕☛
✥✎✁✚ ✞✟✄✁✟ ✠✁✡✟☛☞✑✒ ✌✮✯ ☛✆✕✚ were just search and rescue,” Vora
controlled the vessel with ropes
and pulleys as LGFD members
watched from above in the basket
✁✥ ✕ ✧✎✆ ☛✎✡☎✭ ✂✕✖✖✆✎ ☛✍✕☛ ✍✕✖ ★✆✆✟
continuing the process
would have meant the
City of Union would have
had to spend additional
money on legal fees.
The Oregon Ethics
Commission began an
investigation into Pat-
☛✆✎✒✁✟✑✒ ✆☛✍✄☎✒ ☎✁✚✦✂✕✄✟☛
after conducting its pre-
liminary review. The re-
sults of the preliminary
review were evaluated by
the commission, and on
Nov. 17, 2017, it voted to
launch an investigation.
The investigation was
later put on hold when
Patterson and the Union
City Council agreed to be-
gin negotiating a settle-
ment.
The mayor also said it
is important for people to
realize that the members
✁✥ ✞✟✄✁✟✑✒ ☎✄☛☞ ☎✁✡✟☎✄✂ ✕✎✆
not legal experts.
“We are laymen,” Flint
said.
Had a settlement not
been reached, the Ethics
Commission would have
completed its investigation,
after which the case would
have been dismissed or a
hearing would have been
conducted before an ad-
ministrative law judge, ac-
cording to an Oregon Ethics
Flint said the process
the city council has gone
through as a result of
the ethics complaint has
been informative and will
prove beneficial as the
council moves forward.
The teamwork from all agencies
made for an “almost seamless”
▲▼▲▼◆ ❖P ◗❘❙ ❯ ❲❳❩❬❭❪ ❘❫❴❵
Contact Amanda Weisbrod at
541-963-3161 or at aweisbrod@
lagrandeobserver.com.
cessories to determine
whether or not they are
constitutional. The ordi-
nance makes “unconsti-
tutional in Union County
any law or regulation
that restricts a person
✥✎✁✚ ✦✁✒✒✆✒✒✄✟✘ ✧✎✆ -
arms, ammunition and
✧✎✆✕✎✚✒ ✕☎☎✆✒✒✁✎✄✆✒✝✜ ✕☎ -
cording to the text of the
measure.
After the ordinance
was put on the ballot
and passed by voters,
☛✍✆ ✚✆✕✒✡✎✆✑✒ ☎✍✄✆✥ ✦✆ -
titioner, Ken Wisdom,
found a similar ordi-
nance passed by another
county with more spe-
cific language that he
feels would further pro-
tect the Second Amend-
ment in Union County.
He proposed making
significant changes to
the ordinance such as
identifying the county
ÝØÔÞÕÔ
rests in the case.
Continued from Page 1A
made based on an indict-
ment issued by a Union
County Grand Jury af-
ter an investigation by
the Union County Major
Crimes Team. The Ma-
jor Crimes Team consists
of members from the
×ãØäßå
Continued from Page 1A
✧✎✆✕✎✚✒ ✁✎ ✧✎✆✕✎✚✒ ✕☎ -
Ù ✁☛✍
charges of murder.
✌✍✆✎✄✏ Ù ✁☞✖ ✯✕✒✚✡✒ -
sen said the two were ac-
quaintances but would not
further elaborate on the re-
lationship between Hamil-
ton and Lee.
Rasmussen declined to
comment on the reason
✕✎✎✆✒☛✒
as a Second Amendment
Sanctuary county and
adding language stating
that local governments
have the “legal author-
ity to refuse to cooperate
with state and federal
firearm laws that violate
(Second Amendment)
rights.”
The commissioners de-
✟✄✆✖ ✩✄✒✖✁✚✑✒ ✎✆ â ✡✆✒☛✝
saying the ordinance
cannot be changed un-
less it goes onto the bal-
lot again.
In November, The Ob-
✙✆✎✆ server reported Loretta
Williams called 911 to re-
port a man in her back-
yard at approximately
1:40 a.m. The dispatchers
heard her confront the
man and then heard a loud
noise. Deputies and troop-
ers arrived within minutes
and found Williams dead
of one or more apparent
gunshot wounds.
Lee and Williams were
married until July 2018, ac-
cording to court records.
✞✟✄✁✟ ✠✁✡✟☛☞ ✌✍✆✎✄✏✑✒
✓✔☎✆✝ ☛✍✆ Û ✕ Ü ✎✕✟✖✆ ✁ -
✥✁✎ Ú ✕✚✄✂☛✁✟✑✒ ✂✕☛✆✎ ✕✎✎✆✒☛ lice Department, the Or-
☛✍✕✟ Û ✆✆✑✒✢
egon State Police and the
Ú ✆ ✖✄✖ ☎✁✟✧✎✚ ☛✍✆✎✆ Union County District At-
would be no further ar- ☛✁✎✟✆☞✑✒ ✓✔☎✆✢
❤✐ ❥❦❧♠♥♦
❧♣qr ❦♦s❧t❦
➢➤➥➦➧➦➥ ➨➩➫➭➯➲➳➵➭
➸➺➸➻➼➸➽ ➾➸➻➚➪➶➹➘➴➶➽ ➴➷➬➹➴➶➽ ➪➮➸➚➴➽ ➱➴➶➘➸➶➸
◆❖P◗❘ ❙ ❚❯❱❱❯❲❳ ❨❩❬❯❭❬ ❪❲❫❴❵❛❜❝❴❜❫❳❜❫❝ ❛❯❴❵ ❞❡❝❴ ❢❳❜ ◗❩❱❱❣
è éêëì ìíîïïðñðòë ó ôõö÷ø ùúûüýõýúþü
ÿ ✁✂✄☎✆✝✆✂✞☎ ✟ ✠✡✠☛☞✡ ☛✌ ✍✎✞✍✏✑✝✒✎✓✁
✉✉✉✈✇①②③①④⑤⑥①⑦⑧⑨③⑥⑩①❶③✈❷⑨❸
✔✕✖✗✘✙ ✚✛ ✜✚✙✢✣✤ ✥✦ ✧ ★✩✪✙✫ ✜✚✙✢ ✬✚✣✪✤ ✭✮✯
✰✚✣✪✤ ✭✦✱✯ ✲✳✴✵✶ ✷ ✸✹✵✶✺✸✴✻✼✽✺ ✾✿❀✶ ✼✵✸❁✴✾✼✵❂ ❃❄✾✶❅❆
è éêëê ❇❈❇ ëðïéíî ❉ ó ôõö÷ø ùúûüýõýúþü
ÿ ☞ ✁✂✄☎✆✝✆✂✞☎ ✟ ✠✡✌✠❊✡☛❊❋ ✍✎✞✍✏✑✝✒✎✓✁
●❍■✘✤ ✥❏✥ ✲✷❅✥✦❑❏✥❑❆ ✰✚✣✪✤ ✮❏ ✥❏✥▲ ✭✮▼✯✦✯
❹❺❻❼
❽❾❿❽➀➁➂❾
❼➂➁➃➀❺➄❺➅➆
❽❿❽➇➄❽➈➄➂
➍➎➏ ➐➎➑➒➓
❃❄ ❅❄❇❈❉❈❄❇❈❄❊
❅❄■●❍❛❄❏❈ ❃❑❈❄❏②
➇➓➍➇➔➔➇→➐ ➋➇➒➣➎➍➇ ↔↕➙➊↔↔➛➜
search and rescue operation in re-
gard to the safety of the rescuers,
Thomas said, even though they
were not able to recover the body.
“All of the agencies worked re-
ally well together. We even talked
about having additional training in
the future,” he said. “We came up
with a plan, and everybody went
home safe.”
said. “Everything was a combina-
☛✄✁✟ ✆✏✁✎☛ ★☞ ✕✂✂ ☛✆✕✚✒ ✄✟✛✁✂✛✆✖✢✜
✠✁✚✚✄✒✒✄✁✟ ✒☛✕✏ ✚✆✚★✆✎✢
➆➇➇➈ ➉ ➊➋➋➌➍➎➏➐➇➋ ➑➌➒
❶❷❸❹❺❻ ❼❽❾❿❻➀
extended over the rapids, and a ma-
rine deputy from the Union County
❽➁❾➉➊➋➌❼❻❻
✃❐❒❮ ❰ÏÐ❐Ñ ÒÓÔÓÕÖ×ØÔÙÚ×ÛÔÜÝ ÜÞ Ô×ÕÕ ßàáâã äååæâçáá
➝➇➈➎➍➏➒➇➞ ➊➟➐➌➞ ➠➌➡➇
➎→➋➟➒➏→➍➇ ➏→➈ ➊→→➟➎➐➎➇➋
❜❝❞❡❢❣❜❡❞❤✐❝
❥♦❦❦ ❧♠♥♥ ♣qrssqtrtq♣✉t✈ ✇✇✇①♠♥♥③q④⑤⑥⑦♠⑧⑤⑨♥①⑤♥⑩
➁❻➂❷➃ ➄❻❻➅