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About The Observer. (La Grande, Or.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (July 18, 2020)
STATE SATURDAY, JULY 18, 2020 THE OBSERVER — 7A Oregon offi cials decry arrests by federal agents in Portland By Andrew Selsky and Gillian Flaccus Associated Press PORTLAND — Federal agents in green camoufl age uniforms have been taking people into custody in the streets of Portland, not close to federal property they were sent to protect, in what the ACLU on Friday said “should concern everyone in the United States.” “Usually when we see people in unmarked cars forcibly grab someone off the street we call it kidnap- ping,” said Jann Carson, interim executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Ore- gon.”The actions of the mil- itarized federal offi cers are fl at-out unconstitutional and will not go unanswered.” Gov. Kate Brown said President Donald Trump, who deployed Department of Homeland Security offi - cers to Portland, is looking for a confrontation in the hopes of winning political points elsewhere. The Democratic gov- ernor on Thursday called the actions “a blatant abuse of power by the federal gov- ernment.” Her spokesman, Charles Boyle, said Friday that arresting people without probable cause is “extraordinarily concerning and a violation of their civil liberties and constitutional rights.” Federal offi cers have charged at least 13 people with crimes related to the protests so far, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported Thursday. Some have been detained by the federal courthouse, which has been the scene of pro- In southern Oregon, someone has been shooting cars on I-5 By Ryan Pfeil Mail Tribune via AP StoryShare ROSEBURG — Bul- lets have struck at least fi ve vehicles on Interstate 5 between Merlin and Roseburg since mid-May, Oregon State Police reported Wednesday. The latest one occurred July 9, Oregon State Police Lt. Stephanie Bigman said in a tele- phone interview. “We may have more up there we just don’t know about,” she said. As of Thursday, OSP still had little to go on. The caliber of the bullets is under investigation, and it’s not known whether the shots were fi red from another vehicle or from a spot along the freeway. The impacts occurred somewhere along a 33-mile stretch between mileposts 67 and 100, according to OSP. “That’s what we’ve got right now is a rough esti- mate,” Bigman said. That estimate is based on sounds the drivers of the vehicles that were struck heard, followed by the discovery of damage down the road. There’s been no apparent pattern to the incidents. Two of the vehi- cles were commercial trucks and three were pas- senger vehicles. “It’s been fairly random as far as the types of vehi- cles that have been struck, the time of day the vehi- cles have been struck, the direction that the vehi- cles have been traveling,” Bigman said. No injuries or deaths have been reported so far. Most of the vehicles were passing through to another destination, which com- pounds the diffi culty in narrowing down the loca- tions where the impacts occurred. “They hear a noise. They’re like, ‘I ran over something.’ They go up the road, maybe pull in a gas station and they’re like, ‘Hey, look, there’s a hole,’” Bigman said. “So they don’t know exactly where they were hit.” Four vehicles were hit once, and one had two bullet holes, Bigman said. Damage includes a fl at- tened tire on a passenger vehicle, a pierced coolant hose on a semi and the loss of power steering on another. For some vehicles, the damage was identifi ed quickly. Others took a while. The driver of the semi with the pierced coolant hose didn’t discover the bullet hole until reaching California. “We’ve gone back and been able to take photos and stuff like that of the bullet holes and deter- mine that they are truly bullet holes,” Bigman said. “But, again, it’s diffi cult, because people aren’t reg- istering exactly what is happening at the time, and they’re not from here.” OSP is asking the public to call if they believe their vehicle was struck on the freeway. State police also ask residents living near the I-5 corridor who hear random gunshots to call the OSP Southern Com- mand Center at 1-800-442- 2068 or *OSP. The case number is SP20-173444. Photo by Beth Nakamura/The Oregonian via AP Police stand as protesters gather during a demonstration, Thursday in Portland. Federal offi cers deployed tear gas and fi red less-lethal rounds into a crowd of protesters late Thursday. The actions came just hours after the head of the Department of Homeland Security called the protest- ers “violent anarchists.” tests. But others were grabbed blocks away. One video showed two people in helmets and green camoufl age with “police” patches grabbing a person on the sidewalk, hand- cuffi ng them and taking them into an unmarked vehicle. “Who are you?” someone asks the pair, who do not respond. At least some of the federal offi cers belong to the Department of Homeland Security. “Authoritarian gov- ernments, not democratic republics, send unmarked authorities after protesters,” Democratic U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley said in a tweet. The Council on Amer- ican-Islamic Relations Oregon chapter said in a statement: “We are now seeing escalating tac- tics with protesters being unlawfully detained by unknown Federal law enforcement entities.” U.S. Attorney Billy Williams in Portland said Friday that, based on news accounts that allege federal law enforcement detained two protesters without prob- able cause, he has requested the Department of Home- land Security Offi ce of the Inspector General to inves- tigate the actions of DHS personnel. Oregon’s two senators and two of its House mem- bers announced they will be asking the DHS inspector general, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice, to investigate “the unre- quested presence and vio- lent actions of federal forces in Portland.” Thursday night, federal offi cers deployed tear gas and fi red less-lethal rounds into a crowd of protesters, hours after the the head of the Department of Home- land Security visited the city and called the demon- strators, who are protesting racism and police brutality, “violent anarchists.” State fair canceled, but corn dogs available By Jake Thomas Salem Reporter via AP StoryShare SALEM — Like almost all summer outdoor events, the Oregon State Fair is canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But those missing elephant ears, turkey legs and other grease or sugar-laden sta- ples sold at the annual event are in luck. A fair vendor has opened a drive-thru at the fairgrounds offering corn- dogs, elephant ears, lem- onade and other classics throughout the summer. Brian Bradbury, the operations manager at Pacifi c Rim Food and Beverage, said this year was supposed to be the fi rst year his company operated the food booths scattered throughout the fairgrounds. But in May, Brad- bury got word the fair had been canceled due to the pandemic. “It was just unbeliev- able,” said Bradbury, who can’t remember the Oregon State Fair ever being canceled while growing up in Salem. While the fairgrounds were temporarily con- verted into a hospital, he recalled talking with co-workers and coming up with the idea for a drive-thru selling fried Twinkies, mounds of curly fries and other fare. So the Taste of a Fair drive-thru was launched three weeks ago with plans for it to remain open through Labor Day when the Oregon State Fair would normally end. The drive-thru is open on Fri- days from 4-8 p.m. and on weekends from 12-8 p.m. Bradbury said his com- pany will come up with a new specialty each week. There are plans to serve turkey legs and “donut dogs,” hotdogs encased in maple bars. He also said there have been weekly variations on curly fries that have included garlic and pulled pork. Bradbury said orders are completed with social distancing mea- sures in place and cus- tomers don’t get out their cars to receive their bas- kets of food. He said some hungry customers will park in the lot in front of the fairgrounds and eat right there. “People are absolutely thrilled by it,” he said. “It’s been awesome to see.” He said one challenge has been fi nding ways to package three-pound orders of curly fries and other jumbo-sized food not intended to be a to-go item. “It’s big and it’s bulky,” he said. “It’s not like wrapping up a little ham- burger and french fries.” Kim Grewe-Powell, the fair’s interim CEO, said in an email it has been exciting to see the Taste of a Fair help fi ll the void after the fair was canceled. Grande Ronde Hospital and Clinics proudly welcomes: David Ingram, MD To the Grande Ronde Hospital team as a Emergency Department Physician Join us in welcoming Dr. David Ingram to the Grande Ronde Valley! Dr. Ingram has spent the last two years in Temple, Texas, where he completed his residency after finishing medical school at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Prior to medical school, Dr. Ingram received his Master’s degree as well as his undergraduate degree from the University of Connecticut and Utah State University, respectively. He also spent two years serving a church mission in Taipei, Taiwan. Dr. Ingram and his family enjoy the outdoors through hiking, skiing, photography, and general recreational travel. In his free time, he also enjoys wood working and furniture building. Dr. Ingram looks forward to working alongside the Emergency Department team to care for you when you need us most. Grande Ronde Hospital David Ingram, MD 900 Sunset Drive, La Grande • grh.org Learn more about Dr. Ingram in our online Provider Directory at www.grh.org today! Boardman to Hemingway: POWERING POSSIBILITIES Bringing jobs and opportunities to eastern Oregon for years to come. The Boardman to Hemingway (B2H) transmission line will bring jobs to eastern Oregon, add millions of dollars to the yearly tax base, spur economic opportunities and support energy entrepreneurs. b2hline.com
