Wildlife vs. weather
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LG police offi cer honored, 2A
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SATURDAY– MONDAY • February 20, 2021 • $1.50
Good day to our valued subscriber Anna Brown of La Grande
Umatilla
County baby
dies with
COVID-19
Former
sheriff
done with
policing
Union County cases
creep up; La Grande
School District boss
urges diligence
By PHIL WRIGHT
The Observer
everyone is not wearing a mask,”
Matt Gerber said.
Rwandans also are screened
for COVID-19 many times a day.
“Every time you walk into a
bank, a grocery store or a hotel
your temperature is taken,” Matt
Gerber said.
There also are many random
checks. Lou Gerber noted he
UNION COUNTY — Boyd
Rasmussen no longer can be a law
enforcement offi cer in Oregon.
And from the account he pro-
vided to the Oregon Department
of Public Safety Standards and
Training, he no longer wants to.
The former sheriff
of Union County sur-
rendered all of his
police certifi cations
in January to the
Oregon Department
Rasmussen of Public Safety Stan-
dards and Training,
according to public records The
Observer obtained.
The Observer tried to con-
tact Rasmussen, but he has
not responded to requests for
comments.
Rasmussen signed a stipula-
tion with the DPSST on Jan. 6 and
stated his days in policing were
over.
“I am retiring from law
enforcement,” he stated per
the agreement, “and have been
offered a position with (a) com-
pany which will not require a law
enforcement certifi cation.”
He also was critical of the
Oregon Department of Justice’s
investigation into him for alle-
gations of public corruption and
misuse of public funds.
The justice department inves-
tigated Rasmussen based on alle-
gations he misused his offi ce,
including for creating an informal
contract in 2011 to provide the
town of Elgin with police services
and accepting more than $7,000
in that deal while he received his
sheriff’s salary.
“The DOJ investigation was
based upon many false state-
ments made by former disgrun-
tled employees during my reelec-
tion campaign. I was hopeful
they would conduct a speedy and
fair investigation which in my
humble opinion did not occur,”
Rasmussen stated in the agree-
ment. “The investigation started
in the early spring of 2019 and
concluded, unfortunately, approx-
imately one-and-a-half years
See, Mission/Page 5A
See, Sheriff/Page 5A
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
UMATILLA COUNTY —
Oregon’s fi rst COVID-19-re-
lated death of a child between
0-9 years old has occurred —
an infant boy from Umatilla
County.
The Oregon Health
Authority in a press release on
Thursday, Feb. 18, reported
the infant boy tested positive
for COVID-19 on Jan. 17, and
died that same day at Kadlec
Regional Medical Center in
Richland, Washington. The
OHA reported the child had
unspecifi ed underlying health
conditions.
“Every death from
COVID-19 is a tragedy, even
more so the death of a child,”
Dr. Dean Sidelinger, OHA’s
health offi cer and state epi-
demiologist, said in a press
release. “The death of an infant
is extremely rare. This news
represents a tremendous loss
to the mother and family. My
thoughts are with them during
this diffi cult time.”
Children who contract
COVID-19 are less likely to
develop severe symptoms than
adults, but they are still at
risk, Sidelinger said. The state
encourages all parents with
children who test positive and
develop certain symptoms to
seek emergency medical care.
Those symptoms include
troubled breathing, constant
pain or pressure in the chest,
new feelings of confusion,
being unable to wake up or
stay awake when not tired and
bluish lips or face, OHA said.
“We have all worked
together for nearly a year in
Oregon to protect the lives of
those we hold most dear,” said
Gov. Kate Brown. “The loss of
a life so young is an indescrib-
able tragedy for a family. Dan
and I send our thoughts and
condolences to the mother and
family of this child, whose grief
must be unimaginable in this
moment. The hearts of all Ore-
gonians are with you today.”
Children with certain
underlying medical conditions,
as well as infants younger
than 1 year old, could be at
increased risk for developing
severe symptoms. Most chil-
dren who have experienced
severe illness from COVID-19
have had underlying medical
conditions, according to the
See, Virus/Page 5A
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Lou Gerber, 65, poses for a portrait Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021, in front of a wall of former masters of the
lodge at the Freemason’s Lodge in La Grande. Gerber became a master of the lodge a day before his trip
to Rwanda to train local residents on CPR and fi rst aid as well as to deliver medical supplies.
On a medical mission
Reflecting on a service trip not to be forgotten
By DICK MASON
The Observer
Rwanda is a medical paradox.
The east African nation of
13.1 million has one of the lowest
COVID-19 death rates in the
world yet the availability of basic
medical equipment is limited.
Lou Gerber of La Grande
understands this well. The
retired Oregon National
Guardsman, who served as a
medic in Iraq in 2003 and 2004,
returned after a two-week trip in
December 2020 to Rwanda with
his son Matt, who grew up in La
Grande but now lives in Dallas,
Texas.
Lou Gerber gained a fi rst-
hand glimpse of Rwanda’s med-
ical system while teaching a
CPR and fi rst aid class to 38
fi rst responders and providing
them with donated medical sup-
plies. Gerber was jolted to fi nd
many medical professionals in
Rwanda have no stethoscopes,
blood pressure cuffs or pulse
oximeters, which measure blood
oxygen levels.
“Nurses did not have these,”
Gerber said. “It was very
surprising.”
On the other end of the med-
Alex Wittwer/The Observer
Lou Gerber demonstrates how to administer CPR with his set of
ACTAR training dummies. Gerber has kept the set for nearly 40 years
and has used them to train others in CPR.
ical spectrum, Gerber said
Rwanda’s government is diligent
in its efforts to limit the spread
of COVID-19.
“It is very meticulous about
protecting the population,”
Gerber said.
Gerber’s son agreed,
explaining that people must wear
masks at almost all times, even
when in vehicles.
“You will get pulled over if
Delays have redistricting,
bills up against deadlines
With some exceptions, bills that don’t make
key legislative deadline die automatically
By GARY WARNER
Oregon Capital Bureau
SALEM — After a dou-
ble-dose of winter storms across
the Willamette Valley knocked
out power to hundreds of thou-
sands from Portland to Salem,
state government is trying to thaw
out a few hot issues.
Redistricting delay
Oregon should know by April
30 if it will be adding a sixth con-
gressional seat for the 2022 elec-
tion. Census offi cials have unof-
fi cially said Oregon’s population
growth has been enough to ensure
the state’s fi rst new seat in 40 years.
The new added representation
in Congress would be a rare piece
INDEX
Classified ...... 2B
Comics .......... 5B
Crossword .... 2B
Dear Abby .... 6B
Horoscope .... 3B
Letters ........... 4A
Lottery........... 3A
Obituaries ..... 3A
TUESDAY
Opinion ......... 4A
Outdoors ...... 1B
State .............. 6A
Sudoku ......... 5B
of good news in an otherwise
disastrous roll-out of U.S. Census
information needed for reappor-
tionment. Oregon Legislature’s
60 House and 30 Senate seats also
will need new boundaries. Data to
redraw the maps was due April 1
— but census offi cials now say it
won’t arrive until Sept. 30 — six
months late.
“The biggest reason? COVID-
19. It’s something beyond the
Census Bureau’s control,” Kath-
leen Styles, the census bureau’s
top redistricting offi cial, said last
week.
State offi cials need the data to
draw districts that meets federal
and state civil rights guidelines.
The late September delivery
date is 45 days after Oregon’s
WEATHER
EO Media Group, File
In an effort to “preserve public access” to the Oregon Legislature, the
House Republican leader urged the House Speaker Tuesday, Feb. 16,
2021, to pause the virtual 2021 session during mass power outages
across the state. Friday, Feb. 19, was the deadline for drafted bills to
be sent from staff to lawmakers.
self-imposed deadline for submit-
ting maps. The mess will land in
the Oregon Supreme Court, which
will referee whether the Legis-
lature gets a shot at reapportion-
ment, it goes to the secretary of
state or some other result.
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Sunday
30 LOW
41/33
Some clouds
Rain and snow
SHERIFF CODY BOWEN
Big population increases over
the past decade will add legisla-
tive districts to Central Oregon
and Portland suburbs. Lawmakers
and potential challengers won’t
See, Bills/Page 5A
CONTACT US
541-963-3161
Issue 22
2 sections, 12 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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