REGION
THURSDAY, JULY 28, 2022
THE OBSERVER — A3
Judge: Trial against ex-cop can continue
Child neglect charges against ex-Grant County
deputy tossed but trial can proceed on other counts
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
CANYON CITY — After
more than a month of deliberating,
a Grant County Circuit Court
judge has tossed out misdemeanor
charges against a former Grant
County sheriff ’s deputy but ruled
that trial can proceed on three
felony counts.
In a written ruling issued
Monday, July 18, Circuit Court
Judge Dan Bunch stated he would
dismiss four counts of child neglect
but not charges of fourth-degree
assault, attempted fi rst-degree rape
and attempted fi rst-degree sex
abuse against Tyler Smith.
The ruling comes in response
to a motion by Smith’s attorneys
to dismiss all the charges against
him, which they alleged were part
of a plot by former Grant County
Sheriff Glenn Palmer, other sher-
iff ’s offi ce employees and Smith’s
accuser to get him fi red and
prosecuted.
Smith was arrested on Sept. 9,
2019, and then fi red by the Grant
County Sheriff ’s Offi ce on Dec. 17,
2019, several months before having
an opportunity to enter a not guilty
plea on April 30, 2020.
Smith’s trial was slated to begin
in late October of 2021. How-
ever, it was abruptly put on hold to
give defense attorneys time to sift
through hundreds of pages of dis-
covery materials fi led just one day
earlier by the prosecution.
The evidence in question
included documents and internal
reports from the Grant County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce.
Additionally, there were two
recorded interviews with Smith’s
accuser, including one in which
she acknowledged placing a
tracking device on Smith’s vehicle
and keeping the Grant County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce informed of his
whereabouts.
In his ruling, Bunch writes
that Smith’s accuser created
“proof problems” for the prosecu-
tion by not disclosing the alleged
assault when she was asked by law
enforcement whether there was
reason to be concerned regarding
Smith’s potential for violence.
However, the judge writes, it
“simply strains logic” to believe
that Smith’s accuser and the Grant
County Sheriff ’s Offi ce colluded to
make a false accusation of assault
to further her goals and those of
the sheriff ’s offi ce.
Bunch adds that he stopped
short of concluding that law
enforcement deliberately withheld
evidence that could be used by the
defense to exonerate Smith.
However, in the child neglect
case, the questions become more
complicated.
While the judge disagreed
with the defense that internal
investigations were being con-
ducted to develop evidence in
the assault case, he was “con-
vinced” that some of the eff orts in
the investigation were intended to
prove that Smith left his children
unaccompanied.
Bunch wrote that he was “par-
ticularly disturbed” that the sher-
iff ’s offi ce became aware that
Smith’s accuser was tracking him
and continued to receive informa-
tion from her.
“While the court does not
believe law enforcement encour-
aged (Smith’s accuser) to track
the defendant,” Bunch wrote,
“law enforcement became com-
plicit once the knowledge was
obtained.”
Finally, the document con-
taining Smith’s “Garrity” warning,
which Palmer used to conduct an
administrative interview regarding
the charges of child neglect,
stated specifi cally that the inter-
view would not be used as part of
a criminal investigation. Palmer,
during the evidentiary hearing on
the motion to dismiss the charges
against Smith, testifi ed that he
shared portions of that inter-
view with Gretchen Ladd-Dobler,
Wheeler County’s district attorney
and one of the special prosecutors
in Smith’s case.
“Sheriff Palmer’s informing the
Steven Mitchell/Blue Mountain Eagle, File
Tyler Smith appears in Grant County
Circuit Court on Wednesday, April 20,
2022. A Grant County Circuit Court
judge earlier this month dismissed four
counts of child neglect but not charges
of fourth-degree assault, attempted
fi rst-degree rape and attempted fi rst-
degree sex abuse against the former
Grant County sheriff ’s deputy.
prosecutor of the defendant’s story
regarding his absences is clearly
violative of this provision and is
disturbing,” Bunch wrote. “Con-
sequently, the court orders that the
child neglect charge be dismissed
in the interest of justice.”
How we got here
Smith maintains that the crim-
inal charges against him were part
of a plan by former Grant County
Sheriff Glenn Palmer, Under-
sheriff Zach Mobley, Mobley’s
wife, Abigail, and Grant County
Sheriff ’s Sgt. Danny Komning,
Abigail Mobley’s older brother, to
have him removed from the sher-
iff ’s offi ce and get him arrested.
That plan, Smith asserts, was
in retaliation for allegations Smith
made to the Oregon Department
of Justice on July 31, 2019, that
Abigail Mobley had used illegal
drugs and had a sexual relation-
ship with an inmate incarcerated
for drug crimes while she was a
jail deputy with the Grant County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce.
Smith also argues that his
accuser was a close friend of the
Mobleys and Komning.
After a 21-month investiga-
tion found that Abigail Mobley
committed eight violations of the
department’s code of conduct,
ranging from abuse of her position
to conduct unbecoming an offi cer
and neglect of duty, she resigned
from the sheriff ’s offi ce on Dec.
26, 2021, following a 30-day
suspension.
Abigail Mobley, who was on
paid leave throughout the investi-
gation, was not found to have used
illegal drugs.
What’s next
Smith’s trial on the assault,
attempted rape and attempted
sex abuse charges is scheduled to
begin on Oct. 24 in Grant County
Circuit Court.
The 12-person jury trial is
expected to last 14 days, according
to court documents.
Two ambulance services in Morrow County fi ght it out on Facebook
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
BOARDMAN —
Morrow County Health
District and Boardman Fire
Rescue District on Monday,
July 25, threw social medial
jabs at each other over who
can handle emergency calls
for ambulance service.
Morrow County Health
District in a post on Face-
book contended the Ambu-
lance Service Area Plan for
the county designates the
health district as the ambu-
lance service provider for
all of Morrow County, and
Boardman Fire has been
ignoring that.
“BFRD is engaging in
a practice known as call
jumping, where multiple
providers responded to a
single incident,” according
to the health district’s post.
“In Oregon, call jumping is
illegal. The state of Oregon
has determined that this
practice presents risks to
the public and patients that
do not outweigh the bene-
fi ts of the action.”
The health district and
the Morrow County EMS
Advisory Committee on
April 27 even issued a
determination against
Boardman Fire and Rescue
District Chief Michael
Hughes’ request to
change the plan and allow
Boardman Fire to respond
to all calls within its dis-
trict, which covers an area
of 330 square miles.
That determination
also called out Boardman
Fire District for “a failure
to adhere to appropriate
protocol and procedure,”
which included “patient
confi dentiality violations in
public forums,” members
of the fi re district “dispar-
aging health district ambu-
lance crew in public” and
“engaging in a public cam-
paign to undermine the rep-
utation” of Morrow County
ambulance staff and the
health district board.
The determination also
shot down Hughes’ request
because one of the “over-
riding reasons” for the
request was about funding
rather than public safety.
In spite of the health
district’s determination,
Boardman Fire has con-
tinued to respond to all
calls.
Ken Browne, chair of
the Boardman Fire Rescue
District, fi red back on
Facebook.
“In Boardman Fire’s
case, it is properly
responding because it is
a Quick Response Team
agency. In March 2020, the
Health District was taking
over 7 minutes to respond
to 911 emergency medical
calls, when the accepted
National average is 60 sec-
onds. In an eff ort to provide
quicker patient care (within
the County’s ASA Plan)
and to also be in align-
ment with the Governor’s
Covid response State of
Emergency, Boardman Fire
requested their dispatch
center, Morrow County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce, to page us
for all medical emergen-
cies. The Sheriff ’s dispatch
center has been doing so
since March 2020.”
Browne also stated
while the Oregon Health
Authority has approved the
ASA Plan, the county has
yet to adopt it.
Browne then took a shot
at Emily Roberts, CEO of
Morrow County Health
District.
“However, Since
becoming CEO of the
Health District, Emily
Roberts has been on a mis-
sion to keep Boardman
Fire from doing what we
have been trained and cer-
tifi ed to do. It should also
be noted that the EMS
Advisory Committee
is 80% Health District
employees,” according to
Browne’s post.
Morrow County Health
District spokesperson
Scott Gallagher explained
Hughes is not looking to
partner with the health
district but instead take it
over and the funding that
goes with it.
Umatilla County has the 2nd highest rate of
COVID-19 cases among Oregon counties
By JOHN TILLMAN
East Oregonian
PENDLETON —
Morrow County on Monday,
July 25, reported three new
deaths from COVID-19,
bringing its total to 37 and
its case rate to a high 301
per 100,000 people in its
population, according to the
Oregon Health Authority.
The state rate was 190 and
Multnomah County’s 158 on
July 20.
Umatilla County’s last
recorded death attributed
to COVID-19 occurred
June 16, Marlee Goodnight,
health department commu-
nications coordinator, said.
“Death reports continue
to trickle in from the mas-
sive January surge,” she
said. “Most fatalities are
among the old.”
Despite no deaths
this month to date, total
recorded COVID-19 mor-
tality in Umatilla County
grew from 229 in early July
to 235 by July 25.
Umatilla County had the
second highest COVID-19
case rate among Oregon
counties as of July 20,
with 29,606 per 100,000
population.
At 31,773, Jeff erson
County was fi rst and its
neighbor Crook third, at
27,160, in Oregon Health
Authority data. Malheur and
Deschutes counties rounded
East Oregonian, File
Maria Ugarte, right, looks away Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, as she receives
her second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine from Sergio Gonzalez, a
licensed practical nurse, during a vaccination clinic in Hermiston.
out the top fi ve, followed by
Grant, Morrow and Harney.
The only western Oregon
county in the top 10 was
Linn in ninth place, ahead
of Klamath.
With 294 fatalities per
100,000, Umatilla County
also reported a higher
than statewide average
rate of deaths attributed to
COVID-19.
During the week of
June 26 to July 2, 209
new COVID-19 cases
were reported in Umatilla
County. That number fell to
190 for July 3-9, and to 189
for July 10-16. Data were
not yet available for July
17-23 at press time.
OHA wastewater mon-
itoring for SARS-CoV-2
viral concentration showed
no change at Pendleton and
sustained decrease at Herm-
iston this month. Pendleton
was last sampled on July 11
and Hermiston on July 14.
Umatilla County’s
COVID-19 vaccination rate
of 60.4% of population aged
18 or older with at least one
dose remains below the
state median for 36 coun-
ties of about 69.5% and state
mean average of 84.6%.
Umatilla County had
a population of 80,075,
according to the 2020
census. Of that number,
40,853 individuals have
been vaccinated, equating
to 60.4% of those 18 or older
being vaccinated, as of July
18, according to the OHA.
In Umatilla County, of
people age 18 and older
14,567 have received a
booster dose. Those eli-
gible to receive a booster
dose but haven’t yet num-
An Independent
Insurance Agency
bered 18,260. Of those eli-
gible 44.4% have received
a booster. For comparison,
statewide 84.6% of those
over 18 have been vacci-
nated, and of those eligible
47.4% have been boosted,
Goodnight reported.
The OHA on July 20,
urged Oregonians in the
21 counties with high
COVID-19 cases and hos-
pitalizations to mask up,
warning the state’s hos-
pital system is again under
extreme strain.
“You still need to wear a
mask in health care settings
to keep everyone safe,” the
OHA’s website read.
The OHA emphasized
that data from Opera, Ore-
gon’s COVID-19 disease
surveillance system, are
provisional and subject to
change.
“Real Food for
the People”
Trusted Insurance Help Since 1994
Get Trusted,
Friendly, Expert
Medicare Insurance
Help
10106 North C St. • Island City
541-975-1364 • Toll Free 1-866-282-1925
www.reed-insurance.net
Open Class Static Entries
Will only be accepted on the following dates & times.
All static entries need to be dropped off at the Courtright Building
Open
Fri-Sun Take-out
Menu
5pm-8pm Updated
Weekly
www.tendepotstreet.com
541-963-8766
tendepotstreet@gmail.com
Sunday, July 31st
4:00 pm to 6:00 pm
Monday, August 1st
10:00 am to 6:00 pm
Tuesday, August 2nd
8:00 am to 10:00 am, Horticulture Only
Join us for the 150th Union County Fair!
Ask Us About Delivery
WE MAKE IT EASY with an online application
It’s easy to apply for a home mortgage loan at Allied Mortgage
Resource. Simply go to lagrandemannmortgage.com and complete an
application form. After we process your request, we will
contact you to meet with one of our financial officers.
We make it easy for you to start the
process of owning your own home.
1429 Adams Ave
La Grande, OR
541-962-7557
ELGIN ELECTRIC
43 N. 8th Elgin, OR 541-437-2054