FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2016
4 — THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS
Opinion / Local
— Guest Opinion —
Oregon FBI spreading The
word about cold case importance
of emergency
preparedness
By Sen. Ted Ferrioli
Submitted Photo.
Three sketches of a serial killer from California are being distributed across the
Pacific Northwest by various FBI departments.
The Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Sacramento
County Sheriff's Depart-
ment, Sacramento County
District Attorney's Office,
and Contra Costa Sheriff's
Department held a press
conference to announce
the launch of a reward
and national campaign to
help identify the East Area
Rapist/Golden State Killer,
a violent serial burglar,
rapist, and murderer who
terrorized multiple com-
munities in California
throughout the 1970s and
1980s.
The digital media cam-
paign includes the launch
of a webpage, www.fbi.
gov/EastAreaRapist digital
billboards throughout
the country; social me-
dia outreach on Twitter,
Facebook, and YouTube;
and audio broadcasts via
podcasts and radio PSAs.
The public can play an
active role in helping law
enforcement find the sub-
ject by sharing links to the
website and official social
media content.
Law enforcement asks
the public to consider the
following information
when reviewing informa-
tion about the case:
• Did they live in one of
the areas of criminal activ-
ity and remember someone
in the area who matches
the physical description
of the subject or may have
been known to spend a
considerable amount of
time in the areas?
• Have they discovered a
hidden collection of items
among the belongings of a
friend or family member-
-notably coins and jewelry-
-as described on the FBI
webpage about the crimes?
The subject, who may
be 60-75 years old now,
was described as a White
male standing approxi-
mately five feet, ten inches
tall, with blond or light
brown hair and an athletic
build. He may have had
an interest or training in
military or law enforce-
ment techniques as he was
familiar and proficient with
firearms.
People who know the
subject may not believe
him capable of such
crimes. He may not have
exhibited violent tenden-
cies or have a criminal
history.
Detectives have DNA
evidence from some of
the crime scenes which
can either positively link
or exclude a suspect. This
enables investigators to
quickly exclude innocent
parties and the public
should not hesitate to
provide information—even
if it is the name or ad-
dress of an individual who
resided in the areas of the
crimes—as many parties
will be quickly excluded
by a simple, non-invasive
test.
Between 1976 and 1986,
this single subject commit-
ted 12 homicides, approxi-
mately 45 rapes, and mul-
tiple residential burglaries
in the state of California.
All of the crimes have
been linked by DNA and/
or details of the crimes.
His victims ranged in age
from 13 to 41 and in-
cluded women home alone,
woman at home with their
children, and couples.
The subject was active
in the greater Sacramento
area from June 1976 to
February 1978.
Burglaries and rapes
began occurring in the
Sacramento area during the
summer of 1976. During
these crimes, the subject
would ransack the homes
of his victims and take
small items such as coins,
jewelry, and identification.
These cases include the
homes of families, couples,
and single women; burglar-
ies in a neighborhood
tended to precede clusters
of sexual assaults. On
February 2, 1978, Rancho
Cordova couple Sergeant
Brian Maggiore and his
wife, Katie, were on an
evening walk with their
dog, chased by the subject
who overcame the couple,
and shot at close range.
His activity continued
primarily in the East
Bay Area of Northern
California in 1979 and, by
October 1979, his activity
escalated into rapes and
homicides/attempted homi-
cides along the California
Coast with homicides in
Goleta (October 10, 1979,
December 3, 1979, and
July 27, 1981), Ventura
(March 16, 1980), Laguna
Niguel (August 19, 1980),
and Irvine (February 6,
1981 and May 5, 1986).
During the commission of
the homicides, the subject
tied up both victims, raped
the female victim, and then
murdered the couple.
After July of 1981, no
associated incidents are
known to have been report-
ed for five years. In 1986,
an 18-year-old woman was
raped and murdered in Ir-
vine. No additional crimes
have been connected to the
subject after this incident.
A graphic illustrating the
general location of these
crimes is available on the
FBI's webpage.
The following is a list-
ing of local law enforce-
ment agencies who have
investigated a crime
believed to have been com-
mitted by the subject and
the number of crimes in
their jurisdictions:
Agency Sex Assaults
Homicides
Sacramento County Sher-
iff's Department 24 2
Sacramento Police
Department 4 1 assault w/
deadly weapon
Contra Costa Sheriff's
Dept. 5 0
Concord Police Depart-
ment 2 0
Davis Police Department
3 0
Fremont Police Depart-
ment 1 0
Modesto Police Depart-
ment 2 0
San Jose Police Depart-
ment 2 0
Stockton Police Depart-
ment 2 0
Walnut Creek Police
Department 2 0
Irvine Police Department
0 2
Orange County Sheriff's
Dept. 0 2
Santa Barbara Co. Sher-
iff's Dept 0 4 +2 attempted
Ventura Police Depart-
ment 0 2
Law enforcement is
seeking any information
that may help identify the
subject, dubbed the "East
Area Rapist" in Sacra-
mento. He has also been
called the "Original Night
Stalker," "Diamond Knot
Killer," and, more recently,
the "Golden State Killer."
Individuals with informa-
tion about the subject may
call 1-800-CALL-FBI
(1-800-225-5324). Ad-
ditionally, information may
be submitted to the FBI's
online tip line, tips.fbi.gov.
Every year, the resilient people of
Senate District 30 face natural and
human-caused crises. This past year
alone we’ve faced wildfires, political
occupations, oil spills, and threats to
our rural way of life.
These challenges require Eastern Or-
egonians to be uniquely prepared for a
disaster to strike. We also rely on first
responders to quickly and effectively
address these crises.
Each time a crisis hits, I’m reminded
of how important is it to be prepared
to respond to an emergency at a mo-
ment’s notice:
On August 12, 2015, lightening
ignited the Berry Creek and Mason
Springs fires, which soon merged
to become the Canyon Creek Com-
plex fire. Within days Canyon Creek
Complex became the Number 1
priority fire in the nation. The fire was
declared controlled on November 5
after destroying 43 homes and burn-
ing more than 110,000 acres. Wildfires
like the Canyon Creek Complex fire
continually remind us that we need
responsible forest management to help
prevent these fires in future years.
The occupation of the Malheur
National Wildlife Refuge began on
January 2, 2016 and officially ended
February 11, 2016. Multiple agencies
responded to the occupation, and are
still investigating the outcomes. Local
law enforcement bravely stood up to
protect the people of Malheur County.
The small town of Mosier faced a
crisis when an oil train derailed, spill-
ing oil and sparking fire on June 3,
2016. Just weeks before this incident
first responders participated in a
training that simulated a train derail-
ment, and because of that training the
response in Mosier was quick and
effective. No lives were lost, and the
situation was swiftly contained.
The Owyhee Canyonlands National
Monument designation discussion
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Submitted Photo
Senator Ted Ferrioli represents
Oregon’s senate district 30, which
includes Baker County.
is an ongoing challenge in Eastern
Oregon.
In October 2015, community
members met to discuss the attempts
by environmental groups to pressure
President Obama to declare the area a
national monument before he leaves
office in 2017.
The Owyhee has already faced one
wildfire this year, which burned nearly
22,000 acres. The fire is contained, but
the debate regarding the monument
designation continues.
The Akawana fire is burning west
of Geneva. One of the first fires of the
season, it has burned 2,084 acres. The
fire is contained.
Now, the whole state faces the
challenge of lead in drinking water at
schools. All schools in the state will
be tested, and action will be taken to
ensure that our kids are drinking safe
water.
Schools across the state are also
receiving funds to seismically upgrade
facilities so that students and teachers
will be safer in the event of an earth-
quake.
I believe emergency preparedness
and response is the top function of
Government. Our leaders should also
be seeking ways to prevent these cri-
ses from happening.
Fortunately, last week people across
the state participated in a week-long
earthquake response training. It is re-
markable how much time and energy
we spend reacting to disasters.
I will continue to make protect-
ing Eastern Oregon from natural and
human-caused threats a top priority in
Salem so we can protect our rural way
of life and keep our communities safe
and healthy.
Opinions or Letters to the Editor express
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been authored by and are not necessarily
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“I’m working hard to
stop a potential national
monument of 2 million
acres in Eastern Oregon,
reduce federal overreach in
our rural communities, and
ensure multiple use of our
public lands. And I’ll do all
I can to fight terrorism and
keep America safe. Let me
know your views,” writes
Congressman Greg Walden
on his web site.
Walden poses two ques-
tions to the public in an
online survey:
• Do you think federal
government overreach has
become too harmful to our
rural communities?
• Do you think the fed-
eral government should be
more aggressive in fighting
terrorism and keeping us
safe, or do you think they
are doing all they can?
The survey can be found
at https://walden.house.
gov/eastern-oregon-sur-
vey-2016.
Space is also available
for the public to expand on
their opinions and leave
more comprehensive com-
ments during the survey
process.
202.456.1414
Whitehouse.gov/contact
US Sen. Jeff Merkley
503.326.3386
503.326.2900 fax
Merkley.Senate.gov
Phone: 541.519.0572
Walden launches survey
about public lands use
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