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Friday, August 18, 2017 • Volume 4, Issue 33
Council member’s
social media activity
shows graffiti affinity
Woman
jailed on
murder
charges
Photos courtesy of the Baker County Sheriff’s Offi ce.
Kira Vansickle.
• INFANT ASSAULTED IN 2014 PERISHES
IN 2016, NEW CHARGES FILED
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Social media screen captures legally reprinted per United States Copyright Law Fair Use Doctrine for News Reporting.
Four examples of dozens of social media posts under Council Member Adam Nilsson’s public Instagram
account, using his band’s name, Provolotus, which is also his screen name. The top left photo shows
Nilsson’s reaction after being appointed to Baker City Council. The top right and bottom left photos
document several prior trips to Lime and mocking local law enforcement. The fi nal photo takes credit for
graffi ti found inside the Baker City underpass. Obscenities have been redacted for print.
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
A look at publicly posted
social media activity by
embattled Baker Council
member Adam Nilsson
shows an extensive history
of spray painting graffi ti,
or tagging, in multiple
states—including several
trips to Lime.
On August 1 of this year,
Nilsson, age 46 of Hillcrest
Drive in Baker City, was
cited with criminal trespass
while in possession of a
fi rearm, and second degree
criminal mischief at the old
Lime plant near Hunting-
ton.
Nilsson’s companion,
Ashley Schroder, age 30
of Portland, was also cited
with trespass.
Sheriff Travis Ash said
the citation happened
while Deputy Gabe Maldo-
nado was on evening patrol
through the area, which
lies just off I-84—an area
that is part of that offi ce’s
contract with the City of
Huntington.
The property is a mix of
private- and County-owned
lands, visibly marked with
“No Trespassing” signs.
During that patrol, the
deputy spotted Nilsson’s
Friday
Sunny and hot. Highs near 90. Friday Night:
Mostly clear and seasonable. Lows near 50.
Saturday
Sunny and not as hot. Highs in the mid 80s.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear and seasonable.
Lows near 50.
Sunday
Mostly sunny and continued warm conditions.
Highs in the mid 80s. Sunday Night: Mostly
clear and seasonable. Lows in the upper 40s.
motorcycle (pictured
above) parked near the
plant.
Last week, information
from law enforcement
about the case was passed
to District Attorney Matt
Shirtcliff for review, and a
search warrant was served
at Nilsson’s address as part
of the ongoing investiga-
tion.
A fi nal list of charges has
not yet been released.
Following Nilsson’s ar-
rest, the Council member
lodged a verbal complaint
against the responding
deputy, and then publicly
carried those complaints
to media and other City
Councilors via email.
In that communication,
Nilsson confi rms both
that he was at Lime and
that he had spray cans of
paint with him there on his
motorcycle.
Nilsson writes, “I am, of
course, laser-focused on
the fact that a crime was
committed against me,
and then I had violence
and abuse done to me in
order to try to create a false
scenario where I am guilty
of crimes worthy of jail.
Jail. We are looking at jail
time.”
SEE NILSSON PAGE 5
The Fire, Weather & Avalanche Center forecast:
Our forecast made possible by
this generous sponsor:
Kira Vansickle, age 27 of Meridian, Idaho, is housed in
the Baker County Jail on charges of Murder, Manslaugh-
ter in the First Degree and Assault in the First Degree,
after turning herself in last Friday under an outstanding
Baker County Circuit Court warrant.
Vansickle was arraigned on those charges on Monday.
In September of 2014, Vansickle, then a Baker City
resident, was charged with assault and criminal mistreat-
ment after her eight-month-old infant niece suffered
severe abusive head injuries while in her care on Carter
Street.
The baby girl was Lifefl ighted to Boise, then eventu-
ally transferred to South Davis Community Hospital in
Bountiful, Utah with severe and permanent impairment.
A Baker County Grand Jury had previously indicted
Vansickle in June of 2015 for one count of Assault in the
First Degree and one count of Criminal Mistreatment in
the First Degree. Those charges alleged the Vansickle had
caused abusive the head trauma to the infant.
In June of 2016 the child passed away leading to the
new indictment.
According to District Attorney Matt Shirtcliff, a death
investigation was conducted by the Offi ce of the Medical
Examiner for Utah Department of Health. The Murder
charge alleges that Vansickle caused the death of a child
under the age of 14. Vansickle was held without bail. An
entry of plea date was set for September 25, 2017.
Forests prepare
for eclipse
visitors
As the August 21, 2017 solar eclipse gets closer, forest
offi cials on the Malheur, Umatilla and Wallowa-Whitman
National Forests are preparing for a large infl ux of visi-
tors to the area. While some visitors will arrive with
previous camping experience, many visitors will be using
public lands for the fi rst time.
The Forest Service and other agencies have been mak-
ing preparations to help everyone enjoy the eclipse as
safely as possible, while also protecting natural resources.
SEE FORESTS PREPARE PAGE 7
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Scientists explain eclipse at Geiser
Sumpter Dredge gets $16.5K grants
“So I was thinking....” by Jimmy Ingram
Offi cial weather provider for
The Baker County Press.
Sumpter Fire centennial marked
Eclipse preparedness urged
Rep. Bentz attends Commission mtg.
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