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About Illinois Valley news. (Cave City, Oregon) 1937-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2005)
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, April 13, 2005 Sheriff seeks more money; sues ... (Continued from page 1) American Legion Auxiliary, Glenn Morrison Unit 70 Claryce Bishop was hon- ored during the Wednesday, April 6 meeting for being in the American Legion Auxil- iary for 65 years. CLARYCE BISHOP She received her 65-year pin, a certificate of apprecia- tion and a corsage. Mrs. Bishop joined the auxiliary at 9 in California. She was a junior member riding a ferry back and forth from Oakland to San Francisco distributing poppies. Dorothy Johnson will receive a 30-year pin, and Marjorie Culbertson a 25-year pin during a subsequent auxil- iary meeting. For its “Trash for Cash” project the unit is collecting empty ink cartridges (from computer printers) and old cell phones to help the Ameri- can Legion on the national level. The project also will help on the unit and post lev- els. Any of these two items can be given to an auxiliary or Legion member. President Laurel Warden needs to have all chairman- ship year-end reports turned in to her no later than Wednesday, April 20. “This is extremely important as it shows what the unit has been doing all year to department and national auxiliary offi- cials,” she said. The next auxiliary meet- ing will be Wednesday, May 4 with a potluck starting at 6 p.m. at the American Legion Post 70 Hall on Caves Hwy. Illinois Valley Garden Club Want to learn how to create simple, prize-winning floral designs? During the Friday, April 15 meeting, Vi Singler, Siski- you District Flower Show judge, will show how. She is known as an interesting speaker, and will present tips on how to win ribbons. Anyone can enter the flower show Saturday, May 21 at Immanuel Methodist Church at 200 W. Watkins St., Cave Junction. For more information phone 592-2941. The club meets on third Fridays at the Methodist Church. Coffee time begins at 12:30 p.m.; meeting at 1 p.m. Anyone can attend. For addi- tional information phone 592- 2941 or 592-4257 “Don’t forget to put out water for the birds,” said the club. “They work for their keep in many ways.” Siskiyou Regional Education Project A Squaw Mt. hike with Rich Nawa and Lisa Shelton will be held Saturday, April 16. Participants will “learn about the local ecology and current threats facing this magnificent place.” The hike is termed mod- erate to difficult. Participants should meet at 10 a.m. at Selma Select Market. Four- wheel-drive vehicles for car pooling are suggested. For more information phone 592-4459. Don’t drink and drive! prosecutor, two positions which were cut several years ago. Marie Hill, director of the Community Justice Dept., which handles probation and juvenile unit services, bases her request for another $340,000 due to increases in retirement costs and salaries. Her proposed budget is $6.8 million. The sheriff listed the fol- lowing increase areas for the coming fiscal year: *Pay raises/$274,000. *Public Employee Re- tirement System/$260,000. *Cost-of-living, merit and step raises based on lon- getivity/$351,000. *Building expenses, maintenance, and vehicle operations/$180,000. Although the total of those areas is $965,000 the remaining $235,000 would serve as a buffer for unantici- pated expenses. The lawsuit brought by Daniel against the county commissioners in Circuit Court stems from the sheriff being denied a request to in- crease the salary of Howard Banks, commander of the county adult jail after Daniel promoted him from sergeant to lieutenant. “From January to the end of this fiscal year, we’re only talking about $2,900,” said Daniel. “The commissioners left me no choice but to en- gage them in court.” The suit, filed by attorney Daniel Simcoe, names the thee county commissioners and seeks a judgment that would force the board to ap- prove the promotion request. Further, it asks that the board declare that it has “no legal right to control promo- tion decisions or otherwise dictate how the plaintiff uses the sheriff’s budget allotted to him.” As an elected official, said Daniel, he believes he has the authority to shift per- sonnel without approval of the commissioners. Regarding his budget shortfall, the sheriff has said, “As many of you know, re- cent budget shortfalls have resulted in the loss of many sheriff's deputies and posi- tions. “This has resulted in low- ering the prisoner cap at the jail, and has stretched patrol services critically thin. Re- gardless, 24-hour patrols are being maintained. With the reduction in manpower, how- ever, call ‘triage’ becomes more critical. “Triage is a method used by emergency services to prioritize calls for service. In- progress and ‘person crime’ calls such as an ‘assault-in- progress’ get a high priority, while ‘cold’ calls such as a burglary that occurred last night get a lower one. “It is our policy that every call for service will be addressed,” said Daniel. “Lower priority calls, how- ever, will out of necessity have to wait until the higher priority calls have been han- dled. “In the real world,” he said, “this means that if you call for service and there is not a present danger to you or your property, there may be a delay in response. At times, the delay may be significant. Lower priority calls may even have to wait for another shift, when the call load relaxes.” He added that his office wants to know whenever their help is needed, despite poten- tial delays. Page 7 Deputies OK pay increases Proposed pay raises OK’d by Josephine County Sheriff’s Office unionized deputies are to be considered for approval Wednesday, April 20 by the county board of commissioners. Union members gave a major thumbs-up for in- creases of 14 to 19 percent during a three-year period. The rise includes 3.3 percent retroactive to Jan. 1, and 4 percent beginning with the start of the 2005-2006 fiscal year July 1. The raises total $274,000, which would come from the sheriff’s office budget. They would be separate from merit or longevity increases. The proposed hike would bring compensation closer to that provided other lawmen in the Josephine, Jackson, Doug- las counties area, including salaries paid Oregon State Police troopers. The change especially would affect beginning Jose- phine County deputies, who now start at $28,536. If the proposal is approved, that would go to $30,651. Currently, city of Grants Pass rookie officers start at $42,936. Sheriff’s depart- ments in Jackson and Doug- las counties have starting sala- ries of $38,892 and $33,192. Rookie OSP officers start at $38,652. House hearings in GP Friday Public hearings by the Oregon House Elections & Rules Committee will be held Friday, April 15 in Anne Basker Auditorium in Grants Pass. The hearings in the audi- torium, adjacent to the county courthouse, will run from 4 to 6 p.m., said Rep. Gordon S. Anderson (R-Grants Pass). Topics will be HB 2583, requiring proof of citizenship from those registering to vote; HB 2551, prohibiting the clerk from opening ballots before Election Day; and HJR 1, proposing an amendment to the Oregon Constitution requiring yearly sessions of the Legislative Assembly, with a time limit. Also, HB 3338, metham- phetamines; and HB 2758, tax amnesty. Anderson hopes for a good turnout. Support the merchants who advertise in the ‘Noose.’
