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.’