Page 9
Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Driving in circles results in serious injuries OSP seizes coke on I-5 valued at $600,000
Two persons were in-
jured, one seriously, as a re-
sult of a roll-over accident at
“Forks” park, and the driver
was cited on charges includ-
ing reckless driving, said Ore-
gon State Police.
The crash at Illinois
River “Forks” State Park was
reported Thursday, Aug. 21 at
5:40 p.m. The driver, identi-
fied as Selma resident Joshua
Harley Baker, 21, was cited
by OSP on charges of driving
while suspended, no insur-
ance, reckless driving, reck-
less endangerment, and
fourth-degree assault.
His vehicle, a 1984 pickup
truck, was impounded. He was
said to be “spinning tight fast
circles on a dirt road in the park
when a tire caught on a mound
and flipped the truck.”
Reported seriously in-
jured was Cave Junction resi-
dent Troy Craig King, 26. He
was hanging out the right-side
window when the pickup
flipped, and he was pinned
under it, OSP said. He was
taken by American Medical
Response (AMR) to a nearby
landing site from which a
Mercy Flights helicopter took
him to a Medford hospital.
Subsequently, said his
mother, Susan Lowden, he
was transferred to Sacred
Heart Medical Center in
Eugene, where he underwent
surgery. He incurred damage
to his pelvis, and likely will
be in a wheelchair for a time,
and then on crutches until
fully recovered, she said.
Also reported injured was
Jennifer Jo Brown, 43, of Cave
Junction. She was sitting on the
lap of Selma resident Cory Lee
Livengood, 25, who was in the
center of the cab. She was
taken by AMR to a hospital in
Grants Pass “with multiple
nonlife-threatening injuries,”
OSP reported.
Livengood and Baker
both refused medical treat-
ment. Only Baker was using a
seatbelt, OSP stated.
In connection with the
crash, it has come to light that
Oregon Dept. of Parks &
Recreation is concerned with
a number of problems at the
popular day-use park. Illegal
camping and fires, public
intoxication, vandalism, litter-
ing and human waste are
among the problems being
noted, said Andre Briggs,
Rogue Valley District man-
ager for the department.
He said that although
closing “Forks” park is a pos-
sibility, it is at this time con-
sidered as the last resort.
Other options to control law-
breakers are being considered
first, he said.
“But we need to let the
public know that closure is a
possibility,” he said on Mon-
day, Aug. 25.
A p p r o x i ma t e l y 6 5
pounds of cocaine with an
estimated value of $600,000
were seized last week on In-
terstate 5 by Oregon State
Police, assisted by the Doug-
las County Interagency Nar-
cotics Team (DINT).
In connection with the
incident Wednesday morning,
Aug. 20 following a traffic
stop on Interstate 5 north of
Sutherlin, two Washington
state men were arrested, and
investigation is continuing.
(Editor’s Note: Factual
information for ‘Blotter’ is
provided by official law en-
forcement agencies. All per-
sons listed are innocent until
proven guilty in a court of
law. Charges can be
amended or dismissed.)
* * *
*At 10:51 p.m., loud
music with “vulgar lyrics”
was coming from a vehicle
parked near Lake Selmac, a
caller complained.
*Another caller reported
at 11:05 p.m. that a group of
people near Lake Selmac
were being disorderly and
that “lots of drinking” was
going on. Although a deputy
arrived within 40 minutes, the
subjects were gone on arrival.
Saturday, Aug. 16
*A man phoned to say
that his employer’s niece had
stolen a white work truck.
*Jessica Sue Humberd,
26, was cited on a charge of
driving with a suspended li-
cense (DWS) and warned
regarding VBR (violation of
the basic rule/driving too fast
for conditions), and endan-
gering a child passenger.
*A white pickup truck
was reported left running all
day on the corner of Ray-
mond Street and S. Junction
Avenue. No one was around
the vehicle, which had a
screwdriver jammed into the
ignition. The truck was recov-
ered by the man who’d re-
ported it stolen earlier.
*Theft of a Mustang left
with the keys on the
dashboard on N. Junction
Avenue was reported.
*A ladder and extra let-
ters for a signboard on W.
Watkins Street proved too
tempting for a trio of teen-
aged boys, who were caught
changing words at 8:37 p.m.
*A man reported that
when checking into a motel
room three days earlier, he
discovered several bags with
quantities of white powder
and parts of a syringe. These
he turned in at the front desk
with the understanding that
law enforcement would be
calling. He was following up.
*A Madrone Drive resi-
dent returned home to find
her front door open, but noth-
ing appeared amiss inside
when a deputy checked.
*An Illinois Valley Fire
District volunteer was warned
regarding his behavior in uni-
form after a reported distur-
bance on Addison Lane.
Sunday, Aug. 17
*Following a complaint
at Iron Ring Campground,
Trever Boyd Westfall, 23,
was lodged in Josephine
County Jail on charges of
felon in possession of a
weapon, and menacing. He
also was cited on a federal
charge of intimidating a U.S.
Forest Service officer.
*Eight transient individu-
als were “very intoxicated”
and “causing a ruckus” in
Downtown Cave Junction
around 4 p.m. a caller re-
ported.
*Near milepost 14 on
Caves Hwy., Chad Barrett
Bauer, 40, was cited on a
charge of driving with a re-
voked license. His scooter
was impounded, and he was
“trespassed” from Oregon
Caves Chateau, where at 8:55
p.m. it was reported he’d
been “intoxicatedly” scream-
ing obscenities.
*Three large garbage
bags of marijuana leaves and
potting soil were found off
Burch Drive.
Monday, Aug. 18
*A 17-year-old boy was
warned regarding his behav-
ior when a deputy spotted
him diving into some bushes
near the Josephine County
Building in Downtown Caave
Junction at 12:48 a.m. The
boy was warned regarding
curfew and released to his
mother.
*It was reported at 1:57
a.m. that an unconscious man
was lying on a parking lot in
the 100 block of S. Redwood
Hwy. The man could not be
located by medics.
*Someone used her debit
card to make a $2,169.99
purchase at an online watch
store, a woman reported.
*Loss of a red bag at
Lake Selmac containing a
wallet, camera, fishing li-
cense and jacket, among other
items, was reported.
*In O’Brien, people were
said to be “spinning out” on
ATVs on a cafe parking lot.
*Theft of property from a
mining claim on Josephine
Creek was reported.
*An eyewitness stated
that three teen-agers removed
lumber from a newly com-
pleted residence on East Fork
Circle and took it to a
Schumacher Street residence.
*Freddie Louis Tillett,
37, was cited on a charge of
disorderly conduct and
lodged in county jail.
Tuesday, Aug. 19
*Contacted in the 400
block of S. Redwood Hwy.,
Jeffrey Vernell Couick, 49,
was cited on a charge of
DWS and warned for failure
to obey a stop sign.
*A camper awoke to find
someone stealing his fishing
gear at Lake Selmac at 11:16
p.m. It also was discovered
that the thieves had attempted
to steal gas cans, lighter fluid
and rope from the camp host.
*Theft of a .38-caliber
handgun valued at $175 was
reported on Pine Cone Drive.
*Some sort of “white,
milky substance” was said to
be in Illinois River “about 9
miles up toward Grayback
Campground.” A state agency
was testing a sample, but it
wasn’t thought to be a hazard.
*Following a 911 hang-
up call from Deer Creek
Road, it was determined to be
an error by the caller.
*A Cave Junction man
was acting a bit erratically
after being in a fight on the
preceding Sunday, but all
turned out OK.
*Two juvenile girls from
Cave Junction were reported
as runaway people.
*Quad drivers off Finch
Road were said to be damag-
ing the river bed near Joe’s
Market in Kerby at 9:34 p.m.
*The identity of a
“suspicious person” lying on
Rockydale Road near
Idlewild Drive at 9:41 p.m.
apparently was known.
*Wind conditions were
listed as the possible reason
for knocking noises on doors
and windows reported from
Kerby at 10 p.m.
*In Downtown Cave
Junction at 11:06 p.m. a
woman was warned about
driving too fast.
*In Cave Junction at
11:15 p.m. a man was warned
about a faulty head light and
failure to carry proof of insur-
ance.
*During a traffic stop on
Redwood Hwy. and Laurel
Road at 11:46 p.m., a driver
was warned about speeding,
and he denied driving in a
riverbed.
Wednesday, Aug. 20
*Loose cows were the
subject of a complaint from
White Schoolhouse Road.
*A vehicle-in-a-ditch
incident was reported at 1:33
p.m. in the 2900 block of
Holland Loop.
*Internet fraud amount-
ing to $50,000 was claimed
by a Cave Junction woman.
*A vehicle smacked into
a tree on Redwood Hwy. near
Arrowhead Drive, it was re-
ported at 5:44 p.m.
*Following a request by
a relative, a welfare check of
a family was conducted on
Old Stage Road. All was OK.
*More than 20 text mes-
sages from the same person
resulted in a Caves Hwy. man
being warned about tele-
phonic harassment.
Thursday, Aug. 21
*Near Redwood Hwy. at
Eight Dollar Mtn. Road, an
injured animal became a deer
Friday, Aug. 15
*Around midnight it was
reported that a dog with two
broken legs was in the middle
of Laurel Road in the 2000
block. The animal responded
aggressively when folks at-
tempted to help or move it. A
veterinarian was phoned to
euthanize the animal.
*Loss of a wallet in the
O’Brien area was noted.
*Theft of a purse from a
locked vehicle near Six Mile
Campground was reported at
4:26 p.m.
*A caller voiced concern
about having seen someone
flick cigarette ash and a butt
(from a cigarette) out a car
window.
*Extra patrol was re-
quested after people were
seen snooping around a resi-
dence on Illinois River Road.
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OSP identified the sus-
pects as the driver, Cristian
Escalante, 25, and Alfonso
Garcia-Castaneda, 28, both
from Seattle. They were
lodged in Douglas County Jail
on charges of unlawful pos-
session and distribution of a
controlled substance/cocaine.
The case began at ap-
proximately 10:04 a.m. when
an OSP senior trooper
stopped a 2007 Honda Ac-
cord displaying Washington
license plates. The car,
northbound on I-5 near mile-
post 140, was stopped for
following too close and other
hazardous traffic offenses,
OSP said. Subsequently, ap-
proximately 65 pounds of
cocaine were found in hidden
compartments inside the car,
and the two occupants were
taken into custody without
incident.
Winston, a DINT drug
detection canine, assisted
during the investigation and
seizure of the cocaine.
Manslaughter charges levied following father, son deaths
Two counts of manslaughter and one of
driving under the influence of intoxicants have
been levied against a man who crashed his van,
resulting in the deaths of two persons.
Josephine County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO)
added that Roy Lee Smith, 59, of Moonbeam
Drive in rural Grants Pass, was lodged in county
jail Friday, Aug. 22. The charges came after
JCSO conferred with the D.A.’s office.
Smith was driving a van that crashed in
rural Grants Pass on Monday, Aug. 18. Dead
after the accident were James Dahl, 25, and his
son, Mason James Slawson, 2, both of Grants
Pass.
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departed.
*Burglary, theft and
criminal mischief were com-
plained about on Brown
Road. The complainant said
that a red car and a black car
might have been driven by
the suspects in a possible
drug-related situation.
*An empty 30-foot
trailer was the subject of a
traffic complaint on Dick
George Road at 12:32 p.m.
*Two men were warned
about camping within city
limits in connection with their
watching, with permission,
Judy’s Brown Barn Laundry.
*After a male motorist
struck her car, spinning it
around in the 6500 block of
Caves Hwy., the man was
heard to say, “Oh, f _ _ _!”
He then drove away, and offi-
cers were looking for him in
Wonder.
*Harassment was re-
ported on Crooks Creek
Road, and then the caller said
the situation was resolved.
*Burglars took more than
1,000 pounds of lead from
buildings on Crooks Creek
Road, the owner said.
*Harassment was com-
plained about on Queen of
Bronze Road. Raised fists and
a container of chemical de-
icer were noted.
*On S. Old Stage Road,
a boy, 14, was arrested under
a protective custody order.
*At 11:35 p.m. the Illi-
nois Valley Visitor Center
was checked. All was well;
there were no visitors.
*Garry Allen Womack,
51, also known as “Stargazer”
and “Hobbit Wolf,” was ar-
rested and jailed on two
charges of second-degree
assault after an injured
woman was found at 11:49
p.m. on Dick George Road.
Friday, Aug. 22
*It was a doggone situa-
tion as 11 inmates were let
loose by persons unknown at
the Josephine County Animal
Shelter. Four of the dogs
were found dead on Pleasant
Valley Drive; three were still
on-site; and four were miss-
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