DECEMBER 31, 2021, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A5
CRIME,
Continued from page A1
College. Upon arriving at the scene, dep-
uties determined that the victim had “sus-
tained serious injuries and likely did not
survive the collision.”
The body of the victim and the vehicle
were no longer at the scene and deputies
learned that the red Honda Civic had left
the area at a high rate of speed.
A caller around 3:30 a.m. reported fi nd-
ing a red Honda Civic with a deceased per-
son inside near Wheatland and Brooklake
roads just north of Keizer. Investigators
determined that the deceased male was the
same pedestrian that had been involved in
the earlier crash.
Armando Rodarte Jr., 26 of Salem, was
identifi ed as the driver of the red Honda
Civic and was located around 6:00 a.m.
walking in northeast Salem. Rodarte was
taken into custody without incident and
was lodged in the Marion County Jail.
The Marion County Sheriff ’s Offi ce
press release on Dec. 25 did not include
how the body of the victim ended up in the
car.
“The investigation is still ongoing at
this time. When we are able, more infor-
mation will be released,” said Sr. Deputy
Ethan Griffi th, spokesperson for the sher-
iff ’s offi ce, said on Dec. 27.
Lt. Trevor Wenning, spokesperson for
the Keizer Police Department, said the
department's only involvement with the
incident was helping deputies at the initial
crash site on Lancaster Drive.
Rodarte is being charged with man-
slaughter in the fi rst degree, failure to per-
form duties of a driver to injured persons,
Oregon's
fi rst fungal
infection at
Salem Hospital
BY RACHEL ALEXANDER
Of the Salem Reporter
Health authorities are investigating
an outbreak of a serious fungal infection
that’s sickened three patients at Salem
Hospital this month.
The cases of Candida auris, a type
of yeast that can be resistant to multi-
ple antifungal drugs, are the fi rst ever
reported in Oregon, the Oregon Health
Authority said in a Tuesday afternoon
news release.
The fi rst patient was identifi ed at the
hospital Dec. 11, the release said, and had
recent exposure from international travel.
The hospital confi rmed the case on Dec.
17, Salem Health spokeswoman Lisa
Wood said.
Two other hospital patients then
caught the infection, the release said.
Those patients were identifi ed on Dec. 23
and Dec. 27.
“Candida auris is an emerging patho-
gen of concern because it can cause
serious infections, particularly in those
with serious medical problems, and can
be resistant to the antifungal drugs we
have to treat it,” said Rebecca Pierce, who
manages the Oregon Health Authority’s
healthcare-associated infections pro-
gram, in a statement. “Fortunately, the
organism we’re dealing with in this out-
break appears to respond to existing
treatments. Nonetheless, it’s critical that
we prevent the spread of the infection.”
The fungus poses a low infection risk
to healthy people, including health care
workers, according to the CDC. The risk
of infection and serious complications
is highest for patients who have been
hospitalized for long periods, have weak-
ened immune systems or have a central
catheter or other lines and tubes in their
bodies.
More than 1,150 clinical cases of
Candida auris have been identifi ed in the
brainfood
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reckless driving and abuse of corpse in the
second degree following an arraignment
hearing on Tuesday, Dec. 28.
He is also being charged with driving
under the infl uence of intoxicants and on a
suspended license.
Rodarte pleaded guilty on May 6 to driv-
ing under the infl uence of intoxicants after
being pulled over on Jan. 23 with a blood
alcohol content of .19. Rodarte was sen-
tenced to 18 months of probation and had
his license suspended for one year.
On Oct. 23, 2021, Rodarte rear ended
another vehicle while driving on a sus-
pended license. On Nov. 22, Rodarte was
granted a release agreement by the Marion
County Circuit Court and under the agree-
ment that he would appear in court on Dec.
22. On Dec. 22, Rodarte was scheduled to
go before the judge on Jan. 11, 2022.
Rodarte also previously pleaded guilty
in Marion County Circuit Court to driving
under the infl uence of intoxicants in 2016.
Rodarte is scheduled to appear in court
on Jan. 11, 2022 to face the six charges
against him. His current bail is $500,000
and he is listed as a public safety and fl ight
risk.
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one of each digit. So must every column, & every 3x3 square.
maze by Jonathan Graf of Keizer
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“With the COVID-19 pandemic, we
have seen a rise in multi-drug resistant
organisms around the world and nation-
wide, and Salem is not immune,” said
Jasmin Chaudhary, medical director of
infection prevention at Salem Health, in
a statement.
Chaudhary said the hospital is tak-
ing steps to avoid the spread of infection
including “aggressive eradication mea-
sures” that have been successful in other
hospitals.
The health authority and Salem
Health are also contacting facilities
that have recently accepted discharged
patients from hospital units aff ected by
the outbreak.
Wood said three hospital units were
aff ected and did not respond to a ques-
tion about how many patients were
exposed. Since Dec. 17, no patients have
been discharged from the aff ected units
as testing is conducted, Wood said.
The health authority has identifi ed 23
other health care facilities that may have
received exposed patients who were dis-
charged from Salem Hospital after the
fi rst patient arrived but before the fungal
infection was confi rmed.
All facilities and potentially aff ected
patients have been notifi ed, Wood said.
"We are working with OHA to con-
duct testing of patients who may have
been exposed and will continue to fol-
low their guidance. Due to the low risk
to employees, OHA and the CDC are
not recommending testing of staff or the
environment at this time," Wood said in
an email.