3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • MONDAY, JANUARY 16, 2017 Local author guilty of luring former student Love sentenced to 30 days in jail By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian Matt Love, an author and longtime high-school teacher, has pleaded guilty to luring an underage former student for sex. Love met the girl when she was 15 and acted as a father figure and mentor who encour- aged her writing. The rela- tionship took an abrupt turn in May after Love drove the girl — then 17 — back to her home after an event. In Facebook messages afterward, Love confided that he had sex with former students in the past but thought this pursuit was dif- ferent, professed his love, and made clear he wanted to have sex with her. Dawn Buzzard, the prose- cutor, called the messages “a perfect piece of grooming.” The victim, now 18, told the Circuit Court by phone Fri- day that she had heard rumors about Love and other students but never suspected he would Matt Love do anything sexual or creepy to her. “So I don’t want him ever to be around students ever again,” she said. “Even though he’s a wonderful teacher,” she said, “it’s not OK.” Love, 52, faced charges of felony luring and misde- meanor official misconduct. He pleaded guilty to mis- demeanor luring. The offi- cial misconduct charge was dismissed. Judge Dawn McIntosh sentenced Love to 30 days in jail — with a minimum of 10 days in custody — and two years probation. He also has to register as a sex offender for 10 years and pay $5,000 in restitution. Love, who resigned as a teacher at Astoria High School after his arrest last summer, has to forfeit his teaching cre- dential. The victim is not a for- mer Astoria student. Jack Green, a Vancouver, Washington, attorney who was a student of Love’s and repre- sented him in court, had urged the judge not to designate the luring as a sex crime. Green argued that there was no phys- ical contact between Love and the girl and that Love’s Facebook messages occurred shortly before the girl turned 18. McIntosh said Love’s behavior was not a single lapse in judgment. The judge said Love tried to take advantage of a vulnerable young woman who looked up to him. Love has much to offer the community, McIntosh said, and could go back to writ- ing. “But you will never teach again,” the judge said. “You gave up the right to do that.” In a statement to the court, Love apologized to the victim for his inexcusable actions. “I can only imagine the extreme duress my behavior has caused her,” he said. “What started out several years ago as a men- tor-mentee relationship went wrong on my part because of my clouded judgment. I accept full responsibility for crossing the line and I am ashamed. I only hope she can forgive me and get on with her life and accomplish the great things I know she’s capable of. The only thing I want to make clear — it’s not her fault.” Love, the author of more than a dozen books about Ore- gon and a frequent contribu- tor to The Daily Astorian, also apologized to his family and friends. “The narcissism that affected my character over the last decade or so has been obliterated,” Love said. “That person is gone forever.” Several former colleagues, students and friends wrote letters to the court on Love’s behalf emphasizing his value as a teacher and writer. McIn- tosh said some of the let- ters characterized the prose- cution as a “witch hunt” and the charges as false, and the judge asked Love, who had described the experience as a “crucible,” whether he viewed it as a witch hunt. “No, I don’t,” Love said. Pro-immigration marchers rally against Trump Rally and march against the president-elect By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau SALEM — About 1,000 demonstrators marched around the Oregon Capi- tol Saturday protesting Pres- ident-elect Donald Trump’s positions on immigration. The more than 90-minute rally and march on a frigid day in the capital city drew Orego- nians from as far as Medford. Turnout exceeded by a few hundred the number of RSVPs listed on the event’s Facebook page. Speakers, who included several lawmakers, blasted what they called Trump’s agenda of “xenophobia and hate.” “In Oregon, we recognize the vast contribution made by undocumented immigrants,” said state Rep. Teresa Alonso Leon, D-Woodburn, who in November became the first Latina immigrant elected to the Oregon House. “We stand with you united against the hateful rhetoric of Donald Trump.” The rally was one of 50 “National Day of Action Events Against Trump Pol- icies,” according to the One Oregon coalition, which orga- nized the rally in Salem. Trump has said that he will seek to deport millions of undocumented immigrants, end executive orders by Presi- dent Barack Obama that shield certain illegal immigrants from deportation, and start a Muslim registry. The coalition is “deeply concerned about the impact this will have on immigrant and refugee communities, who are integral to Oregon’s econ- omy and future,” said Diane Goodwin, a spokeswoman for Basic Rights Oregon, a mem- ber of One Oregon. Demonstrators held signs that read “Immigra- tion began in 1620” and “We resist Trump’s hate.” March- ers chanted slogans in both English and Spanish, which included “This is what com- munity looks like.” U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden and U.S. Rep. Kurt Schrader joined in the rally. Also mak- ing an appearance were state legislators Sen. Michael Dem- brow, D-Portland; Rep. Diego Hernandez, D-Portland; Rep. Alyssa Keny-Guyer, D-Port- land; Rep. Rob Nosse, D-Port- land; Rep. Karin Power, D-Milwaukie; and Rep. Janeen Sollman, D-Hillsboro. Wyden declared to immi- grants that as long as he is in office, “Your fight will be my fight.” Unsure about the future Hernandez, whose fam- ily immigrated to the United States from Mexico, said the lawmakers would make sure Oregon “stands against xeno- phobia and hate.” One of Obama’s execu- tive orders, known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arriv- als, or DACA, protects from deportation undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as chil- dren. Young people who are eligible must apply for the pro- gram every two years, receive a work permit and may attend college. DACA has allowed about 700,000 young people nation- ally and 15,000 in Oregon to get driver’s licenses, work T HE D AILY A STORIAN ’ S C UTEST B ABY C ONTEST If your baby was born January 1st & December 31st , 2016 , between you can submit your newborn’s picture either via email at: increasing affordable housing funding. Trump ‘nailed it’ Paris Achen/Capital Bureau Demonstrators march around the Oregon Capi- tol Saturday in opposition to President-elect Donald Trump’s positions on immi- gration. permits and to attend second- ary education institutions, said Andrea Williams, executive director of Causa, a member of the One Oregon coalition. Zaira Flores of Salem is one of the young people who has benefited from DACA. Her mother immigrated to the United States when she was 6 and her brother was 3. Flores, who graduated from Portland State University, now works for the state. Since Trump’s election, “I’m feeling very unsure about my future,” Flores said. “If I didn’t have DACA, I wouldn’t have a driver’s license, I would lose my job, I would lose the roof over my head, all the basic human needs. It’s really scary.” The One Oregon coalition of 60 organizations opposes anti-immigrant policies. Immi- grant rights organizations Causa, APANO and Unite Oregon lead the group. The coalition plans to sup- port state legislation aimed at reducing racial profiling during police stops, expanding Medicaid to more children and There were no counter pro- tests to the event. Oregonians For Immigration Reform, which frequently clashes with Causa on policy proposals, had scheduled a meeting for later in the day to discuss the impact of Trump’s election and state legislation. Trump’s immigration pro- posals have begun to address many of the frustrations some Americans have had with immigration policy and prac- tices, said Cynthia Kendoll, the group’s president. “I think the Trump admin- istration has nailed it when he said we need to reassess what we are doing and why and how is it benefiting the United States,” Kendoll said. She said she supports Trump’s plan to end the DACA program. “Those parents made the choice for their children to pick them up and bring them to this country,” Kendoll said. “I didn’t make that choice for them.” The reform group attempted to advance ballot initiatives last year that would have made English the official language of Oregon, required businesses to use a federal pro- gram to verify citizenship of employees and required proof of citizenship to vote. The ini- tiatives ultimately were tied up in court after immigrant rights organizations and the Ameri- can Civil Liberties Union chal- lenged the ballot titles. The Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Police blocked Whispering Pines Drive at times during the standoff. Seaside standoff ends peacefully Man surrenders after calling dispatchers By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian SEASIDE — A nearly 64-hour standoff between police and an armed man in Seaside ended peacefully. Shortly after 8 a.m. Satur- day morning, the man, who placed a call to Seaside Dis- patch saying he was scared and wished to step outside, emerged from the home on Whispering Pines Drive and surrendered. Brian Wallin, 49, was arrested for reckless endan- germent, disorderly conduct, aggravated animal abuse and possession of a weapon with intent to use, according to authorities. “The use of de-escala- tion techniques may extend the length of an incident, but they are always intended to reduce confrontations with people in crisis,” Sea- side Police Chief Dave Ham said in a press release. “Fortunately, for all parties involved, this ended in the best way possible — peace- fully and without incident.” The standoff began Wednesday afternoon with gunshots reported at the home. Shortly after police responded to the scene, the man’s mother came outside uninjured. Police had been keeping watch since then and assured residents that the only dan- ger was to the man inside the home. Armory basement closes for lead cleaning Skate Park shut down By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian The Friends of the Asto- ria Armory have shut down the building’s basement after testers found lead residue in several locations exceeding federal health thresholds. A release from the Friends said testers found traces of lead above the thresholds of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Devel- opment, with the highest concentrations in the vicin- ity of a former firing range in a corner of the Armory’s basement. “As a result, the Armory basement has been closed to all guest activity until miti- gation has been performed by a licensed contractor,” the release said. “This includes the basement (Armory) Skate Park, which tested below HUD thresholds. The recommended mitigation is cleaning using a wet wipe method, followed by paint- ing of affected surfaces.” The group said samples taken from the main floor of the Armory, where most events are held, came back below detectable levels and safe for public use. Unlike some other buildings where lead dust was more perva- sive, the Armory does not have a forced-air system cir- culating between the base- ment and main floor. Mike Davies, presi- dent of the Friends, said the basement will reopen after cleanup, which the group hopes to finish within 30 days. Davies said the Friends will also hold off on a $500,000 building and improvement loan with Craft3 until after cleanup. The Friends and lender Craft3 held off closing on the loan last month after The Oregonian released a story on lead contamination in armories, and after finding two abandoned oil tanks on the property. The Friends will use the loan to modernize the Armory, which used to hold events with several thousand people but currently has an occupancy of 750. W A NTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500 Custom Threads Store g n i s o l C Sale % 40 O ff CLASSIFIEDS @ DAILYASTORIAN . COM or drop by one of our offi ces in Astoria or Seaside and we can scan in the photo for you. Deadline to enter is EVERYTHING Fixtures for sale Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm February 4 th Wednesday, January 5 pm Entries will be printed in The Daily Astorian on January 31st. last day for alterations. Everything must be picked up by February 11 th *Human babies only please!* 1282 Commercial Street Astoria OR 97103 503-325-7780 25 th at