GUNMAN WOUNDS GOP CONGRESSMAN, THEN KILLED BY POLICE PAGE 9A
DailyAstorian.com // WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14, 2017
144TH YEAR, NO. 249
INSIDE
ian
av Fest
an mer
di sum
Scan Mid
ival
50th annual Astoria
Astoria, Oregon • June 16, 17 &
18 • Clatsop County Fairgrounds
• www.astoriascanfest.com
50TH ANNUAL
SCANDI FEST
ONE DOLLAR
Astoria Police are stretched thin
Staff shortage puts a
strain on department
Astoria Po-
lice Depart-
ment Officer
Jair Macare-
no has been
with the force
for about
four years.
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Astoria Police Sgt. Brian Aydt turned
on the sirens in his police car Saturday
night and raced from Tongue Point to the
Astoria Bridge to respond to a reported
accident.
Colin Murphey
The Daily
Astorian
PARADE OF
CHAMPIONS
KNAPPA CELEBRATES WINNING BASEBALL TEAM
He arrived minutes later to fi nd no
accident had occurred, but a recreational
vehicle was unable to reach the top of the
slope on the bridge and rolled back into
the guard rail. The RV was blocking the
southbound lane, so Offi cer Jair Macareno
helped direct traffi c as Aydt advised the
driver on how to make it to the top.
With people swarming the city for
Astoria Pride and the Second Saturday Art
See POLICE, Page 4A
Baldwin
named to
Warrenton
commission
Vacant post fi lled after
Mitchell withdraws
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
WARRENTON — Mark Baldwin, a for-
mer city commissioner, will fi ll the Warren-
ton City Commission’s vacant seat.
The four current commissioners were
split 2-2 Tuesday night
between Baldwin and a sec-
ond candidate, Columbia
Memorial Hospital Com-
munity Outreach Manager
Paul Mitchell. As they dis-
cussed whether or not to
hold another vote or sim-
Mark
ply delay their decision to
Baldwin
a future meeting, Mitchell
called out from the back of
the room. He was withdrawing, he said, in
favor of Baldwin.
“I think I’d rather see you all come together
than have a split decision,” Mitchell said.
Baldwin will be sworn in at the commis-
sion’s next meeting June 27.
Three contenders
Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
TOP: A young fan of the Knappa Loggers prepares to enjoy the parade Tuesday to celebrate the team’s state championship
victory earlier in the month. ABOVE LEFT: The Knappa Loggers baseball team holds the state championship trophy high in
the air as they ride a float in their victory parade Tuesday. ABOVE RIGHT: The state champion Knappa Loggers have their pic-
tures taken by dozens of fans as they celebrated their victory with a parade and award ceremony Tuesday.
Three men had applied for the appoint-
ment — Baldwin, Mitchell and newcomer
Ronald LeChurch, a retired mechanical
engineer. City Commissioner Tom Dyer said
choosing between the three men was one of
the toughest decisions he has faced. He and
the other commissioners thanked the men for
applying and Mayor Henry Balensifer com-
mented that it seemed as if everyone on the
commission had lost sleep over the decision
leading up to this meeting.
The three men were vying for a seat left
vacant after Balensifer was appointed by the
commission to serve out the rest of former
M ayor Mark Kujala’s term. Kujala resigned
in March to spend more time with his fam-
ily and business, and the commission has
carried on with only four people ever since,
struggling with the possibility of a tied vote
in many decisions.
The commissioners cast their votes by
ballot to determine who to appoint. Balen-
sifer and Commissioner Rick Newton voted
for Mitchell, who serves on the city’s P lan-
ning C ommission and budget committee.
Dyer and Commissioner Pam Ackley voted
for Baldwin.
See BALDWIN, Page 4A
Newest Warrenton Police
offi cer has nose for drugs
Gabe 2.0 makes
City Hall debut
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
WARRENTON — After
Offi cer Robert Wirt announced
he had hidden methamphet-
amine somewhere in the City
Commission’s meeting room at
City Hall Tuesday night, there
was a bewildered silence. The
newest member of the Warren-
ton Police Department stopped
chewing on a tennis ball and
went to work.
Gabe — also known as
Gabe 2.0 — a 2-year-old Ger-
man shepherd trained in drug
detection, paced the cham-
bers at the start of the com-
mission’s regular meeting , his
fi rst introduction to the City
Commission.
Gabe, who is trained only to
fi nd drugs , not chase crime sus-
pects, joined the police force
two months ago and passed his
certifi cation tests in May. He
arrived in Warrenton already
trained, but went through addi-
tional drills with other narcotic
K9s in Clatsop County.
In the commission cham-
bers, Gabe’s long nose inves-
tigated Deputy City Recorder
Dawne Shaw’s desk. Nothing.
He moved on. He took Wirt up
and behind the commissioners’
seats and around to City Man-
ager Linda Engbretson’s desk.
Engbretson watched dubi-
ously, but Gabe passed her by,
too.
See DOG, Page 4A
Katie Frankowicz/The Daily Astorian
Gabe, the Warrenton Police Department’s new drug detec-
tion dog, sniffs out drugs hidden inside a chair during a
demonstration at the Warrenton City C ommission meet-
ing Tuesday night.