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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 29, 2018)
NATIONAL CHAMPS OREGON STATE WINS COLLEGE WORLD SERIES SPORTS • 8A 145TH YEAR, NO. 259 ONE DOLLAR WEEKEND EDITION // CHANGING OF THE GUARD Fatal DUII crash leads to prison Six-year sentence for a young life lost By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian Smith takes charge of Coast Guard Sector Columbia River By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian oast Guard Sector Columbia river has a new commander. Capt. Jeremy Smith, most recently the executive officer of the Coast Guard’s Aviation Training Center, took the helm Thursday in a change of com- mand ceremony at Air Station Astoria. He replaces Capt. William Timmons, who is retiring after two years at the sta- tion and 27 years in the Coast Guard. The sector oversees coastal Oregon and southwest Washington state and cov- ers the Columbia, Willamette and Snake rivers up to Idaho — a $23 billion-per- year shipping highway. More than 1,000 active duty and nonactive personnel serve in the sector. “You’ve been entrusted with the trea- sure of our nation — the sons and daugh- ters of America. Never forget that,” said Rear Adm. David Throop, commander of the Coast Guard’s 13th District, to Smith in a speech. “Secondly, develop strong partnerships and relationships.” Smith entered the Coast Guard Academy in 1994. Prior to the train- ing center — the Coast Guard’s largest Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian See COAST GUARD, Page 7A Capt. Jeremy Smith, right, greets members of the Coast Guard during a change of command ceremony. C A man who killed a Seaside woman in a drunken-driving crash on U.S. Highway 101 last June was sentenced Thursday to more than six years in prison. Christopher Jeremy Costa was driving back to Astoria from Seaside just before 2:30 a.m. after a night of drinking. He crossed the centerline of the highway at an S-curve near Cullaby Lake. He then crashed head-on with a southbound Toyota Camry driven by Kayla Lynn Weber, 27, of Seaside. The Camry, which was moving at 40 mph, was knocked backward. The Chevrolet pickup Costa was driving flipped over the Camry, slid about 180 feet, came upright after hitting something and caught fire. “Frankly, the defendant Christopher Costa is lucky to be alive,” Dep- uty District Attorney Ron Brown said. Weber died instantly, while Costa managed to escape the truck after sustaining serious injuries. A blood draw at the hospital about one hour after the crash revealed that Costa’s blood alcohol content was 0.16 percent, Brown said. Costa was indicted a few weeks later on charges of second-degree manslaughter, driv- ing under the influence of intoxicants and reckless driving. He faced a maximum of 10 years in prison. However, Costa agreed to plead guilty to the manslaughter and DUII charges and serve the minimum of more than See SENTENCE, Page 7A Westport subdivision needs a public road Nine-lot project in flux By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian WESTPORT — River Ranch, a subdi- vision of more than 30 homes fronting the Columbia River just north of the Oregon ter- minus of the Westport ferry, has been around since at least the 1960s. But Coyote Point, a new nine-lot subdi- vision ready to go in next door, is facing an issue River Ranch residents have avoided for decades — there is no public road to the site. Access to River Ranch and Coyote Point, on the eastern edge of Clatsop County, is through Carver Road, which winds west- ward from Columbia County on top of a dike along Westport Slough for several miles, with gated access to the private com- munity. Several property owners along the road own the dike, providing easements to local diking districts for maintenance. Those property owners could block access to River Ranch and Coyote Point, said Robin McIntyre, legal counsel for Columbia County. The county has recom- mended the road be made public before the subdivision is approved, she said. “Apparently a lot of the legal access back 70 years ago was pretty loose,” said William Parker, a representative of Coyote Point. The 20-acre development originally received a preliminary plat approval from Clatsop County in 2013, conditioned on improvements to the land. At the time, the See WESTPORT, Page 7A Are you or a loved one suffering from DRUG or ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE 971-606-0280 Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Access to River Ranch and the proposed Coyote Point develop- ments is through Carver Road, which has not been accepted by Columbia County as a public roadway. We are here when you are ready! North Coast Recovery is your LOCAL resource for Addiction treatment. 441 30th Street • Astoria, Oregon www.northcoastrecovery.com A place of healing…A place of hope.
