3A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2018
Sex abuse trial begins
a
Consult
for Hammond fisherman PROFESSIONAL
Sturgell charged
with sex crimes,
bribing witness
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
The trial of a Hammond
fisherman who allegedly
committed sex crimes and
bribed and threatened a young
woman began Tuesday in Cir-
cuit Court.
Dennis Lee Sturgell, 66,
was indicted last year along
with James Herbert Cun-
ningham, 47. The two men
allegedly committed several
sex crimes against a woman
when she was incapacitated in
August 2015.
Sturgell is charged with
four counts of first-degree sod-
omy, two counts of first-degree
unlawful sexual penetration
and one count of second-de-
gree sex abuse. If convicted of
all crimes, he faces a minimum
of 50 years in prison.
Cunningham is in prison
for a separate case, and his trial
is scheduled for January.
Daniel Wendel, an attorney
with the Oregon Department
of Justice, is
prosecuting
the case along
with Clatsop
County Deputy
District Attor-
ney
Dawn
Dennis Lee Buzzard. Wen-
del presented
Sturgell
opening argu-
ments Tuesday to the jury and
Judge Paula Brownhill in what
is expected to be a seven-day
trial.
The prosecutors and Jason
Thompson, Sturgell’s Salem-
based attorney, agree on a
number of facts in the case.
Sturgell and the victim
were both at a Warrenton bar
one afternoon and drank alco-
hol for a prolonged period
of time before she got into
Sturgell’s truck. At one point,
they snorted cocaine before
driving across the Astoria
Bridge to Washington state.
Sturgell engaged in sex acts
with the woman in Washing-
ton state and later at an Asto-
ria hotel, where Cunningham
joined them.
The rest of the story is
murky, and clearing it up will
be the focus of the trial.
The victim was hesitant to
file a police report but had told
others that she repeatedly said
“no” during the encounters.
She quit her job and suffered
from anxiety, post-traumatic
stress disorder, nightmares
and suicidal thoughts, Wen-
del said.
“At the end of this case,
when you’ve heard all the evi-
dence, you will know that the
defendant saw what he wanted
and took it, using drugs and
alcohol as a weapon, to sat-
isfy his own twisted sexual
desires,” Wendel told jurors.
Wendel said most of the
counts against Sturgell came
because the woman, whom he
described as “blackout drunk”
at the time, was incapacitated
and unable to provide consent.
The sex abuse charge stemmed
from an alleged complete
absence of consent.
Thompson, on the other
hand, said the victim was a
“willing participant” after
consuming the cocaine. He
added that her boyfriend at
the time had been looking for
her all night, and she needed
an excuse for her absence,
eventually coming up with a
“scripted” story.
“What really happened was
that adults made some deci-
sions that they didn’t end up
liking the next day,” Thomp-
son said.
Sturgell was also charged
earlier this year with two
counts of bribing a witness
and two counts of tamper-
ing with a witness. Sturgell
allegedly held a meeting with
the victim’s father. During the
meeting, he allegedly offered
him $5,000 to “make the case
go away” and threatened to
hire attorneys to “dig up dirt”
on the victim.
Thompson, however, said
the victim and her father were
hoping Sturgell would give
her money. He referenced an
apparent email in which the
victim allegedly told her father
that they would need to ask for
more money from Sturgell if
he didn’t accept a plea deal.
“This case is about regret
and greed,” Thompson said.
Sturgell is known as a
polarizing figure among com-
mercial fishermen, accord-
ing to a 2008 San Francisco
Chronicle story. His crabbing
career has brought him from
the Oregon Coast to Alaska
and the San Francisco Bay
Area.
Low-income housing project starts in Long Beach
Apartments may
help fill gap
By ALYSSA EVANS
Chinook Observer
A groundbreaking ceremo-
ny was held last week for
the new Driftwood Point
Apartments in Long Beach.
Left to right, Dan Freedman,
project manager; Gene
Miles, past Joint Pacific
County Housing Authority
chair; Chris Pegg, director
of Housing Opportunities
of Southwest Washington;
Jerry Phillips, mayor of
Long Beach; and Erik Fa-
gerland, project architect.
the Washington State Hous-
ing Financing Commission are
also involved in the project.
A: The Annual
Enrollment Period
ends December 7th
Medicare Products
at the end of the day.
503-440-1076 The effective date for
any change would be
Licensed in Oregon
January 01, 2019.
and Washington
Steve Putman
putmanagency@gmail.com
Q: What are the
advantages of
Hook and Line
fishing?
A:
Most of the advantages are to the
consumer and the environment.
Bottom fish like cod, rockfish and sole are
usually caught by hook and line or by trawl
nets. Hook and line fish get less banged
up and tend to have a better texture. This
method is also less disruptive to the ocean
Ron Neva
Northwest Wild Products floor, uses less fuel and creates less by-catch.
Fresh Seafood Market
Because this method is time consuming, the
354 Industry St, Astoria cost of these fish is slightly higher. Many
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Most of the the bottom fish we sell are hook
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November 7, 1928
CONGRATULATIONS!
from your
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start up. There is
just a dark greyish
tone to the screen?
the power button as you
A: Press
would normally. Did it start up?
If not, while holding down the CTRL and
Shift keys, press ESC and let go. Click FILE,
then “Run New Task.” Type “Explorer.exe”
Click “Create this task with administrative
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If not, hold down the power button for 30
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10TH STREET
David Glasson
U.S. Bank, the Washing-
ton State Department of Com-
merce, Pacific County and
Period last and if I
change when will the
effective date be?
ASTORIA
TRANSIT CENTER
LONG BEACH, Wash.
— The peninsula is one step,
or dig, closer to reducing the
region’s housing shortage.
Ground was broken in late
October at the site of a soon-
to-be apartment complex for
low-income residents.
The Driftwood Point Apart-
ments will feature 27 units at
the intersection of 10th Street
Northeast and Oregon Ave-
nue North. The complex is
expected to be completed by
the end of 2019.
“The goal is to have fam-
ilies moved in time to be cel-
ebrating Christmas,” said
Rebecca Proudman, the proj-
ect’s development coordinator.
The apartments will include
one-, two- and three-bedroom
units for families coming out
of homelessness. The Long
Beach City Council approved
the project last year.
“The apartments are geared
toward families,” Proudman
said.
“It’s a big deal,” Erik
Fagerland, the Long Beach
architect who designed the
apartments, said in a Decem-
ber interview with the Chi-
nook Observer. “They’ve been
struggling for years to get this
off the ground.”
The project was started in
2008 but was put on hold due
to the recession, Proudman
said.
Multiple developers tried to
get housing projects approved
on the same block but failed.
The Driftwood Point Apart-
ments are expected to cost
about $8 million.
The complex will include
four apartment buildings and
a community center with an
office. A laundry room, kitchen
and meeting space will also
be included. On-site help will
connect residents to resources
and assistance programs.
The project is being led by
the Joint Pacific County Hous-
ing Authority, an organization
which is focused on address-
ing the peninsula’s need for
affordable housing.
About 17 percent of the
county’s residents live below
the poverty line, according to
the county’s Economic Devel-
opment Council.
“It’s going to be a really
positive change to that block,”
Proudman said.
long does the
Q: How
Annual Enrollment
We hope one of these solutions helped…
if not, come in and see us. We will get you
going again.
Q: Why don’t my
dentures fit anymore?
Est. 1987
st
31
BIRTHDAY
teeth are lost the gum and
A: Once
bone have a tendency to shrink and
JEFFREY M. LEINASSAR
DMD, FAGD
503/325-0310
1414 MARINE DRIVE,
ASTORIA
www.smileastoria.com
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Q: Can
who’s never had to use a
funeral home some tips on
how to find the right one?
A: In addition to your consumer’s
John R. Alcantara - Funeral Director
Hughes-
Ransom
Mortuary
Astoria: 576 12th St.
503.325.2535
Seaside: 220 N. Holladay
503.738.6622
www.hughes-ransom.com
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long they’ve been in business? Are
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Would you put your medical care
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lowest bidder? If price is truly your
biggest concern, you should know
that Hughes-Ransom Mortuaries
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Q: Muscle spasms
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recede. Just like a leg in a cast for several
months getting no stimulation, then
removing the cast and seeing a withered
leg, the dental jaw bone is stimulated by
the function of the teeth and the forces of
chewing. When teeth are removed this
stimulation is lost and for many denture
wearers the bone will shrink resulting
in a change of bone volume and a stable
denture fit. If your situation does require
loss of teeth or you now have dentures
ask about dental implants which can help
support dentures and minimize loss of
bone volume. Please contact our office at
503-325-0310 for an evaluation.
can be a thing of
the past.
horses in the leg,facial tics
A: Charlie
and back spasms are all deficiency
ASTORIA
CHIROPRACTIC
Barry Sears, D.C.
503-325-3311
2935 Marine Drive
Astoria, Oregon
symptoms — muscles are irritated
and working too hard — they don’t
have the nutrients they need. Muscles
need calcium, magnesium and Vitamin
D taken together. Seventy-six percent
of Americans are deficient in those
nutrients. People may be OK until an
injury when the increased activity in
the hurt area causes the deficiency
symptoms. It is easy and quick to
correct. Time of day and dosage are
important and need to be adjusted
until the spasms stop. If you need help
figuring this out, call Dr. Sears.