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The Dalles Police Department
In cooperation with Crime Stop
pers, is asking for your help in solv
ing a homicide.
On Sunday, October 25, 1998,
W anda Eichinger, a 94-year-old
widow was found murdered in her
neatly kept home, in the 600 block of
Liberty, in a residential part o f The
Dalles near down town. Close friends
discovered her body after she failed
to show up for church services that
morning.
Wanda Eichinger was a person
who cherished her independence.
Even at 94-years-of-age, she lived
alone in her home and required only
minimal outside assistance from oth
ers.
Crime Stoppers is offering a cash
reward o f up to $ 1,000 for informa
tion that leads to an arrest in this case
and you need not give your name.
Call either the Dalles Police Depart
ment at (541) 296-2613, or Crime
Stoppers at (503) 823-HELP.
hind the Cadillac when he turned on
his overhead lights in an effort to
attempt to stop it. Approximately
three to five seconds later the Cadillac-
failed to stop at the posted stop sign
on Houghton St. at N. Portsmouth
Ave. and collided with a Ford Mus
tang which was driven by Michelle
L. Thiel, age 32, as it traveled north
bound on N. Portsmouth. Both Ms.
Thiel and her passenger, Gregory J,
Hunter, age 30, died as a result o f the
collision.
Following the collision, the ve
hicle Hamilton was driving came to
rest on a the lawn o f the residence
located on the northwest comer o fN .
Portsmouth Ave. and N. Houghton
St. O ffic e r G o rgone rescu ed
Hamilton, who was initially found
unconscious, from the driver’s seat
o f the Cadillac which had caught on
fire and was eventually gutted by
flames.
A female passenger in Hamilton’s
vehicle at the time o f the accident has
beenidentifiedasH eavonyC. Lowe.
Ms. Lowe was taken to Emanual
Hospital for medical treatment, how
ever, it is not know if she was admit
ted as an in patient.
Hamilton was taken to Portland
Adventist Hospital where blood was
drawn in furtherance o f this investi
gation. The results o f the blood test
ing will not immediately be known.
At the time o f the accident,
Hamilton’s driver’s license was re
voked and he had an outstanding
felony warrant on file charging him
with Possession ofa Controlled Sub
stance. Hamilton was lodged at the
Multnomah County Detention Cen
ter, MCDC, for the outstanding ar
rest warrant, Driving While Revoked
(a felony) and two counts o f First
Degree Manslaughter stemming from
the deaths of Michelle Thiel and
Gregory Hunter.
Portland Police Bureau fatal traf
fic investigators are continuing this
investigation in conjunction with the
M ultnom ah C o u n ty D istric t
Attorney’s Office.
Investigators are attempting to
identify potential witnesses to this
incident. O f particular interest is the
identity o f the driver o f the vehicle
who narrowly avoided colliding with
Hamilton's older model Cadillac at
N. Lombard St. and N. Woolsey Ave.
Skid marks indicate a collision was
narrowly avoided. Any information
should be referred to the Portland
Police Traffic Division, fatal acci
dent investigators, at (503) 823-2103.
Female Inmate Died While In
The Justice Center
Multnomah County Correction
deputies working in the intake area
o f the Justice Center noticed a fe
male inmate who was in a very hyper
and agitated state. She complained
o f feeling ill and expressed concern
that she may be overdosing on drugs.
Multnomah County medical staff
immediately responded to the hold
ing cell that the inmate was in. She
eventually lost consciousness as they
attended to her.
Outside medical personnel were
also called in, but all attempts to
revive the inmate failed. She died at
approximately 1:30 am.
Immediately after her death, the
M ultnomah County Medical Exam
iners Office and Multnomah County
S h e riffs Office Detectives were
called to the Justice Center and are
investigating the incident. Prelimi
nary findings have every indication
that the inmate died o f a drug over
dose as a result o f drugs she in
gested before entering the jail.
An autopsy performed this morn
ing revealed four plastic bags with
holes in them in the inm ate’s stom
ach, which may have contained
drugs. A toxicology report from the
Medical Examiners Office is pend
ing.
The inmate’s name is not being
released pending notification o f her
family.
Southeast/Northeast “Cat
Burglaries
Southeast Precin ct D etectives
are in v estig atin g a series o f night
tim e b u rg laries w hich ap p ear to
be the w ork o f one individual.
Since Jan u ary o f this year, 15 or
20 cases have been reported in
the area b o unded by NE B road
way to SE B elm ont, and 15th to
31st A venue. The susp ect enters
during the night w hile the o ccu
pant, a single fem ale living alone,
is sleeping. In m ost cases the o c
A
NOV. 25,1998
( M b 'S d 'iw t r
Pedestrian - Auto Acident
Leaves Portland Man
Seriously Injured
Portland Police Seeking Help In
Identifying H it and Run Driver
bound across SE Foster Rd. and
stopped momentarily on the center
divider before Mr. Hess stepped in
front o f an orange or red colored
“wedge shaped” compact size vehicle
which was traveling westbound. The
vehicle failed to stop at the scene and
was last seen continuing westbound.
Mr. Hess, who resides at 10016 SE
Ellis St., was transported to Oregon
Health Sciences University, OHSU.
It is not known if he will survive his
injuries.
Police are seeking information
which would help in identifying the
orange or red “edge shaped” com
pact vehicle with damage to the wind
shield and or front headlights.
Any information regarding this
case would be referred to Officer
John Sedra, Portland Police Traffic
Division, at (503) 823-2207.
Courts Are Different Here
Portland Police Officer Pulls Suspect Out Of
Burning Vehicle
On November 14, 1998 at ap
proximately 1:00 am
. • . .
v - .
O n N o v e m b e r 18, 1998,
Wednesday, Donald S. Hess, age 40,
was struck by a passing motorist after
he walked into the vehicle’s path on
SE Foster Rd., at SE 102ndAve.,Mr.
Hess and an acquaintance, Emest R.
Graddy, age 40, were walking north-
Two Killed In Fatal Traffic
Accident With Reckless
Driver
A vehicle driven by Kenneth Otis
Hamilton, age 23, failed to stop for a
stop sign at the intersection o f N.
Houghton St. andN. Portsmouth Ave.
and collided with another vehicle at
a high rate o f speed killing both the
driver and the passenger.
Hamilton had drawn the attention
o f North Precinct Officer Robert
Gorgone who had seen Hamilton dis
regard a stop light at N. Lombard and
N. Woolsey Ave. While traveling at
a high rate o f speed which nearly
caused a traffic accident with an
other vehicle which skidded to a stop
to avoid colliding with Hamilton’s
vehicle. Officer Gorgone, who was
parked, attempted to catch up to the
older model Cadillac which Hamilton
was driving and, in so doing, ob
served the Cadillac continue to be
operated in a reckless manner by
driving too fast and disobeying stops
signs. Officer Gorgone attempted to
catch up to the Cadillac without us
ing his overhead lights and or siren.
As the Cadillac traveled westbound
on N. Houghton St. approaching N.
Portsmouth Ave., Officer Gorgone
was approximately three blocks be-
. •
(Tljc P o rtla n d
Homicide Investigation
On November 17,1998, Tuesday,
at 2:34 A M
. • -. »
cupant w aj not aw akened and dis
covers the burglary in the m orn
ing. In one case, how ever, the vic
tim was aw akened and was sex u
ally assaulted.
The suspect is entering by re
m oving or cutting screens from
unlocked w indow s and doors, or
rem oving a pane o f glass from a
d oor to reach inside and unlock
it.
Items taken include purses, wal-
lets, CD s, com puter and stereo
equipm ent.
The suspect is described as a
w hite m ale in his 20s or 30s, over
6 ’0 tall w ith a thin build.
Area residents are reminded to lock
all doors and windows during night
time hours.
Please phone Detective Y ost Sexual
Assault Detoil (823-0400) or Detec
tive Nelson, Southeast Precinct Detec
tives (823-2143) for information.
Legal headlines from Washington,
D C., California and elsewhere in the
nation obscure the day-to-day work of
Oregon’s courts. Although we hear
criticisms and problems elsewhere in
the country, Oregon courts efficiently
administer justice, hold wrongdoers
accountable and enforce bus mess
agreements.
T here
is
a
w idespread
misperception that courts have an
abundance o f frivolous legal proceed
ings. But virtually any Oregon Circuit
Court judge will tell you that our state
is different Whatever may be going
on in the rest of the nation, frivolous
legal proceedings are unusual in Or
egon. Oregon has a court rule that
punishes an attorney or party who
makes a frivolous claim or defense.
And in Oregon, if the facts are clear,
the issue may be disposed o f by a
judge, without the need to assemble a
jury.
The mere fact that one party loses
a case does not mean that its position
was frivolous. For example, most dis-
trictattomeys have an enviable record
of winning criminal prosecutions, but
when the DA loses a case, it does not
mean that the prosecution was frivo
lous. Similarly, private person and
businesses often have good faith, le
gitimate disputes that need to be re
solved. One party or the other will
prevail and the other will lose. That
does not make the losing claim or
defense frivolous.
T here is also a com m on
misperception that our courts are
clogged with personal injury lawsuits
that are causing delay. Not so in Or
egon. A substantial majority of Oregon
court cases are criminal prosecutions.
The bulk o f the remainder consist of
domestic problems, contract disputes
and juvenile proceedings. Personal in
jury, wrongful death and other tort
cases make up less than two percent of
Oregon’s court cases, according to data
from the Oregon State Court Adminis
trator.
Oregon courts are a national model
for efficiency. The Oregon Supreme
Court has time guidelines for cases.
Even with the more complicated civil
cases, about 98 percent are resolved
less than one year after the case is filed
with the court.
Another stubborn myth is that
Americans are overly litigious. Schol
ars have analyzed historic court records
and have found that the average con
temporary American uses the courts
less than Colonial Americans. United
States citizens now go to court about as
often as citizens in other nations that
trace their legal heritage back to En
gland. Adjusted for populations, the
frequency ofhigh profile cases such as
personal injury and wrongful death
cases has actually been declining for a
number o f years.
Yet another persistent myth is that
jury verdicts have skyrocketed and are
out o f control. Not so in Oregon. In
Lane County, for instance, the aver
age (median) jury verdict in a Circuit
Court personal injury case, when the
injured person prevails, has been
around $9,000. Given the amount o f
medical bills, the impairments to a
person’s life and the cost o f enforcing
one’s rights in court, this amount is
quite low. Oregon, along with South
Carolina, is ranked at the bottom o f the
country in the civil enforcement o f
individual rights.
Oregon will soon start another
legislative session and predictably
there will be cries for legal reforms,
typically based on stories or head
lines from other states. Although
any human institution can be im
proved, what is not broken does not
need to be fixed. In Oregon, things
are different and Oregonians can be
proud o f their court system.
Don Corson is a Eugene attorney
and is President o f the Oregon Trial
Lawyers A ssociation, 1020 SW
T aylor Ste 400, P o rtland, OR
97205. You can reach Don at 541-
4 8 4 -2 4 3 4 o r by e m a il at
jclc@ jclc.com .