REGION
Tuesday, June 16, 2015
Umatilla man
flees from justice in
manslaughter case
Drive outside Hermiston.
Umatilla County sheriff’s
deputy Mike Smith arrived
A Umatilla man facing at the scene, the documents
manslaughter and more for state, where he found
a 2013 deadly crash may be Mendoza wearing only black
socks and “lying
out of the country.
on his stomach
Casimiro
DSSUR[LPDWHO\
Armenta Mendoza,
feet from the west-
23, was to appear
bound shoulder.”
March
25
in
The crash ejected
Umatilla County
Mendoza onto the
Circuit
Court,
ground.
Hermiston
to
Smith checked
change his plea
the
overturned
in causing the
2006
Toyota
death of Edgardo
Scion and saw
“Edgar”
Carlos Mendoza
Cornejo, still in
Cornejo. He never
his seatbelt, where he died.
showed.
Umatilla County Sheriff Smith concluded the Honda
Terry Rowan said Mendoza crossed into the oncoming
PD\KDYHÀHGWR0H[LFREXW lane and smashed into the car
he was not certain. Fugitives Cornejo drove.
Mendoza recovered from
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often will hold up near the his injuries and pleaded not
U.S. border, he said, or try to guilty in late January 2014
WR ¿UVW DQG VHFRQGGHJUHH
slip through customs.
“A lot of times if we can PDQVODXJKWHU¿YHFRXQWVRI
prove it, we’ll get a UFAP DVVDXOW ZLWK H[WUHPH LQGLI-
² XQODZIXO ÀLJKW WR DYRLG ference, and two counts of
prosecution warrant,” he GULYLQJ XQGHU WKH LQÀXHQFH
said Saturday via cellphone. RI LQWR[LFDQWV 0HQGR]D
Rowan said he did not know who lived at 47 Elderberry
if there was a UFAP for Court, Umatilla, has been
free on $30,000 bail since
Mendoza.
The
state
accused then.
The case took a turn
Mendoza of driving drunk
early on July 28, 2013, March 20, records show,
near Hermiston and killing when the defense asked
Edgardo “Edgar” Carlos IRU D KHDULQJ LQ ¿YH GD\V
Cornejo, 30, of Irrigon, in so Mendoza could change
a head-on crash. The colli- his plea. When Mendoza
sion also seriously injured skipped out, Circuit Judge
Mendoza and his passenger, Eva Temple issued a bench
Francisco Cancino, 24, of warrant for Mendoza’s arrest.
Until Mendoza is back
Hermiston.
Court records show in custody, that’s where the
Umatilla County’s dispatch case remains.
———
center received a 9-1-1 call
Contact Phil Wright at
at 2:08 that morning about a
vehicle crash at East Punkin pwright@eastoregonian.
Center Road near Alpine com or 541-966-0833.
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
MILTON-FREEWATER
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with bat is free on bail
that Rubio backed a black
Chevrolet pickup into her
A Milton-Freewater man gray Volkswagen Jetta while
facing criminal charges after she was in the car, then
crashing his pickup into a followed her when she tried
former girlfriend’s car is out to get away. Rubio caught
up with her in the
on bail.
area of Northeast
Gerardo Rubio,
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31, pleaded not
Robbins
Street,
guilty
Monday,
according to her
June 8, to coercion
statements
to
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police, then Rubio
criminal mischief,
drove his truck
both
felonies,
nose to nose with
and
initiating
her car, threatened
a false police
her with a baseball
report, menacing,
bat and made her
hit and run, and Rubio
get into the pickup.
three counts of
Court records identify the
reckless endangerment, all
misdemeanors, and viola- woman as Nicole Metcalfe,
tion of a restraining order. and in early May she
Umatilla County Circuit obtained a restraining order
Court records also show against Rubio. According to
Circuit Judge Christopher Boedigheimer, two minor
Brauer set Rubio’s jail bond children also were in the
at $30,000. Rubio posted pickup with Rubio at the
$3,000 as bail Thursday time of the incident.
Milton-Freewater police
to leave the county jail in
that day also received a
Pendleton.
M i l t o n - F r e e w a t e r report at 9:02 p.m. the Jetta
police arrested Rubio for had been stolen. But Rubio,
second-degree kidnapping police reported, made that
as well; the Umatilla County false report.
Rubio remains free on
'LVWULFW $WWRUQH\¶V 2I¿FH
has not charged him with bail but under certain restric-
tions, court records show,
that felony.
Milton-Freewater Police including staying in Oregon
Chief Doug Boedigheimer H[FHSW WR JR WR:DVKLQJWRQ
reported Rubio on June 5 for medical purposes. His
had a scary confrontation QH[WFRXUWDSSHDUDQFHLV-XO\
ZLWK KLV ³IRUPHU VLJQL¿FDQW 7 at the Umatilla County
RWKHU´ 6KH WROG RI¿FHUV Courthouse, Pendleton.
East Oregonian
C!
Sw imming Le ssons at the RA
Session I • June 29 th – July 10 th
Session II • July 13 th – July 24 th
Session III • July 27 th – Aug. 7 th
Session IV • Aug. 10 th – Aug. 21 st
Small Class Sizes!
Indoor facility - No cold weather!
Open to members and non members
East Oregonian
HERMISTON
Donkey basketball a slam dunk
Firefighters compete
in charity game for
Desert Shrine Club
By SEAN HART
EO Media Group
Just before tipoff of a
charity basketball game
in Hermiston, the players
mounted their donkeys, and
the action began.
Hermiston and Umatilla
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second year Saturday in a
donkey basketball game
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Club at the Farm-City Pro
Rodeo grounds.
Umatilla charged to
an early lead, up 8 to 4 at
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before Hermiston pulled
ahead by a nose with a
10-8 lead at the half. In
the second half, Umatilla
was running away for the
win until Hermiston made
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stretch. Hermiston could
not get their asses in gear,
however, and Umatilla
claimed a 29-26 victory.
Sean Hart photo
Firefighters from Hermiston and Umatilla battled in a game of donkey basketball
to raise funds for the Desert Shrine Club Saturday at the Farm-City Pro Rodeo
grounds in Hermiston. The club supports the Shriners Hospital in Portland, which
provides free care for children.
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enjoyed the game, but the
real winner was the Desert
Shrine Club.
Vice President Jim
Leitch said the event in
PENDLETON
City to consider new
contract with drone
range management
manager after John Stevens
left to become the chief
RSHUDWLRQVRI¿FHURI62$5
After spending the past Oregon, a statewide not-for-
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sively about marijuana, the the UAS industry.
The range is currently
Pendleton City Council is
WXUQLQJ WR DQRWKHU IUHTXHQW being remotely managed
topic of discussion at its by a Peak 3 employee from
Tuesday meeting — the Palmer, Alaska.
Steve
Chrisman,
Pendleton Unmanned Aerial
economic
development
Systems Range.
The drone test range director and airport manager,
located at the Eastern has said a few companies
Oregon Regional Airport interested in testing their
will re-enter the conversa- drones at the range have
tion as the council considers already received autho-
a three-year contract with rization from the Federal
Peak 3 Technical Systems, Aviation Administration.
While that would mean
the
Anchorage-based
company that manages the the UAS range could start
accepting business, a fee
range for the city.
between
the
According a report structure
from City Attorney Nancy University of Alaska Fair-
Kerns, Peak 3’s manage- banks and the three Oregon
ment services will be paid test ranges is still being
through contracts with range negotiated. The university
customers and will in turn acts as an administrator to
pay the city to lease the test all test ranges in Oregon,
range’s launch pads and Alaska and Hawaii.
Councilors will also
remote launch sites.
The contract does not consider a local improve-
H[SOLFLWO\ VWDWH KRZ PXFK ment district with the people
each side will pay each other. behind the Pendleton Heights
Either side can terminate housing development.
As a way to jump-start
the contract “if it doesn’t
work out as we hope,” the Tutuilla Road housing
development, the city
wrote Kerns.
The city originally hired fronted the costs of street
Peak 3 in February 2014 to and utility improvements.
Now that Pendleton
manage the development
of the range for $160,000. Heights is complete, Pend-
Another contract and several leton Affordable Housing
H[WHQVLRQV IROORZHG LQ LLC, a company owned
by developer Saj Jivanjee,
VXEVHTXHQWPRQWKV
With a new contract in will have to repay the city
hand, Peak 3 will be tasked $793,323 under the city’s
with hiring a new range proposal.
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Derek Michael Marc
& “Double AA”
Friday, June 19th
Saturday, June 20th
8:00 pm
304 SE Nye
Pendleton
541-276-6111
Locally Owned & Operated Since 2001
New Location:
412 South Main Street
Pendleton, OR 97801
541.276.8845
bmc@wtechlink.us
Like us on Facebook
541-276-0880
1415 Southgate • RAClub.us
Check out our other Summer Activities for Kids!
Page 3A
Hours: Mon. - Fri. 9 am - 6 pm
Online Catalog:
www.companycasuals.com/bluemountaincreations
Hermiston last year raised
about $2,400, and he
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this year. He said the club
supports
the
Shriners
Hospital in Portland, which
provided free care to about
200 children from the area
in each of the last two years.
“We work hard to get the
money to keep that hospital
operating,” he said.
BRIEFLY
:ild¿re EreaNs out in +ells Canyon
National Recreation Area
ENTERPRISE — It’s only the middle of June, but
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afternoon it was 100 acres and burning in grass, the
Wallowa-Whitman National Forest stated in a news release.
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Both the Union and La Grande hot shot crews were en
route as well as additional air resources. Resources are
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DQGQRWDOO¿UH¿JKWLQJUHVRXUFHVDUHLQDFWLYHGXW\VWDWXV
BMCC to host apprenticeship
council summit on Thursday
PENDLETON — Blue Mountain Community College
will welcome the Oregon State Apprenticeship and
7UDLQLQJ&RXQFLOEDFNWR3HQGOHWRQIRUWKH¿UVWWLPHLQ
years on Thursday at 10 a.m.
Brad Avakian, Oregon’s commissioner of the Bureau
of Labor and Industries, serves as the council’s chair-
person. The council’s eight governor-appointed members
have the authority to oversee apprenticeship committees,
programs and policies around the state.
According to a press release from BMCC, an
DSSUHQWLFHVKLSFDQEHWKH¿UVWVWHSWR¿QGLQJZHOOSD\LQJ
work in their chosen industry. Apprentices usually start off
with half the salary of so-called journey workers. Journey
workers have a higher chance of securing a position in
the industry, becoming a supervisor or even going into
business for themselves.
Apprenticeship committees facilitate apprenticeship
programs, which are designed to give workers supervised
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SDUWLFXODU¿HOG
The meeting in Room 200 of the Science and
Technology Building is open to the public. For more
information, and to view an agenda, visit www.oregon.
gov/boli/ATD.
Umatilla County Historical
Society Presents:
A Tour of Farms
& Historic Barns
in the Butter Creek Area
Saturday, June 20 th
9:30 AM -- 4:00 PM
$55 Members/$60 General Admission
Call Heritage Station Museum for registration information and details.
541-276-0012
TRAIL
TRAKKERS
2015
Summer
Walking
Program
May 25 th - Aug. 27 th
Morning Walks
meet at Oxbow Trailhead
(Intersection of 11th & Elm St.)
Monday through Thursday
7:00 - 8:00 am
Questions? Call 541-667-3400 ext 3050
or email healthinfo@gshealth.org