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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 3, 2015)
WEEKEND EDITION RIDGEVIEW TACKLES PENDLETON FOOTBALL/1B REGION: Pendleton gas tax PAC makes their pitch 3A OUT OF THE VAULT: Ione shooting leaves 1 dead, 6 injured 9C Living with Down syndrome LIFESTYLES 1C OCTOBER 3-4, 2015 139th Year, No. 252 UMATILLA Paroled gang member returns to jail WINNER OF THE 2015 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD $1.50 UMPQUA COMMUNITY COLLEGE SHOOTING PENDLETON BMCC focuses campus security Killed man in 2011, jailed for gun crime By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian A Umatilla gang member who beat a man to death in 2011 was back on the streets this summer after Circuit Court Judge Eva Temple determined he had turned his life around. Just months after his release, Teodoro “Teddy” Parra Mendoza, 21, is in the Umatilla County Jail for a gun crime. Umatilla County District Attorney Dan Primus and the state had argued Mendoza was a risk for release because had not broken his gang ties Mendoza while incarcerated. Umatilla city police arrested Mendoza on Tuesday at about 5:45 p.m. at the Marina Apartments, 1600 Second St., Umatilla, and booked him into the Umatilla County Jail, Pendleton, for felon in possession of a ¿ rearm, a Class C felony, and misdemeanors of menacing and disorderly conduct. Primus said residents at the apartments were concerned about a man with a gun and how he was behaving. The Umatilla County District Attorney’s Of¿ ce arraigned Mendoza on Wednesday in Hermiston on the gun charge and disorderly conduct. Court records show he is living at 1650 W. Sunland Ave., Apt. 7, Hermiston, and his ne[t hearing is Monday morning in front of Circuit Judge Dan Hill in Hermiston. The charges could violate the conditions of his early release from the Oregon Youth Authority, the state agency that incarcerates young offenders. Mendoza, Kevin Melendez, and Andres AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli Angel Martinez, left, comforts Brenda Valenzuela during a candle light vigil for those killed during a fatal shooting at Umpqua Community College, Thursday in Roseburg. Valenzuela was on campus and saw the gunman. Gunman was Army dropout who studied mass shooters By JEFF BARNARD and MARTHA MENDOZA Associated Press ROSEBURG — The 26-year-old gunman who opened ¿ re on fellow students in his community college English class, killing nine people, was an Army boot camp dropout who studied mass shooters before becoming one himself. A day after the rampage in this Oregon timber town, authorities said Christopher Sean Harper-Mercer wore a À ak jacket and brought at least si[ guns and ¿ ve ammunition magazines to the school. Investigators found another seven guns at the apartment he shared See SHOOTING/8A More inside • Veteran who tried to stop gunman was shot fi ve times Page 8A • Nation laments after Roseburg shooting Page 10A As news of a massacre on the campus of Umpqua Commu- nity College in Roseburg spread Thursday, America’s latest mass shooting felt particularly close to home for Umatilla County’s own community college. Casey White-Zollman, vice president of public relations at Blue Mountain Community College, said counselors from the college’s Health and Wellness Resource Center were available Friday for students and staff who were troubled by the news. “Their heart goes out to their colleagues,” White-Zollman said of the staff. The shooting, which took the lives of nine students and teachers and wounded nine others before the shooter was killed, was a reminder of the importance of BMCC’s regular training and drills to prepare for an active shooter situation. “We do the best we can,” White-Zollman said. “There is no foolproof way to prevent these incidents. We’ve seen that. All we can do is be as prepared as possible.” She said the college recently completed yet another update to its safety plan with local law enforcement, and also had a Pendleton Police Department of¿ cer on hand in May during a drill. “When we debriefed after- wards he was able to give us some helpful feedback,” she said. Students are included in drills and trainings, but White- Zollman said it is especially important to make sure employees are well-versed in security protocol so in the event of an emergency they can guide new students who aren’t as familiar with the college. She said the campus has a zero-tolerance policy for violence and just released an See BMCC/12A Quake prep starts with the basics See MENDOZA/12A By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian Walking proud Staff photo by E.J. Harris The Pendleton Buckaroos football team walks down the Bedford Bridge during their pride walk before their game against Ridgeway on Friday at the Pendleton Round-Up Grounds. First, make sure you have shoes and a À ash- light under your bed. Some of the most common injuries after earthquakes are to the bottoms of feet, when folks run out of bed and step on broken glass. And you need to start stocking up on water, food, batteries and other emergency supplies — enough to last a least a couple of weeks. Althea Rizzo is the Geological Hazards Program manager with the Oregon Emergency Management. She told a crowd Thursday night in Pendleton when the Cascadia quake hits, it will be big and affect Oregonians statewide. So people should start a plan now to deal with the catastrophe. A small Cascadia quake is 8.3 on the Modi- ¿ ed Mercalli Intensity Scale, she said, which measures shaking, but a 9 is what to e[pect. Buildings — depending on their design — can sustain damage at 5. The Cascadia event will cut off Eastern Oregon from supplies of food, fuel, even phone See QUAKE/12A
