PLUTONIUM
HOVERING IN
AIR AT HANFORD
101/65
RODEO SHOW
TO GO ON IN
NEW ARENA
NORTHWEST/2A
SPORTS/1B
West Nile virus
detected in
Morrow County
REGION/3A
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9, 2017
141st Year, No. 212
WINNER OF THE 2017 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
One dollar
Sessions
questions
Oregon
cannabis
market
By PARIS ACHEN
Capital Bureau
Staff photo E.J. Harris
Sabrina Ryan of Hermiston organizes prizes in the Frogger booth in the carnival at the Umatilla County Fair on Tuesday.
FAIR WEATHER FUN
First day in new space full of adjustments, excitement
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
During opening day of the
Umatilla County Fair, vendors
and participants were busy
getting used to new things —
and preparing for the big crowds
to come.
Most people noted that the
biggest change this year is the
size of the venue: EOTEC.
“It’s a bigger footprint up
here,” said Mary Corp, regional
administrator for the OSU
Extension Service, who oversees
4-H entries for the fair. “People
should wear good walking shoes
and maybe split it up into a
couple of visits.”
Many of the fair’s logistics
will be different this year too,
such as parking. There are
several lots around the EOTEC
grounds, and a daily parking
pass is $5. A parking pass for
the entire week is $20. Passes
can be purchased from parking
lot attendants and must be paid
in cash.
Because the space is so large,
small trolleys towed by tractors
will circle the grounds all week,
taking people from the more
distant parking lots to the fair
Staff photo E.J. Harris
Caleb Glenn of Hermiston sits in the livestock barn while waiting to compete later in showman-
ship with his Nubian goat, HannaMay, at the Umatilla County Fair in Hermiston.
entrance.
On Friday and Saturday,
Mid-Columbia Bus Company
will provide a free shuttle
service between the fairgrounds
and four locations in Herm-
iston: the Hermiston Chamber
of Commerce parking lot, the
Hermiston City Hall parking
lot, the Walmart Parking lot near
See FAIR/8A
“Once all the kinks are worked out, it’s going to be absolutely wonderful.”
— Alice Dyer, superintendent of small animals for the fair
SALEM — U.S. Attorney General
Jeff Sessions has alleged that Oregon
may be violating the Obama admin-
istration’s requirements to keep mari-
juana out of the illicit market.
Sessions sent a letter to Gov. Kate
Brown July 24 reiterating the Depart-
ment of Justice’s authority to enforce
the federal ban on marijuana and high-
lighting ways in which Oregon may
have failed to comply with the “Cole
memo.”
The memo, issued in 2013, represents
the Obama administration’s policy not
to prosecute the state legalized market
provided that
the state has
“Congress
a robust regu-
latory system
has deter-
that prevents
leakage of the
mined that
drug into the
marijuana is
illicit market.
Thus far the
a dangerous
Trump admin-
istration
has drug and that
honored
the
the illegal
policy.
The attorney
distribution
g e n e r a l
and sale of
stated that an
Oregon State
marijuana is
Police report
in
January
a crime.”
raised “serious
— Jeff Sessions,
questions about
U.S.
Attorney General
the
effi cacy
of marijuana
‘regulatory structures’” in the state.
He added that the Cole memo does
not preclude DOJ from investigating
or prosecuting violations of the federal
prohibition.
“Congress has determined that
marijuana is a dangerous drug and
that the illegal distribution and sale of
marijuana is a crime,” Sessions wrote.
“The Department remains committed
to enforcing the Controlled Substances
Act in a manner that effi ciently applies
our resources to address the most
signifi cant threats to public health and
safety.”
Sessions, a longtime marijuana foe,
did not specify how he intended to act
on his authority to enforce the ban.
Lauren Ehrsam, a DOJ spokeswoman,
declined further comment on the
purpose of the letter and the attorney
general’s plans to address the concerns
outlined in the letter.
As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, Gov. Kate
Brown’s offi ce had not responded to
multiple messages seeking comment
on the letter.
See MARIJUANA/8A
PENDLETON
Siblings win dance competition in honor of late grandfather
By KATHY ANEY
East Oregonian
Remington and Terika Christensen
don’t have the luxury of sibling rivalry.
The brother and sister dancers must
stay in sync.
The pair recently won their division
at a national-level dance competition
in Las Vegas with a routine designed
to honor their grandfather, Lawrence
Wolfgram, who died of cancer in 2015.
“When my grandpa passed away,
my mom was going through a hard
time,” Remington said. “We wanted to
do something to honor him.”
Remington, 15, and Terika, 17,
both dance for Pendleton High
School’s Rhythmic Mode dance team
and the Esprit National Dance Team.
They told their coach, Debbie Kish-
paugh, owner of Junior Jam Dance,
More online
For video of the
two dancing visit
eastoregonian.com
what they had in mind.
Kishpaugh
choreographed
a
routine to the song “Tell your Heart
to Beat Again.” Terika begins the
performance in a wheelchair, her body
and spirit wounded and despairing. As
Remington dances with fl uid, strong
movement around her, he coaxes
her from the chair and the two move
together in joy. The message is one of
encouragement.
“Life is hard. It knocks you down,”
Kishpaugh said. “But you can be
healed.”
See DANCE/8A
Contributed photo
Remington and Terika Christensen dance together on July 29 at
the Tremaine Dance Convention and Competition in Las Vegas.