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East Oregonian
CRASH: Niehaus steered across center line into oncoming lane
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facts constituting something
more than careless. Case law
is fact driven and a matter of
degrees of negligence is not
easily identified even among
the experts.”
About 45 members of the
outlaw Gypsy Jokers Motor-
cycle Club on May 2 at 10:30
p.m. were driving on the
John Day Highway, passing
through Fossil to a motor-
cycle rally at Bear Hollow
Park. Niehaus left the park
rally five miles away and
was returning home when
she drove her passenger car
across the centerline into the
motorcyclists.
The crash resulted in the
death of two riders at the
scene, a third death weeks
later, and injuries to six riders
that included broken legs and
hips, as well as head injuries
and lower leg amputations.
“The survivors and their
families are having to adapt
to the physical, mental and
emotional injuries of this
catastrophic life changing
event,” Humphreys and Ladd
stated.
“This crash scene was
chaotic,” Humphreys and
Ladd stated. “Lisa Niehaus
was trapped in the car. First
responders tried to render aid
for victims. The responders
expressed grave concern for
the safety of Lisa Niehaus.
Several
statements
by
some riders indicated Lisa
Niehaus’s safety was in ques-
tion. First responders noted
the scene was extremely
volatile.”
Niehaus
made
two
calls just after the crash.
Noise interrupted the first,
according to the statement,
and during the second
Niehaus told her friend she
was in a crash and “being
beaten.”
Law enforcement sought
search warrants, and the court
approved some but denied
others, including a warrant
for Niehaus’ blood and
urine the day after the crash.
Humphreys and Ladd said
Niehaus was not in custody
overnight, and without a drug
recognition expert to confirm
she was impaired when
she crashed, a toxicology
report alone is not sufficient
to prove she was under the
influence at the time.
Eyewitnesses
and
evidence show Niehaus
steered across the center
line into the oncoming lane.
She had a dog on her lap,
a cellphone within reach
and marijuana in the car,
according to Humphreys
and Ladd. She claimed
the motorcycle headlights
blinded her and she closed
her eyes. Evidence showed
most of the headlamps on the
bikes were on low beam.
Humphreys and Ladd
reported several state agen-
cies assisted in the case, and
several considered the crash
“merely an accident.”
Ladd’s
office,
then,
“became the sole advocate
for the victims in this horrific
crash, though others may not
have done the same.”
While the Oregon Consti-
tution provides specific rights
to crime victims, the law
allows exemptions if a court
finds the incident involves
elements of organized crime.
Ladd and Humphreys stated
the court ruled this case was
excepted from victim rights
protection.
That angered some of the
victims, family and friends
in this case and prompted
comments that cause concern
for the safety of the district
attorney and the victim assis-
tant in Wheeler County.
Even so, Ladd and
Humphreys stated that the
crime victims’ compensation
rights in the case were not
suspended, and the district
attorney’s office continues
to ensure monetary compen-
sation is available to victims
and their families through
the state’s Crime Victims
Compensation Program.
Friday, December 22, 2017
FACTORY: ‘It’s really
to keep up with demand’
Continued from 1A
established in 1972 and
currently has 450 employees.
The new line is expected
to be up and running by
January 2019, supporting
growth in North America
and overseas exports to Asia.
“It’s really to keep up
with demand,” Stoolman
said.
Mark Morgan, Herm-
iston assistant city manager,
said the project is the largest
investment in the history
of the Greater Hermiston
Enterprise Zone, both in
terms of capital investment
and annual payroll.
“We’re very happy that
Lamb Weston is choosing to
make this investment in the
Hermiston area,” Morgan
said. “This is an advanced
operation, so these are
not your run-of-the-mill
processing jobs. We antic-
ipate these full time jobs to
pay an average of at least
$18 per hour, plus benefits.”
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown
also approved an award from
the state’s Strategic Reserve
Fund to move the project
forward, which she said is
part of her focus to boost the
economy statewide.
“In addition to supporting
our rural economies and
booming
agriculture
industry, this investment
provides critical workforce
training opportunities in
well-paying jobs in Eastern
Oregon,” Brown said.
Nathan
Buehler,
spokesman for Business
Oregon, said the state is
indeed finalizing the contract
on a half-million dollar loan
to Lamb Weston. That loan
will include requirements
for job creation, workforce
training and building a
wastewater system at the site.
AP Photo/Mark Lennihan
Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., speaks
at the General Assembly, Thursday at United Nations
headquarters. President Donald Trump’s threat to cut
off U.S. funding to countries that oppose his decision
to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital has raised
the stakes in Thursday’s U.N. vote and sparked criti-
cism of his tactics, with one Muslim group calling it
bullying or blackmail.
ISRAEL: Will have no effect
on plan to move American
Embassy to Jerusalem
Continued from 1A
abstained and 21 were absent.
The resolution reaffirmed
what has been the United
Nations’ stand on the divided
holy city since 1967: that
Jerusalem’s final status must
be decided in direct negotia-
tions between Israel and the
Palestinians.
The Trump administration
made it clear the vote would
have no effect on its plan to
move the American Embassy
from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
And Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu said
afterward that he completely
rejects the “preposterous”
resolution.
Palestinian Ambassador
Riyad Mansour called the
vote a victory not only for the
Palestinians but for the United
Nations and international
law, saying U.S. Ambassador
Nikki Haley “failed miser-
ably” in persuading only
seven countries aside from
the U.S. and Israel to vote
against the resolution.
“And they used unprece-
dented tactics, unheard of in
the diplomatic work at the
U.N., including blackmail
and extortion,” he said.
The United States and
Israel had waged an intensive
lobbying campaign against
the measure, with Haley
sending letters to more than
180 countries warning that
Washington would be taking
names of those who voted
against the United States.
Trump went further, threat-
ening a funding cutoff: “Let
them vote against us. We’ll
save a lot. We don’t care.”
But in the end, major
U.S. aid recipients including
Afghanistan, Egypt, Jordan,
Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia,
Tanzania and South Africa
supported the resolution.
Egypt received roughly $1.4
billion in U.S. aid this year,
and Jordan about $1.3 billion.
The nine countries voting
“no” were the U.S., Israel,
Guatemala,
Honduras,
Micronesia, Nauru, Palau, the
Marshall Islands and Togo.
American allies including the
United Kingdom, Germany,
Japan and New Zealand
opposed the United States.
The absent countries
included Kenya, which was
the fifth-largest recipient of
U.S. aid last year, Georgia
and Ukraine, all of which
have close U.S. ties.
After the vote, Haley
tweeted a photo naming the
65 nations that voted no,
abstained or were absent, and
said: “We appreciate these
countries for not falling to
the irresponsible ways of the
UN.”
She later sent invitations to
the 65 ambassadors inviting
them to a reception on Jan. 3
to thank them for their friend-
ship with the United States.
The U.S. is scheduled
to dispense $25.8 billion in
foreign aid for 2018. Whether
Trump follows through with
his threat against those who
voted “yes” remains to be
seen.
But within hours, the
Trump
administration
appeared to be backing away
from its funding threats. In
Washington, State Depart-
ment spokeswoman Heather
Nauert said cuts to countries
that opposed the U.S. are not
a foregone conclusion.
“The president’s foreign
policy team has been empow-
ered to explore various
options going forward with
other nations,” Nauert said.
“However, no decisions have
been made.”
During the debate, Arab,
Islamic and non-aligned
nations urged a “yes” vote
on the resolution, which was
sponsored by Yemen and
Turkey.
Yemeni
Ambassador
Khaled Hussein Mohamed
Alyemany warned that
Trump’s recognition of Jeru-
salem undermines any chance
for peace in the Mideast and
“serves to fan the fires of
violence and extremism.”
He called Trump’s action
“a blatant violation of the
rights of the Palestinian
people and the Arab nations,
and all Muslims and Chris-
tians of the world,” and “a
dangerous violation and
breach of international law.”
On Wednesday, Trump
complained that Americans
are tired of being taken
advantage of by countries
that take billions of dollars
and then vote against the
U.S. Haley echoed his words
in her speech to the packed
assembly chamber, threat-
ening not only member states
with funding cuts, but the
United Nations itself.
Haley said the vote will
make no difference in U.S.
plans to move the American
Embassy, but it “will make a
difference on how Americans
look at the U.N., and on how
we look at countries who
disrespect us in the U.N.”
“And this vote will be
remembered,” she warned.
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