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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 2018)
WEEKEND EDITION LIFE AS AN UMPIRE SUNDAY DRIVERS SPORTS/1B LIFESTYLES/1C FOURTH OF JULY FIREWORKS OPTIONS REGION/2A JUNE 30-JULY 1, 2018 142nd Year, No. 182 $1.50 WINNER OF THE 2017 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Texting at wheel penalty ramps up Sunday Stricter rules mean possible jail time for third offense By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Penalties for using your phone while driving will start adding up on Sunday — in some cases all the way up to possible jail time for repeat offenders. While Oregon’s new, stricter distracted driv- ing law went into effect last October, drivers had a grace period where offenses were dealt with individually. Now, the fines will get big- ger with each offense, start- ing July 1. “If it’s not enough encour- agement to think you might contribute to a crash, think that the police might be out specifically looking for peo- ple using their phones, and the dollars can add up,” said Oregon Department of Transportation spokesper- son Shelley Snow. A first offense not con- tributing to a crash is a Class B violation with a fine of up to $1,000. A second offense, or first offense contribut- ing to a crash, is a Class A violation with a fine of up to $2,000. Three offenses within 10 years ramps up to a Class B misdemeanor — meaning a fine of up to $2,500, a criminal record and a possible penalty of up to 6 months in jail. Drivers under 18 can’t use any electronic devices while driving, even if they are hands-free. Adults can use hands-free devices but cannot use any function on a phone or other electronic device like a tablet that requires holding or touch- ing the device beyond a sin- gle touch to activate. The rules include drivers who are stopped at a traffic signal or stuck in stand-still traffic. A few exemptions apply, See TEXTING/10A Staff photo by E.J. Harris Baker Charter School senior Sammy Moore sorts sprinkler heads in a shop Friday while working his summer job at Golden Valley Farm outside of Stanfield. LEARNING LABOR Agricultural jobs for teens affected by technology, new laws By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian Inside For more on the local job market, See Page 8A W hether pulling weeds, picking berries or driv- ing machinery, many people found their first job on a farm. For Umatilla County kids, farm labor has been one of many options for making money in the summer, but the way young workers fit into the agricultural industry has seen major changes in the past several years. Darrin Ditchen, owner of Golden Valley Farms East in Stanfield, said his minimum hir- ing age is 16, the age teens have to be to operate heavy equipment. “If you can’t run equipment on a farm ... they can’t work too many hours,” Ditchen said. “At a farming job, that’s tough.” The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries has several require- ments for employing minors both under 16, and under 18. Among other restrictions, workers under the age of 16 are prohibited from working in places where pow- er-driven machinery is used. Staff photo by E.J. Harris Hermiston High School sophomore Avery Treadwell helps harvest grass seed with extension agronomist Ray Qin at the Hermiston Agricultural Research and Extension Center on Friday in Hermiston. He said the rapid changes in technology has also altered the way farms operate. In less than 20 years, most machinery has become auto- mated, which limits the number of jobs teens are needed to do. “When I was growing up, you saw more younger people work- ing simpler jobs on a farm, like picking berries,” he said. “You don’t see that anymore. For so many kids, their first job is at 16. And they’ve never been around a farm.” He said that lack of familiar- ity requires employers to spend more time training kids on how to operate and be safe around equipment. “I’ve turned a lot of kids away this year,” he said. “The jobs are out there, but it’s a hard job.” Still, Ditchen said, he likes hiring high school and college kids to work for him. This year, he hired eight high school stu- dents and three college students. Trevor Horn, 17, is a Herm- iston High School student in his first year working for Ditchen. As he drove a combine har- vesting Kentucky bluegrass seed, Horn said he has been asked to do every type of task on the farm since he started working a few weeks ago. “I probably enjoy helping in the mechanical shop most,” he said. “Mostly because then I understand as much as I can.” Operating the combine is a close second, he said, but he’s had to remind himself how big See JOBS/10A Entire Wheeler County Sheriff’s Office resigns Sheriff and 3 deputies give notice, leaving massive hole in county’s law enforcement By TIM TRAINOR East Oregonian Wheeler County Sheriff Chris Humphreys is resigning his post — and all of his deputies are going with him. Humphreys, who was elected to the position in 2013, gave notice enforcement community to the Wheeler County in the small county of Court that he wished to 1,500 people is headed out leave his position. He the door. said he will give the Humphreys said the county 4-6 months to mass exodus is not ideal, find a replacement, but is and it’s not what he had in ready to leave at any time. He said all three of his mind. Once he decided to full-time deputies — Roy resign, he recommended Nelson, Russell Mathi- Humphreys all his deputies consider asen, and undersher- the job of sheriff, and he iff Dave Dobler — will also leave pledged his support to each. There the agency. Michael Boyd, a retired were no takers, however. Prineville police chief who worked “It’s just kind of like when a a few days a month, is also resign- band breaks up,” he said. “When ing. That means the entire law one person leaves no one else wants to be here. And by here I mean in law enforcement ... no one wants to be here without each other.” He said each deputy was being recruited by larger agencies, and he understood why they would not want to take on the extra responsi- bility, paperwork and politics that comes with a sheriff’s position. “It’s a lot,” he said. “I’m just exhausted ... I’m doing all the administrative stuff at 2 p.m., then getting called out at 2 a.m., and try- ing to work again the next day.” See SHERIFF/9A “It’s kind of like when a band breaks up. When one person leaves no one else wants to be here.” — Chris Humphreys, Wheeler County Sheriff