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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 6, 2019)
WEEKEND EDITION BAYLOR HOLDS OFF OREGON FOR FINAL FOUR WIN M-F MAN ARRESTED AFTER BEER BOTTLE ASSAULT PENDLETON COUPLE FINDS THEIR BLISS ON THE WATER LIFESTYLES, C1 SPORTS, B1 REGION, A3 E O AST 143rd Year, No. 123 Hansell votes no on daylight saving bill REGONIAN APRIL 6-7, 2019 $1.50 WINNER OF THE 2018 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Author, advocate spreads message to protect children from sexual abuse By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian State Sen. Bill Hansell said he doesn’t care if Oregon abol- ishes “springing forward” and “falling back” for the rest of time. He just wants the voters of Oregon to make the decision. That’s the reasoning the Ath- ena Republican put behind his vote against Senate Bill 320, a bill that would make day- light saving time in Oregon permanent. Hansell made clear that he was agnostic toward chang- ing the biannual tradition of switching clocks an hour for- ward in the spring and an hour back in the fall. “I don’t care if it’s daylight or standard,” he said. But when an amendment stripped language from the bill that would have referred the issue to a statewide election, Hansell decided to oppose it. In an otherwise conten- tious legislative session, the bill enjoyed broad bipartisan support. The chief sponsors of the bill were two Republicans and a Democrat, and when Hansell voted against SB 320, he was joined only by state Sens. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Portland, Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose, and Alan Olsen, R-Canby. If the bill becomes law, Ore- gon wouldn’t “fall back” the fi rst Sunday of each November and would stay in the daylight saving time period year-round. Most of Malheur County, which observes Mountain time instead of Pacifi c time like the rest of the state, is exempted from the bill. But the bill faces obstacles beyond the state legislative process. Oregon’s foray into per- manent daylight saving time wouldn’t begin until California and Washington pass laws that do the same. Both states are well on their way: California voters approved a daylight saving measure last November and the Washington Legislature has already passed Staff photo by E.J. Harris Author Erin Merryn speaks about the sexual abuse she suff ered as a child during a speaking event at The Vert on Thursday in Pendleton. Merryn spoke on behalf of the Guardian Care Center, the Pendleton nonprofi t that conducts forensic interviews of child physical and sexual abuse victims. By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian E rin Merryn is 34 and her left wrist bears the “c” shaped scar she said she suffered as a child when she punched her hand through a window. She was all of 7, growing up in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg and lashed out from anger and despair. Her parents rushed her to the hospital, she said, but her injured hand was not the real problem. “No one,” she said, “was getting to the root of why I was such an angry kid.” The root was the festering secret Mer- ryn said she kept out of fear — the sexual abuse she was suffering since she was 6. Merryn — her pen and stage name — wrote three books about her child- hood, the sexual abuse and how it shaped her life. She changed the names of fam- ily members and even the abusers in the books but recounted her story during a Breaking down taxes in Umatilla, Morrow counties presentation Thursday night in Pendle- ton. Not quite a hundred people attended, and many were law enforcement or social workers. She spoke on behalf of the Guardian Care Center, the Pendleton non- profi t that conducts forensic interviews of child physical and sexual abuse victims. She credited a similar center with help- ing her overcome the fear of talking about one of her abusers. See Advocate, Page A10 THE LODGE by JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian See Hansell, Page A10 Umatilla and Morrow counties share a border, a community college system and several state and federal representatives. When it comes to taxes, the counties paint slightly different pictures. Despite the location of several major businesses and continued growth at the Port of Morrow, Uma- tilla County’s tax base is signifi cantly larger. “Umatilla County has a much higher value than Morrow County,” said Morrow County assessor Mike Gorman. He noted the larger geographical size and the higher population. “There’s more homes, there’s more stuff to tax,” he said. “I think we’re about half, maybe a little more, of their value.” Staff photo by E.J. Harris See Taxes, Page A10 Sallie Ford, of Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside, sings during a sound check on Friday at The Lodge in Pendleton. Friday’s concert was the grand opening for the new music venue. 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