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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 24, 2019)
NORTHWEST East Oregonian A2 Saturday, August 24, 2019 Grant County sheriff facing ethics complaint rescinds resignation Former OSP officer filed ethics complaint against Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer with DPSST Gordon Larson. Larson filed the ethics complaint. He said the lost fishing pole “is a small piece of a much larger issue that talks about a sheriff willing to use all resources under his direction to try and dam- age a citizen.” In 2018, Larson ran against and lost to Palmer’s younger brother Sam Palmer for a Grant County Com- mission seat. Larson claims the sheriff has repeatedly used his position to damage political opponents. Sheriff Palmer’s politics were a flashpoint during the 2016 occupation of the Mal- heur National Wildlife Ref- uge, when he publicly sym- pathized with armed militia members who took over the refuge for 41 days. “Local officials, primar- ily the sheriff and those act- ing under his control, [are] trying to damage me and my family because of my politi- cal posture against the Mal- heur occupation, because I opposed his brother in a political race, and more importantly because we’ve called him out for his tac- tics,” Larson said. Palmer declined to comment about the ethics complaint. Palmer wrote on Face- book he intends to fight the allegations. “I will be stay- ing on until the end of my By EMILY CURETON Oregon Public Broadcasting JOHN DAY — A sher- iff in Eastern Oregon who announced he would resign the day after being noti- fied of an ethics complaint against him now says he will stay on the job and seek re-election for a sixth term. Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer told county officials at a public meeting last week he would quit. But he wrote in a Facebook post Tuesday, “I am withdrawing my resignation.” A former Oregon State Police officer filed the lat- est ethics complaint with the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training, or DPSST, a state agency that enforces min- imum standards for peace officers. The complaint alleges Palmer failed to return lost property — in this case, a fishing pole with the owner’s name engraved on it. The complaint alleges Palmer kept the pole out of personal animosity toward a retired Oregon State Police officer, The Oregonian Photo via AP/Thomas Boyd, File Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, left, hugs Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer in 2015 as they enter a meeting with homeowners in Canyon City. Palmer told county officials at a public meeting last week he would quit. But he wrote in a Facebook post Tuesday, “I am withdrawing my resignation.” term,” he wrote, “and as long as this behavior continues, I will continue to seek reelec- tion. I will be asking the vot- ers for an unprecedented 6th term as your Sheriff.” Grant County Judge Scott Myers said Palm- er’s resignation was never formalized. “Until I had it in writing and the ink was dry, I never Forecast for Pendleton Area TODAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY even considered it a feasible statement,” Myers said. DPSST’s policy commit- tee plans to review the com- plaint at a Nov. 21 hearing. The agency has received at least nine other com- plaints against Palmer in recent years. The Oregon Department of Justice con- cluded in 2017 the sher- iff did not commit criminal Walden says little about gun legislation after El Paso and Dayton shootings By JEFF MAPES Oregon Public Broadcasting Sunshine, breezy and pleasant Nice with plenty of sunshine Pleasant with plenty of sun Beautiful with plenty of sun Mostly sunny and very warm PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 86° 57° 81° 51° 82° 53° 95° 65° 89° 57° HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST 89° 59° 84° 51° 86° 52° 98° 62° 92° 56° OREGON FORECAST ALMANAC Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows. PENDLETON through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Seattle Olympia 70/55 81/52 85/52 Longview Kennewick Walla Walla 86/61 Lewiston 75/55 90/60 Astoria 69/55 Pullman Yakima 87/58 74/51 90/58 Portland Hermiston 78/57 The Dalles 89/59 Salem Corvallis 79/53 Yesterday Normals Records La Grande 85/51 PRECIPITATION John Day Eugene Bend 83/53 85/47 87/52 Ontario 96/60 Caldwell Burns 84° 51° 86° 56° 103° (1956) 41° (1938) 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date Albany 80/54 0.00" 0.05" 0.15" 4.61" 5.13" 6.07" WINDS (in mph) 95/58 90/44 0.00" 0.12" 0.31" 9.73" 6.49" 8.26" through 3 p.m. yest. HIGH LOW TEMP. Pendleton 83/45 80/54 24 hours ending 3 p.m. Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date HERMISTON Enterprise 86/57 82/60 84° 53° 86° 56° 109° (1894) 34° (1910) PRECIPITATION Moses Lake 75/54 Aberdeen 81/53 82/60 Tacoma Yesterday Normals Records Spokane Wenatchee 74/57 Today Boardman Pendleton Medford 93/58 Sun. WSW 8-16 W 10-20 SW 6-12 W 7-14 acts by destroying public records and issuing hand- gun licenses to out-of-state residents. The state received another complaint against Palmer and a deputy in Feb- ruary 2019, alleging the sheriff’s office has a policy of not enforcing restraining orders. Investigator Kris- ten Hibberds determined the allegations were “outside of DPSST’s jurisdiction.” Palmer is also known for appointing at least 65 spe- cial deputies — politically supportive volunteers, usu- ally without law enforce- ment training — who are authorized to act in his name in Grant County. The ethics complaint made by retired OSP officer Larson names two of these special county deputies: Jim Sproul and Dave Tray- lor, claiming the men “have written a number of vile, patently false and inflamma- tory remarks about me.” Sproul and Traylor have challenged, in a separate and ongoing process, Lar- son’s right to use water from a creek on his ranch near Canyon City. Palmer used his Face- book page, which has a law enforcement badge as its banner image, earlier this month to encourage people with a history of domestic violence to seek legal advice before buying a gun, despite a federal ban on domestic abusers buying firearms in place for the last 23 years. He addresses “gun enthu- siasts” in the Aug. 9 post and suggests that people who have been convicted of domestic violence crimes contact a lawyer to “see if your record can be expunged or removed.” PORTLAND — Since the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton nearly three weeks ago, Ore- gon Rep. Greg Walden has said little about whether he would support new federal legislation to tighten gun laws. That could change next week when he holds five public hearings in his sprawling district, which covers Eastern Oregon and a portion of Southern Ore- gon. The veteran Repub- lican lawmaker will meet constituents in Rufus, Arlington, Heppner, Burns and Tygh Valley. Walden declined several requests for interviews with OPB. His communications director, Molly Jenkins, responded to written ques- tions by releasing a state- ment from Walden in which he said he had supported several successful bills to improve access to mental health care. However, Walden said nothing in his statement about whether he would back federal gun legisla- tion. And he also didn’t say why he voted against legis- lation passed by the House earlier this year that would expand background checks. He was silent on whether he would back “red flag” leg- islation that allows judges to take firearms from peo- ple at extreme risk of being a danger to themselves or others. President Donald Trump and many Republicans in Congress opened the door to action on those bills in the wake of the El Paso and Dayton shootings on Aug. 3 and 4. In the wake of the shootings that left 32 dead and 51 injured, Trump has sent conflicting signals on whether he wants stricter background checks. In the past, Walden indi- cated a willingness to look at tightening gun laws. After the early 2018 mass shooting at a Park- land, Florida, high school, the congressman told OPB that it “makes some sense” to enact a national version of the red flag law that’s already in effect in Oregon and 16 other states. Oregon also has tighter background checks, and Walden said then that “I think you’re going to see us move in that direction fed- erally, too.” In addition to sales by federal licensed dealers, Oregon requires checks on private gun sales and by unlicensed sellers at gun shows. A year later, Walden voted against a bill that passed the House that was similar in scope to the Ore- gon law. Only eight Repub- licans voted for the measure, which Walden opposed. SUN AND MOON Klamath Falls 87/46 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2019 Sunrise today Sunset tonight Moonrise today Moonset today 6:06 a.m. 7:48 p.m. none 3:16 p.m. New First Full Last Aug 30 Sep 5 Sep 13 Sep 21 NATIONAL EXTREMES Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states) High 106° in Needles, Calif. Low 28° in Stanley, Idaho NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. -10s -0s 0s showers t-storms 10s rain 20s flurries 30s snow 40s 50s ice 60s cold front E AST O REGONIAN — Founded Oct. 16, 1875 — 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211 333 E. 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