OFF PAGE ONE
Saturday, September 26, 2020
East Oregonian
A7
Mutilation: ‘There’s a lot of concern about this and there needs to be’
Continued from Page A1
eyes made out the dead body
of a cow lying on its side in
the dirt.
“At the moment I didn’t
think anything of it,” Stub-
blefi eld said. “But then when
I looked closer, you know, it
didn’t look right.”
The skin around the
cow’s mouth was sliced
away, and its tongue, glands
and sex organs had been
cleanly removed. A piece of
the cow’s ear was cut off and
placed on its neck.
“It’s a very unusual cut,”
Stubblefi eld said. “There
was no blood.”
He found no footprints
or tracks as evidence of
someone traveling through
the area. Stubblefi eld fi rst
thought it might be the
work of wolves, so he called
authorities to get some
answers.
According to Stubble-
fi eld, the Oregon State Police
responded to the scene on
Sept. 12 and confi rmed it as
a mutilation kill. The Ore-
gon State Police trooper with
knowledge of the case could
not be reached for comment
prior to deadline on Friday,
Sept. 25.
“We got lucky because
we found the cow within
a couple days of when it
had been killed, so it really
yielded some good photos
and hopefully some good
evidence,” he said. “What’s
more disturbing is now that
we’ve identifi ed this as a
mutilation kill, we’ve actu-
ally discovered we had two
other ones.”
Stubblefi eld raises cattle
as part of a small ranching
operation between Pendle-
ton and Ukiah. He said these
other two potential mutila-
tions occurred within the last
six months. One was a cow
of his own that was found in
an “extremely remote loca-
tion unconnected to this
site,” while the other fi nding
belonged to another rancher.
That cow was found on
Stubblefi eld’s property.
Neither were found as
timely as the one discovered
on Sept. 12, he said, but the
Oregon State Police were
informed of them and an
investigation is underway.
The scene Stubblefi eld
stumbled onto shares dis-
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Cattle graze on the forested land along Dixie Ranch Road
outside Ukiah on Friday, Sept. 18, 2020.
turbing similarities with
thousands of other cattle
and livestock in the Western
United States that have been
mutilated and left with little
to no evidence of a suspect
or motive.
In each instance, cattle
are usually found with their
tongues and genitals care-
fully removed without signs
of a struggle. In the 1970s,
hundreds of these reports
spurred a FBI inquiry into
the phenomenon that was
largely unsuccessful, which
the agency chalked up to a
lack of jurisdiction where
the cattle were found.
In July and August of
2019, the report of fi ve bulls
mutilated on the Silvies Val-
ley Ranch in Harney County
grabbed headlines across
Oregon, and another muti-
lation was later reported
at the border of Lake and
Deschutes County in Sep-
tember that year.
According to a report
from the Capital Press, a
cow was found mutilated
earlier this year near Fossil
in Wheeler County on July
23. The carcass was found
upright with its legs tucked
underneath it, and author-
ities located a partial boot
print about 100 yards away
from the scene.
“There’s a lot of concern
about this and there needs to
be,” Stubblefi eld said.
Theories around cattle
mutilations and their culprits
have ranged from UFOs and
aliens to government con-
spiracies and satanic cults,
which Stubblefi eld isn’t sub-
scribing to.
“I’m a believer that this
is a little more practical and
this is criminal behavior,” he
said.
With that in mind, Stub-
blefi eld is asking all ranch-
ers and residents in the area
to be on the lookout for addi-
tional mutilations or suspi-
cious activity. Those with
information or who come
across anything similar are
encouraged to call the none-
mergency line for the Pend-
leton offi ce of the Oregon
State Police at 541-278-4090.
“If anybody fi nds one
of these unusual ones, they
need to stay away from it
— don’t even come close to
it — and call Oregon State
Police immediately,” he said.
“Any evidence that can be
preserved is going to help
solve this seemingly unsolv-
able case.”
For now, the carcass of
Stubblefi eld’s mutilated cow
remains in the same spot he
found it. Though none were
in place prior to the discov-
ery of the dead cow, trail
cams are now staged in the
area to monitor it.
According to Stub-
blefi eld, that footage has
revealed another discon-
certing detail: predators and
scavengers are avoiding and
refusing to eat the carcass.
Coyotes have approached
the area but keep their dis-
tance, he said, and birds
will land on the body briefl y
before fl ying away.
Stubblefi eld read the
reports and heard the sto-
ries of other Oregon ranch-
ers fi nding mutilated cattle
before, but now he’s hop-
ing the death of his own
will fi nally provide some
answers to the decades-long
mystery.
“This is too much,” he
said. “It’s got to stop.”
COVID-19: Clatsop County had the most new daily cases with 73
Continued from Page A1
But Allen said all options,
including rollbacks of the
phased reopening of coun-
ties, were “on the table” if the
case count continues rising.
“We’ve all worked too
hard beating back the tide of
the virus to let that happen,”
he said.
Allen encouraged Ore-
gonians to make sure they
are following key actions to
avoid the virus: Wear a mask
when with others, keep at
least 6 feet apart, wash your
hands frequently, and try
to limit the number of peo-
ple you are with at any given
time.
Allen said the rise in
infections was “discour-
aging” for hopes that more
school districts could have
in-class teaching.
Despite the spike in
cases and reports of clus-
ters at the University of Ore-
gon and Oregon State Uni-
versity, Gov. Kate Brown
is expected to give fi nal
approval to Pac-12 foot-
ball games — without fans
in attendance — in Eugene
and Corvallis, according
to Dr. Dean Sidelinger, the
state’s top infectious disease
expert. Games could start as
early as Nov. 6.
The 457 new cases topped
the previous record of 430
cases on July 19. Oregon has
reported 32,314 cases this
year.
The numbers mirror a
rise nationwide in infections.
The Johns Hopkins Coro-
navirus Resource Center
reported Sept. 25 that there
have been over 7 million
cases in the United States,
with more than 203,500
deaths. Worldwide, there
have been 32.3 million cases
and over 985,000 deaths.
Johns Hopkins reported
that Oregon’s positive test
rate over the past week was
8%. That is less than the
record 12.4% in March soon
after the coronavirus was
fi rst reported in the state.
Oregon health offi cials have
said anything above 5%
could set off an exponential
rise in cases.
Oregon had the lowest
coronavirus testing percent-
age of any state over the past
week at 0.8 per 1,000 resi-
dents, the center reported.
Oregon offi cials say the
wildfi res that burned over a
million acres have disrupted
testing capability and sta-
tistical gathering across the
state.
While having the 8th low-
est overall number of infec-
tions per capita of the 50
states, Oregon’s infection
rate over the past 14 days has
risen 38%, according to a
New York Times analysis of
local and state health data.
The Times reported Ore-
gon has had 280 cases at 15
universities and colleges.
Oregon Health and Science
University in Portland has
127 cases, the University of
Oregon in Eugene has 59
cases and Oregon State Uni-
versity in Corvallis has 52
cases. All other campuses
have fewer than 10 cases.
Clatsop County reported
73 new cases Sept. 25, the
largest count in Oregon.
Sidelinger said the outbreak
at Pacifi c Seafood and an
after-hours barbecue held
by employees of a com-
pany he declined to identify
had driven cases up in the
county.
Multnomah
County,
which includes Portland, was
second at 62 cases. Other
large totals were reported by
Marion County (58), Wash-
ington County (51), and Lane
County (50).
Leann Johnson, OHA
Director of the Offi ce
of Equity and Inclusion,
announced that the state
will partner with 206 orga-
nizations and tribal govern-
ments on a $45 million grant
program to address “the dis-
proportionate impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on
Oregon’s communities of
color.”
The grants come from
federal CARES Act money
that the Oregon Legislature’s
Emergency Board had pre-
viously allocated for such
purposes.
The state has added a new
resource for mental health
and other issues. Go to saf-
estrongoregon.org or call
800-923-4357. Information
is available in 12 languages.
Downtown: Art builds community
Continued from Page A1
concept with the hope that
the development commis-
sion could offer some fi nan-
cial support in the future.
Charles Denight, the
associate director of the
commission, said the project
doesn’t fi t neatly into any of
the urban renewal district’s
existing programs, but he
also added that how the
commission spends urban
renewal dollars is at their
discretion, and they don’t
necessarily adhere to a pro-
gram to spend money.
“They’ve done it in the
past and I’m sure they’ll do
it again,” he said.
Denight said what he
liked about Old West’s pro-
posal is that the bank has
already agreed to make a
fi nancial contribution to
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Construction equipment sits at the site of the former We Sell
Stuff building in downtown Pendleton on Friday, Sept. 25,
2020. The neighboring Old West Federal Credit Union pur-
chased the lot with the intention of expanding its parking
lot.
the project.
And although it may not
be a perfect fi t into one of
the commission’s assistance
programs, Denight said a
community space based
around the Old West alley-
way was one of the concepts
presented in the city’s origi-
nal urban renewal plan.
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APR
MONTHS
with $16.67 per $1,000 borrowed
2020 PRIUS
JOB ANNOUNCEMENT
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE WALLOWA
COUNTY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
APPLICATIONS DUE: September 28, 2020 at 5pm at
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce Office
COMPENSATION: Range $42,000 - $52,000
POSITION TITLE: Executive Director
STATUS: Full Time and reside in Wallowa County
COMPENSATION: Salary Range $42,000 - $52,000
BENEFITS: Vacation, Holiday, Sick Leave, and Simple IRA
SCOPE: The Executive Director is the face of the
Chamber and is responsible for implementing
the mission and work plan of the organi-
zation. This individual provides leadership
within the Chamber and the community,
helping create a favorable “business and
living” environment in Wallowa County.
ACCOUNTABILITY: The Director is responsible to the Board of
Directors and reports directly to the President.
APPLY BY RESUME: Please include a letter of introduction and
resume. Resume is to include contact infor-
mation, education, work history (including
starting and ending dates), and three
references (2 professional and 1 personal).
Send resumes to:
Wallowa County Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 427, Ste B, Enterprise Oregon 97828
Email: info@wallowacounty.org,
541 426-4622
It’s a Way
of Living!
The Wallowa County Chamber Board
of Directors is looking for a special in-
dividual to fill this unique opportunity.
Desired professional attributes include
but are not limited to:
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS
• Dynamic approach to creativity, ini-
tiative, collaboration, and leadership.
• Enthusiasm to effectively work in a
community and regional partnerships.
• Exceptional customer service skills.
OVERALL KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS,
AND ABILITIES
•Strong leadership and organizational
skills.
• Strong verbal and written communi-
cations skills.
• Knowledge of financial processes
used in non-profit organizations.
• Skilled with various computer
programs.
• Strong marketing and promotional
skills.
QUALIFICATIONS
College degree in business administra-
tion, marketing, planning and/or other
related field, or equivalent experience.
2020 CAMRY
2020 COROLLA
2020 RAV4
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