Easterday pleads guilty to $244 million ghost-cattle scam | NORTHWEST, A2
E O
AST
145th year, No. 71
REGONIAN
THuRSDay, aPRiL 1, 2021
$1.50
WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
U.S. CAPITOL
INSURRECTION
Ruggs Ranch
owner says
Klein was a
‘good kid’
Jonathanpeter Klein
worked at the
ranch near Heppner
since January
By BRYCE DOLE
East Oregonian
HEPPNER — The agents from
the Federal Bureau of investigation
couldn’t tell John Flynn too much,
only that they were
there because of
“people that were
at the Capitol,” he
said.
Early on Tues-
day, March 23,
agents had been
J. Klein
snooping around
the headquarters
of Ruggs Ranch,
a 100,000-acre
hunting preserve
outside of Heppner
in Morrow County
that’s described
on its website as
M. Klein
“W here World
Class Bird Hunting
& Luxurious Lodging Meet.” The
agents told Flynn they were wait-
ing for a friend who was out hunt-
ing. Flynn, the ranch owner, didn’t
recognize the name they provided.
He asked them to leave.
Shortly after, Flynn’s employee
called and said the agents had
moved to another part of the prop-
erty. Flynn drove over to tell them
they were trespassing. The agents
told Flynn they were awaiting
orders from their boss, he said.
The FBi later told Flynn they
had arrested one of his employees
— Jonathanpeter Klein, who, along
with his brother Matthew Klein,
was accused of storming the u.S.
Capitol on Jan. 6.
The two brothers were the first
Oregon residents to be charged
for being directly involved in the
insurrection intended to prevent
Congress from certifying the elec-
tion of President Joe Biden. Federal
authorities say the Kleins were
caught on camera storming the
building. Now they face a slew of
federal charges.
The Klein brothers are among
the more than 300 people who have
been charged in connection with the
riot. authorities reportedly believe
that at least 100 more people could
be charged.
according to the FBi, Jona-
thanpeter Klein is a self-described
member of the Proud Boys, a
far-right group widely known to
engage in violence at protests and
whose leadership has come under
See Insurrection, Page A7
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
Lisa Hauner, a librarian with the Oregon Trail Library District, adds a new book to the library’s online catalog while working at the dis-
trict’s Irrigon branch on March 16, 2021.
Career highlight
Lisa Hauner receives special Cataloger I certification
By TAMMY MALGESINI
For the East Oregonian
RRiGON — Lisa
Hauner morphed a
love for reading into
a career in library
sciences. in her first
year with the Oregon
Trail Library District, she iden-
tified her niche — Hauner
wanted to be a part of a system
that makes it easier for patrons
to find what they are looking for.
and now she’s absolutely
thrilled after recently attaining
Cataloger i certification.
“achieving Cat i is the high-
light of my life,” she said.
Kathy St reet, librar y
district director, said among
the district’s branches there
are four full-time staff and six
part-time employees. Hauner’s
skills, Street said, are invalu-
able as she’s the only staff
member that catalogs through-
out the district, which includes
branches in Boardman, Heppner
and irrigon.
“Having a cataloger of
that level is important to our
library district in many ways,”
Street said. “i can catalog easy
records, but it definitely is not
my specialty.”
in addition to her cataloging
abilities, Street and Stephanie
Case, the Oregon Trail Library
District board chair, said Hauner
delivers even more to library
I
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
A collection of books and movies in English and Spanish awaits cataloging at the Irrigon branch of the
Oregon Trail Library District on March 16, 2021.
patrons. along with her longev-
ity and institutional knowledge
— Hauner has worked in each
of the branches — she has an
engaging personality.
“Lisa is the usual joyful
welcoming face at the irrigon
branch and i regularly hear how
she captivates the patrons and
is very helpful,” Case said. “i
always enjoy seeing her when i
go into the library.”
Street agreed, saying the
district’s libraries often provide
social connections for area
residents. People often stop by
the irrigon branch just to visit
with Hauner, sometimes even
bringing snacks for her.
Turning the page with
library district
as the summer heat was
waning in 2009, Hauner was
finishing up with her associate’s
See Library, Page A7
Settling into a new routine
Students share
perspectives on high
school reopening
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
PENDLETON — One of the first
things math teacher Michael Bittdorf
noticed after Pendleton High School
reopened its doors to all students on
Monday, March 29, was the lower
volume.
While Bittdorf joked that he
wouldn’t mind if it stayed quieter,
the high school’s new atmosphere
was described as strange by several
students before school on Wednes-
day, March 31.
The state’s social distancing
requirements means only half of the
student body can attend school on any
given day, leading to smaller class
sizes and less boisterous halls. The
muted tones carried over to classes
as they started for the day, with most
classes quiet as instruction started.
That’s not to say students aren’t
excited to return to in-person school
after a year of distance learning.
Sophomore Sammantha Wilks
said online classes exhausted her as
she spent hours in front of a computer
screen attending class only to turn
around and spend more time online
doing homework.
Returning to school in-person
has been invigorating for Wilks,
who disagrees with some of her
peers’ assessments of the school’s
Ben Lonergan/East Oregonian
See High school, Page A7
A student walks to class at Pendleton High School on Wednesday, March
31, 2021.