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WEDNESDAY EDITION | MAY 30, 2018 | $1.00
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Last Resort Players presents
A Nice Family Gathering
BY PHIL OLSON
F ORE ! K IDS G OLF T OURNAMENT – SPORTS
Directed by Jody Kaplan
Friday, Saturday: June 8,9, & 15,16 - 7:00 pm
Sunday Matinees: June 10 & 17 - 2:00 pm
Florence Events Center • Tickets $18
541-997-1994 • eventcenter.org
A Nice Family Gathering is presented by special arranment with SAMUEL FRENCH, INC.
128TH YEAR | ISSUE NO. 43
RIDE
ALONG
FLORENCE, OREGON
SERVING WESTERN LANE COUNTY SINCE 1890
M EMORIAL M ONDAY
School Resource
Officer follows the
trail of underage
substance abuse
Scammers try to trick
victims into giving
info, money
By Jared Anderson
Siuslaw News
Florence Police Officer
Brandon Bailey stood in Flor-
ence Events Center, watching
Siuslaw High School prom goers
adorned in carefully prepared
gowns and mostly well pressed
suits dance and socialize the
night away.
It was a Saturday night in
April, and Bailey, who is also the
Siuslaw School District’s school
resource officer, was there in
an effort organized by Healthy
Directions, an area prevention
and health promotion coalition
that was formed through Lane
County Public Health. The goal
of the coalition, and of Bailey’s
involvement the night of the
prom, was to help curb teen
substance abuse.
There were 15 officers taking
part in the effort that night,
representing a whole host of
departments including Lane
County Sheriff ’s Office and
Oregon State Police. Each orga-
nization had their own patrols
for the evening. Some were
searching the outer parts of the
Siuslaw region, like North Fork
Road. Others were focusing on
the roads.
For Bailey, and his partner
for the evening, Robert Merry-
man, the actual prom and their
ensuing parties were the focus.
The Siuslaw News was invited
to ride along with Bailey as he
looked to ensure youth safety for
the night, something that local
police will again be doing in the
coming weeks as the school year
comes to a close.
Along the way, Bailey talked
about the challenges facing
youth today, what it means to be
a resource officer, the role of po-
lice in a community, and what it
takes to find a wild house party
in the late hours of the Siuslaw.
Phone scams
continue to
target area
residents
By Jared Anderson
Siuslaw News
“For love of country they accepted death, and thus resolved all
doubts, and made immortal their patriotism and their virtue.”
President James A. Garfield
May 30, 1868 — Arlington
National Cemetery
M
emorial Day is a day for remembrance
of those who have died in service to
the U.S. In the Siuslaw region, Memorial Day
services were held at the Pioneer Sunset
Cemetery and at the Veteran’s Memorial
Park on Monday, May 28. These local events
joined with national ceremonies honoring
America’s fallen heroes.
The American Legion,
Francis M. Yost Post 59
of Florence and Florence
Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 3232 coordinat-
ed ceremonies honoring veterans who made the ulti-
mate sacrifice defending America.
Recognition ceremonies began at 7 a.m. at Pioneer
Sunset Cemetery with the raising of the flag to half-
staff.
See MEMORIAL page 8A
By Mark Brennan
Siuslaw News
PHOTOS BY MARK BRENNAN AND NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
‘We’re not trying to
make a huge scene’
“When you turn it on, you
just blow,” Bailey said, holding a
breathalyzer.
Every youth coming to the
prom had to take the test to gain
access to the event.
The Publishers Clearing House
scam is again hitting the Siuslaw
region and the nation this May
as multiple reports of the phone
scam have been reported.
The scheme starts with a tele-
phone call. Scammers then tell
unsuspecting victims that they
had just won millions of dollars’
worth of prizes — and Publish-
ers Clearing House will soon be
coming to the victim’s house with
the famed “big check,” accompa-
nied by smiling representatives
holding multi-colored balloons.
But there’s a catch. To get that
cash prize, the victim is required
to pay an upfront fee to cover
the associated taxes. The victim
sends the money to the scammer,
but the “big check” and balloons
never show up.
All that is left is a depleted
bank account on the victim’s end.
In a 2016 report created by
Pindrop Security, 86.2 million
calls per month in the U.S. are
phone scams.
$744 million to scammers
in the U.S., according to a 2016
Consumer Reports study.
As to who is getting scammed
through the phone, the majori-
ty of victims are not the often
cited “retiree,” but people in
their 20s and early 30s. That
age cohort is six times more
likely to give out credit card
information and almost twice
as likely to divulge their Social
Security number.
Scammers get victim’s infor-
mation a variety of ways, from
stealing mail to buying the in-
formation from black markets.
Some stick with a phone book
and a silent phone call.
In this scenario, the scammers
aren’t targeting businesses, but
individuals. They initially make
test calls, the purpose of which is
not to gain personal information,
but to test if the potential victim
is vulnerable to an attack.
The calls are short in dura-
tion, usually a minute or less.
The caller, which is actually a
“robocall” computer program,
says nothing.
INSIDE
See RIDE ALONG page 6A
Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Community. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Kid Scoop . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Library Tidings . . . . . . . . . . .
B6
A3
B5
A5
See SCAM page 8A
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A4
Records . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A2
Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B
Weather Data . . . . . . . . . . . A2
THIS WEEK ’ S
TODAY
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
59 48
59 46
60 50
62 49
WEATHER
Full Forecast, A3
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