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About Cottage Grove sentinel. (Cottage Grove, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 22, 2018)
2A • COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • AUGUST 22, 2018 RECORDS DNA match leads to arrest in 2007 rape case On May 17, 2007, the Lane County Sheriff ’s Of- fice received a report that a 41-year-old female had been forcibly raped by a stranger. The female reportedly had car trouble in the Eu- gene area and a man who was unknown to her offered her a ride so she could get assistance with her vehicle. Investigation indicates the male drove the female to the Crow area and forced her to have sex with him after assaulting her and threaten- ing her if she fled. The male left the female on the side of the road in Crow where she Jesse Lee Clark flagged down a concerned community member who took her to the Sheriff ’s Of- fice and the hospital. The victim consented to have evidence collect- ed during a sexual assault exam at the hospital in 2007, which was sent to the Ore- gon State Police Crime Lab for comparison to DNA samples on file. At the time, the kit did not yield any matches in CODIS (Combined DNA Index Sys- tem). The Oregon State Police Crime Lab recently notified the Lane County Sheriff ’s Office that the DNA submit- ted in 2007 in connection with the 2007 rape report appeared to match that of 37-year-old Jesse Lee Clark of Junction City. Clark was located in the Eugene area on Aug. 2, 2018, and was interviewed and subsequently arrest- ed and lodged in the Lane County Jail on Rape in the First Degree. This case has been re- ferred to the Lane County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution. The identity of the female victim is not be- ing released at this time. New technology in place assists law enforcement in identifying suspects, even years after the initial crime. In this case, Clark’s DNA was submitted to CODIS recently due to an unrelated case. Irene D. Bridwell 1929-2018 Irene D. Bridwell, 89 of Harrisburg, Ore- gon passed away August 4, 2018. She was born April 25, 1929, in Rugby, N. Dakota to Rolland and Daisy (Geisinger) Northway. Irene had a business degree and was a legal secretary for 30 years. She enjoyed sewing, embroidering, knitting, crocheting, reading, watching movies and enjoyed spending time with her family and loved her pets. Irene married Earl Bridwell on September 7, 1947 in Cottage Grove, OR and was with her domestic part- ner, Bobby Miller for 20 plus years. She is survived by her part- ner Bobby Miller, Harrisburg, OR, son Gary (Darcy) Bridwell, daughter Judy (Eugene) Kephart, daughter Joyce (Rod) Bun- ner, daughter Janette (Daniel) Fergason, daughter Pam (Stan) Werth, daughter Linda (Dave) Slocum, son Mike (Wanda) Mill- er, brother Ron (Raeann) Northway, sister-in-law Glenda North- way, 15 grandchildren and 27 great-grandchildren. Irene was preceded in death by her husband Earl Bridwell in 1984 and brother Fred Northway. A Celebration of Life will be held at 10:30 AM on Saturday, September 29, 2018 at Brownsville Pio- neer Park. Arrangements by Smith-Lund-Mills Funeral Chapel, 123 S. 7 th St., Cottage Grove, OR 97424. z å City water meter upgrade proposal deadline is today Ameresco recently re- leased the request for pro- posals (RFP) for the Cottage Grove city water meter up- grade project, with propos- als due at the close of day today. Last Tuesday, city staff gave a tour of possible tower sites for data collector loca- tions throughout the city. A total if six companies toured the sites and asked ques- tions in preparation of their RFP submission. On Wednesday, public works and development director Faye Stewart at- tended the Oregon Depart- ment of Transportation’s 2018 Safe Routes to School Grant Program Workshop in Springfield and then, on Thursday, the city manager Richard Meyers, along with Stewart along with city rep- resentatives, participated in a conference call with repre- sentatives from the United States Department of Agri- culture Rural Development Agency regarding grant and loan programs for the water meter project. City and Ameresco staff will be working together to submit a project funding ap- plication by the first week of September. It is possible for the city to receive up to 45 percent of the project costs from grant funds and the remainder from a loan at a rate of 3.15 percent over 40 years. City staff will be submit- ting a grant request to fund pedestrian improvements along Harrison and Fourth streets. ODOT has $16 million available for improving pe- destrian and bicycle access to schools during the 2019- 20 grant cycle. A letter of intent is due Aug. 31 and the grant appli- cation is due Oct. 15. Grant awards will be an- nounced in January of 2019. If the grant request is awarded, the city could re- ceive up to 80 percent of the improvement costs for eligible pedestrian related improvements. This will re- duce the contributions from adjacent land owners for the new sidewalks. Funeral & Memorial Planning Cremation Options e Monuments & Memorials & e Memorials Cemetery Options e Monuments Cemetery Options e Funeral & Memorial Planning e Cremation Options e Please Celebrate the 4th of July Safely! 123 South 7th, Cottage Grove, Oregon th 123 South 7 , Cottage Grove, Oregon 541-942-0185 •www.smithlundmills.com www.smithlundmills.com z Pacific-Source grant helping South Lane Mental Health to continue reduced-price services South Lane Mental Health has received a three-year, $30,000 per- year grant from the Pa- cific-Source Foundation for health improvement to ensure access to free or sliding-scale-fee mental health services for a range of Cottage Grove area res- idents. The grant will support services for area children, adolescents and adults experiencing a mental health crisis; seniors with Medi-care-only coverage; undocumented commu- nity members; and any youth seeking mental health assistance. As part of its mis- sion, South Lane Mental Health provides more than $350,000 per year of mental health care at no charge to community members in need. The nonprofit also pro- vides services to mem- bers of the Oregon Health Plan. South Lane Mental Health, established in 1988, offers counseling, crisis response, case man- agement, prescription services and a recovery program for about 2,200 Cottage Grove area adults and children each year. South Lane Mental Health also provides hous- ing and support for adults with persistent and severe mental illness. To learn more about South Lane Mental Health, visit www.slmh.org or call 541-942-3939. The PacificSource Foundation for Health Improvement is part of Springfield-based Pacif- ic-Source Health Plans, a not-for-profit regional health insurance provider. The City of Cottage Grove is proud to present the Second annual Cottage Grove Armory ICE CREAM SOCIAL S aturday , a uguSt 25 1-5 pm 628 WASHINGTON AVE, COTTAGE GROVE OR Join us for a fun family celebration featuring: Ice Cream! provided by Safeway and Halo Top Creamery Classic Carnival Games! sponsored and staffed by local organizations A classic carnival look sponsored by Hoyer Accounting DIVORCE Outstanding Music! sponsored by Middlefield Oaks Senior Living Clear Many Convictions, Arrests, & Expungement $155 Raffle prizes Ice Cream and Games cost just NO Court Appearances 5 ¢ www.paralegalalternatives.com Complete Preparation Includes: · Children ·Custody ·Support ·Property ·Bills Division Divorce in 1-5 weeks Possible! legalalt@msn.com 503-772-5295 each! VOICE YOUR South Lane Fire’s new truck and inflatable slide Meet LifeFlight’s ‘Little Al’ OPINION! Write a Letter to the Editor today. Email CMAY @ COTTAGEGROVESENTINEL . COM å