Polk County News
2A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • November 11, 2015
Dallas man accused
of abusing student
Trying it on for size
Four charges involve a girl at KVCS
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
DALLAS — A Dallas man
is facing four sex abuse
charges in incidents involv-
ing a student at Kings Valley
Charter School (KVCS).
The school and its spon-
s o r, t h e
Philomath
School Dis-
trict, also
were re-
c e n t l y
named in a
lawsuit
stemming
South
from the
incidents.
Axel South, 19, was indict-
ed in July on charges of sec-
ond-degree encouraging
child sexual abuse and three
counts of first-degree sex
abuse. He was originally ar-
rested on seven charges, but
three were dropped after the
grand jury heard evidence in
the case.
According to a probable
cause statement filed with
Polk County Circuit Court,
the abuse occurred while the
suspect and victim — a
teenaged girl — were riding
on the bus between Dallas
and the charter school last
spring. Both the suspect and
victim live in Dallas.
Polk County Chief Deputy
District Attorney Jayme Kim-
berly said South was not a
student at the time of the in-
cidents, but an employee or
volunteer at the school.
The incidents were first re-
ported to Dallas police by the
victim’s father after he found
explicit videos on his daugh-
ter’s cell phone. The pair used
Vine, a video sharing site, to
exchange short videos.
Kimberly said the first-de-
gree sex abuse charges are
Measure 11 offenses carrying
a mandatory sentence of 75
months each, if South is con-
victed. With no prior convic-
tions, South would serve
probation on the encourag-
ing child abuse charge.
South’s attorney, Martin
Habekost, has requested
South undergo a “psycho-
sexual” assessment, a series
of interviews, review of the
charges, a polygraph test
and other evaluations to de-
termine his “threat level” of
reoffending. The assessment
could conclude if South
would benefit from treat-
ment or if his risk is high
enough to recommend in-
carceration, Kimberly said.
The Corvallis Gazette-
Times reported last week that
both the school and Philo-
math School District have
been notified they have been
named in a lawsuit filed by
the victim’s family. Calls to
the family’s attorney were
not returned by press time.
South was scheduled for a
pretrial conference in Polk
County Circuit Court on
Tuesday after the Itemizer-
Observer’s press time.
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer
Faith Christian School fifth-grader Jessica Stoddard, second from right, tries on a military helmet Friday at a
veteran’s celebration and brunch at the Dallas school. Veterans gave presentations, including teaching the stu-
dents how to properly salute, answered students’ questions and were treated to brunch at the school.
Flu shot clinics continue Friday
Itemizer-Observer staf report
DALLAS — The lu season has
arrived. The Polk County Public
Health Department will sponsor
a lu shot clinics on Friday. This
year’s lu vaccine is $26.
Payments may be made by
cash or check. Oregon Health
Plan and Regence Blue Cross
Blue Shield of Oregon, non-
Medicare, is accepted. No one
will be turned away for inabili-
ty to pay.
Pneumonia vaccines also
are available. The lu vaccine is
recommended for those 6
months of age and older, ac-
cording to the public health
department. This year’s vacci-
nation is the quadrivalent lu
v a cc i n e, w h i c h p ro te c t s
against four strains of lu in-
stead of the three strains of-
fered in previous years. This
year’s vaccine should be more
efective in covering the
strains that are most prevalent
during lu season.
The schedule is:
• Friday: 1 to 4 p.m., Polk
County Public Health, Suite
302, Academy Building,
182 SW Academy St., Dallas.
• Walk-ins: welcome Mon-
day through Friday, 8 a.m. to
11 a.m. and 1p.m. to 4 p.m.,
Polk County Public Health De-
partment, while supplies last,
182 SW Academy St., Suite
302, Dallas.
For more information on lu
vaccine clinics in Polk County:
Polk County Public Health In-
formation Line, 503-623-8176.
WEBSITE
DEADLINES
The Polk County Itemizer-
Observer website,
www.polkio.com, is updat-
ed each week by Wednes-
day afternoon. There, you
will find nearly every story
that appears in the print
version of the newspaper,
as well as some items, in-
cluding additional photos,
that do not appear in print
due to space limitations.
The Itemizer-Observer is
also on Facebook and Twit-
ter. Watch for breaking
news, links to stories, sports
scores updates and more.
NEWS DEADLINES
For inclusion in the
Wednesday edition of the
Itemizer-Observer:
Social news (weddings,
engagements, anniver-
saries, births, milestones) —
5 p.m. on Thursday.
Community events —
Noon on Friday for both the
Community Notebook and
Community Calendar.
Letters to the editor —
10 a.m. on Monday.
Obituaries — 4 p.m. on
Monday.
RECYCLE
A little effort.
A big difference.
ADVERTISING DEADLINES
Retail display ads — 3
p.m. Friday.
Classified display ads
— 11 a.m. on Monday.
Classified line ads —
Noon on Monday. Classified
ads are updated daily on
www.polkio.com.
Public notices — Noon
on Friday.
CORRECTIONS
The Polk County Itemizer-
Observer is committed to
publishing accurate news,
feature and sports reports. If
you see anything that re-
quires a correction or clarifi-
cation, call the newsroom at
503-623-2373 or send an e-
mail to nadams@polkio.com.
WEATHER
RECORDED
HIGH LOW
Nov. 3................ 59
Nov. 4................ 53
Nov. 5................ 53
Nov. 6................ 64
Nov. 7................ 55
Nov. 8................ 55
37
34
46
41
41
44
RAIN
.00
.00
.44
.00
.71
.04
Rainfall during Nov. — 1.19 in.
Rain through Nov. 8 — 21.98 in.
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Itemizer-Observer
503-623-2373