Polk County News
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • June 28, 2017 9A
Law enforcement to
hold public hearing
By Jolene Guzman
The Itemizer-Observer
DALLAS — Polk County
law enforcement officials
are holding a public hear-
ing on Thursday to review
proposed change to the
county’s response plan to
law enforcement use of
deadly physical force.
State law requires each
county to have a response
plan outlining protocols for
investigations, including rec-
ommendations on how to
decide which agency should
investigate deadly force inci-
dents, training and commu-
nicating with the public fol-
lowing after an incident.
The planning authority
consists of Sheriff Mark
Garton, District Attorney
Aaron Felton, all city police
chiefs, an Oregon State Po-
lice representative and a
member of the public.
Garton said much of the
plan is outlined in state
statute, but the county
planning authority incor-
porated some of Marion
County’s plan in its pro-
posed revisions.
“Marion County had this
plan, so we looked at theirs
and used some of their lan-
guage, but the core of all
the language is right out of
statute,” he said. “We don’t
have a lot of leeway in what
we can have. It tells us what
we have to have.”
The most noticeable
change is the title, revised
from “Law Enforcement of
Deadly Physical Force Re-
sponse Plan” to “Law En-
forcement Intentional Use
of Deadly Physical Force
Response Plan.”
Garton said other
changes mostly affect
wording.
“There’s no substantive
change,” he said.
Those changes include
adding a paragraph to the
preamble explaining the
purpose of the plan. Other
revisions include a recom-
mendation that an agency
other than the one the in-
Learn more
What: Public hearing
on law enforcement
deadly force response
plan.
When: 7 p.m. Thurs-
day.
Where: Polk County
Courthouse conference
room, 850 Main St., Dallas.
volved officer or officers
work for investigate inci-
dents. Proposed changes
also provide guidelines on
how to determine which
agency should take the lead
on the investigation.
The revised plan outlines
when and who should
communicate with the
public about the incident
and investigation: “In order
to preserve the integrity of
the investigation, the scene
supervisor and investiga-
tive supervisor shall notify
all involved officers to re-
frain for making public
statements about the inves-
tigation, until such time as
the investigation has con-
cluded and the District At-
torney has made a determi-
nation regarding the crimi-
nal responsibility of all in-
volved persons.”
Also included are guide-
lines for informing the pub-
lic about the incident, di-
rected through the district
attorney’s office and the
lead investigative agency.
The plan directs that a pub-
lic statement be released as
soon as possible including:
time and location of the in-
cident; condition of any
suspect; nature of the in-
tentional use of deadly
physical force; and any
other information “the dis-
trict attorney, lead inves-
tigative agency, or the in-
volved officer’s agency
deems necessary given the
particular circumstances of
the incident.”
Garton said following the
public hearing, the next
step is to present the plan
to all governing bodies in
the county for approval.
Retire: Helped improve lives of offenders
Continued from Page 1A
“They look forward to it. I
take a group picture and
post it on my office door,”
said Silbernagel, the director
of Polk County Community
Corrections. “It’s a reminder
to the POs (probation offi-
cers) and myself that this is
what we are doing.”
Silbernagel has been
doing the job in some ca-
pacity for 29 years — in the
community service, and ju-
venile or adult supervision
programs — and is now the
director of all three.
Silbernagel is turning in
his badge Friday, making
the difficult decision to end
a career he’s loved and step-
ping away from his “work
family.”
“I’m not retiring because I
don’t like my job anymore.
I’m retiring because I’ve
done this long enough, and
I’m ready to do something
else fun and exciting,” Silber-
nagel said. “It’s not going to
be easy for me to leave, but
it’s good. It’s good for me. It’s
good for everybody.”
—
As a freshman at then-
Western Oregon State Col-
lege, Silbernagel wanted a
physical education instruc-
tor or coach.
“I was a horrible student.
Horrible,” he recalled last. “I
played basketball my fresh-
man year at Western. It was
very time-consuming and my
grades suffered because of
that, and the fact that I was
never a good student. I need-
ed to raise my grade- point
average.”
He heard of a class called
“introduction to criminal
justice careers,” where stu-
dents toured and observed
various criminal justice in-
stitutions and wrote reports
about the experience. It was
an easy “A” he was told.
More than a GPA booster,
the class altered the course
of his education and career.
“I thought, this is kind of
interesting, so I took more
corrections classes,” he said.
“I changed my major.”
After graduation, he
briefly worked a part-time
job in Marion County before
taking the post as the com-
munity service coordinator
for Polk County in April
1988.
He held the position for
just over a year when it was
cut from the budget. Silber-
nagel has seniority over the
other three employee whose
jobs were eliminated, so he
was offered another: Juve-
nile probation officer.
“I thought, ‘Oh lord. I
don’t want to work with
kids.’ But I did it. I was
young and thought ‘I need a
job,’” he said. “I loved it. I
did it for almost eight years.”
He applied for communi-
ty corrections director with-
out thinking he would get it.
He was only 31, but got the
job.
“I was the youngest direc-
tor in the state of Oregon,”
he said.
—
He’s been with the county
long enough of have worked
in an infamous community
corrections building that
once stood where Murphy’s
restaurant is now.
“It was commonly re-
ferred to as the ‘rat build-
ing.’ Why? Because there
were rats in it, live rats,” he
said.
That building was demol-
ished, and that isn’t the only
thing about the job that has
changed for the better in 29
years.
When he started, proba-
tion officers felt their role
was to supervise and pun-
ish.
“They needed to lock peo-
ple up that did wrong,” he
said. “Over time, the evolu-
tion of parole and probation
has made a 180-degree turn
in that it’s not so much that
any more. It’s rapport build-
ing with offenders.”
He believes that approach
— helping offenders im-
prove their lives holistically
— is more beneficial to
those the office supervises.
POs learn about each per-
son’s life, the problems they
face, with the goal of helping
them not just successfully
serve their probation, but
change their lives for the
better.
“We here at community
corrections and at the juve-
nile department treat these
people as human beings, as
they are, and hold them ac-
countable,” he said. “It goes
a long way in terms of how
much are they going to
progress and be successful
at what the court has man-
dated for them to do.”
Friday is Silbernagel’s re-
tirement party, from 2:30 to
4 p.m. at his office.
He said he will miss his
employees, fellow county
workers, court judges, attor-
neys and staff — and the
people he’s supervised over
his career.
“I’m going to miss the cel-
ebrations of drug court, or
mental health court, or
somebody getting their dri-
ver’s license or coming in
and saying they got a job,”
he said.
In retirement, he won’t
allow himself too much time
to spare. He plans to volun-
teer, work part-time at Wilco
and farm on the side.
“I won’t be a couch pota-
to. Retirement is not for me
in terms of sitting and let-
ting life pass by,” he said.
For Silbernagel — who
hasn’t called in sick once in
his career — the new routine
may take some getting used
to.
But he walks away thank-
ful for the experience.
“If I had to do it all over
again. I wouldn’t do any-
thing different, absolutely
nothing,” he said. “I’ve been
very fortunate that Polk
County has given me the op-
portunity.”
Bystander helps save youths from drowning
Itemizer-Observer staff report
POLK COUNTY — On
Thursday, Polk County
Fire District No.1 respond-
ed to Riverview Park on a
report of a possible water
rescue with multiple juve-
niles in the river, Fire
Chief Ben Stange in a press
release.
When the fire district ar-
rived, three juveniles were
on shore next to the river.
They had been in the
Willamette River when they
were caught by an eddy
overpowering them, Stange
said.
They called for help mul-
tiple times at which point a
bystander swam into the
river to rescue them. The by-
stander coached one of the
three to swim back to shore,
and put the other two on his
back and swam them back
to shore, Stange said.
One of the juveniles had
been submerged multiple
times and was transported
to the hospital for evalua-
tion.
The event on Thursday
took place in the same loca-
tion where a boy and his
adult brother drowned in
2008, Stange said.
On Friday, a boy went
missing while swimming in
the Willamette in Salem.
One year ago this week, the
Monmouth/Independence
community was shaken
when a Central High School
student, Cody Watson,
drowned while swimming in
a river in Central Oregon,
Stange said in the release.
Fire officials are remind-
ing people to use extreme
caution near the water.
There are life preservers
available for use free of
charge at Riverview Park in
Independence and at the In-
dependence boat dock.
2017
Monmouth Area
Community
Events Calendar
July 1 Monmouth Community Breakfast. 8:30 am – 10:30 am.
Monmouth Senior Center. 180 S. Warren St.
July 2 Polk Flea Market 9:00 am - 3:00 pm. Polk County's oldest
and largest market with 183 tables selling antiques, collectibles,
tools, etc. 520 S Pacific Hwy W. Rickreall
Sunday, July 2 • 9-3
Early Admission Sunday 6am-9am $5
Regular Admission $1 • Free Parking
July 4 Happy 4th of July from the MBA! See this week’s
Itemizer-Observer for the 4th of July Guide. Includes all
scheduled events for Monmouth.
Espresso Bar provided by
July 5 Monmouth Music in the Park Concert Series begins
with The Shinkle Band. They will be playing folk and country
music. Beer & wine garden, food, and activities for the kids. Main
Street Park Amphitheater 120 Main Street E. 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm.
PCL
www.polkfleamarket.com
polkproduction@minetfiber.com
Partnerships in
Community Living
503-838-2403
480 E. Main St.
Monmouth
DownTown
Trends
Thursdays!
May - Sept
10 am - 3 pm
NEW vendors
each week!
142 Highway 99 West
503-838-1445
Monmouth
182 Academy St., Dallas
(corner of Main & Academy)
Featuring Growers, Producers & Artisans
of the Polk County area & beyond!
NEW vendors EACH week!
355 N Pacific Ave.,
Ste A
Monmouth
503-838-4268
We broke a record LAST week
with customer attendance at 585!
Support our scouts!
Bring your empty cans
and bottles to Bounty Market
each week to donate to our
future leaders!
Thank you
Boy Scout Troop 288
for all you do
for our community!
182 Academy St., Dallas
Facebook.com/bountymarket
503-623-2564
Serving Polk County
Since 1875
503-623-2373
Happy
4th
of July!
July 6-8 Apple Box Children’s Theater is proud to present
Arabian Nights by Maren Bradley Anderson. Dress Rehearsal is
also open to the public on 7/5 at 7pm. Bring a folding chair or
blanket, a picnic basket and enjoy the summer evening. Western
Oregon University's Amphitheater (outside of Rice Auditorium)
located at Powell, Knox and Warren Streets. 7 pm – 8:30 pm
July 12 Monmouth Music in the Park Concert Series. The
Wildwood Allstar Review plays rock & roll. Beer & wine garden,
food, and activities for the kids. Main Street Park Amphitheater
120 Main Street E. 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm.
July 15 Polk County Museum Porch Sale. 9 am – 3 pm.
Come support the preservation of local history by scooping up
those "must have" treasures. Polk County Museum 560 S. Pacific
Highway West, Rickreall
July 19 Monmouth Music in the Park Concert Series. Leg-
endary Oregon band Hillstomp brings an evening of blues to Music
In The Park. Beer & wine garden, food, and activities for the kids.
Main Street Park Amphitheater 120 Main Street E. 6:30 pm –
8:30 pm.
July 26 Monmouth Music in the Park Concert Series. Jenny
Don't & The Spurs bring an evening of country music to Music In
The Park. Beer & wine garden, food, and activities for the kids.
Main Street Park Amphitheater 120 Main Street E. 6:30 pm –
8:30 pm.
www.windermere.com
503-838-1141
297 N Pacific
Monmouth
800-732-0173
464 S Pacific Hwy
Monmouth
oregonstatecu.
Saving
Carpets
Daily
Carpet Hero
503-838-0869
Monmouth
LOOKING
FOR RENTALS?
297½ N. Pacific Hwy
503-838-1278
Western View
Properties
Property Management, LLC
July Forum — July 12
Independence Public Library
175 Monmouth Street, Independence
Topic: State Legislative Update
Lunch: $12.00 boxed lunch from Arena Sports Bar
• Lunch orders must be received by noon 7/11/17.
• Fee incurred unless cancelation received via email
to micc@minetfiber.com by noon 7/11/17.
503-838-2951
165 E. Main St.
Monmouth
Thirsty Thursday — July 20
Thirsty Thursdays are held the third Thursday of
each month from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM at member
locations. Registration is requested to help the
host site properly prepare. Attendees are
encouraged to bring a small giveaway (less than
$10) to promote your business or organization. This month July —
MaMere’s Guest House 212 Knox St., Monmouth.
503-838-1773
410 E. Main St.
Monmouth
To advertise in this calendar call Heidi at the Itemizer-Observer 503-623-2373 ext 115
http://www.exploredallasoregon.org/bounty-market.html