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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (July 11, 2020)
BAKER CITY HERALD — 3A SATURDAY, JULY 11, 2020 RAILROAD L OCAL B RIEFING Continued from Page 1A Masks are required for passengers while walking through closed cars, but are not mandated for people sit- ting in the open cars. Reservations must be made in advance through the SVRR website, www.sumptervalley railroad.org. This enables the railroad to track riders in case contact tracing is neces- sary. “We have a way to notify people by the train,” Svaty said. Riders need to print their ticket, then show it at the McEwen Depot’s window (the depot is closed to visitors). The train leaves McEwen at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. most weekends. At times, a short train will be added that runs from Sumpter to the river and back. Updates are posted on the SVRR website and Facebook page. Round-trip fares are $24 adults, $20 seniors, $14 chil- Photo courtesy of Sumpter Valley Railroad dren, or $70 for a family (two This rail car, known as the Leviathan, was recently restored. adults, two children). The short trains have reduced ticket prices. Staged train robberies are to rob the train. complain about wearing The SVRR next runs Sun- set for July 25 and 26 when “We have a bunch of new masks,” Svaty said with a day, July 12, from McEwen. bandits ride up and pretend bandits — and they don’t laugh. Suspect charged in July 2018 murder of couple near John Day ■ Isaac Connery, 23, is accused of killing Terry and Sharon Smith at their home Blue Mountain Eagle JOHN DAY — Almost two years after a fi re destroyed a home east of Mt. Vernon, a suspect has been arrested on two counts of fi rst-degree murder and arson. Isaac Connery, 23, was arrested in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, June 26, accord- ing to a July 8 press release from the Grant County sheriff and district attorney. Connery is accused of shoot- ing Terry and Sharon Smith July 17, 2018, and setting fi re to their home on Nans Rock Road in the Laycock Creek area between Mt. Vernon and John Day, according to the release. “The Grant County Sheriff’s Offi ce has worked for the past two years in solving this crime where we have taken the lead in this case, and our due diligence and hard work never ceased,” Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer said in the release. “With what we have in a case like this, and as traumatic (as) it has been for the families of Terry and Sharon Smith, hopefully this will be a step toward under- standing what took place the night of July 17, 2018.” The fi re destroyed the home, but Palmer later discov- ered partial human remains at the site, which were identi- fi ed through DNA as belong- ing to Terry Smith, the release states. Palmer also discovered other partial remains that could not be identifi ed but have been accepted as belong- ing to Sharon Smith, accord- ing to the release. Evidence was found, includ- ing witness testimony and suspect cellphone locations, that place Connery and his mother, Gabrielle Connery, 46, at the Smith home at the time of the fi re, the release states. The Connerys had been as- sociated with the Smiths, both in Hawaii and Oregon, prior to the incident. The Smiths’ pickup was later discovered abandoned in the Boise area after the fi re, and follow-up interviews with witnesses indicated that Isaac Connery took the pickup the night of the fi re, the release states. He was indicted June 23 for unlawful use of a motor Terry and Sharon Smith. vehicle, and a nationwide war- rant was issued for his arrest. Grant County Undersheriff Zach Mobley and Sgt. Danny Komning, along with FBI Spe- cial Agent Ben Jones, traveled to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to interview Isaac Connery. Mobley learned that he and his mother had dropped off two Connery minor children at a local campground, likely Clyde Holliday State Park, on the afternoon or evening of July 17, 2018, and then Gabrielle Connery drove Isaac Connery to the Smith home and dropped him off, before returning alone to the camp- ground to pick up the children, according to the release. “Isaac Connery went to the Smith home and shot Terry, then Sharon Smith, and set fi re to their home,” the release states. “Then Isaac Connery took their pickup and drove to meet Gabrielle Connery” in the Boise, Idaho, area. The process to extradite Isaac Connery to Grant County has begun, and the matter will soon be presented to a grand jury for more formal charges, including possible charges against Gabrielle Connery for the role she played in the deaths of the Smiths, the release states. Cathy Hinshaw, Sharon Smith’s sister, told the Eagle that the Smiths met the Con- nerys about 10 years ago when Local students on OSU honor roll CORVALLIS — Five Baker City students were among those who earned a GPA of 3.5 or higher to make the honor roll for the spring 2020 term at Or- egon State University. Local students who earned the academic honor: • Hannah J. Boruch, a senior studying human development and family science • Josephine E. Bryan, a junior studying design and innovation management • River J. Colton, a senior studying agricultural sciences • Calli N. Ward, a junior studying sociology • Reno R. Hammond, a sophomore studying chemistry H EART TO H EART Response to burglary makes me grateful for local law enforcement Having lived on a farm in rural Baker County Oregon my whole life, I have never worried about bur- glary. We probably live in one of the safest places on earth. Sure, every so often we see suspicious looking people driving through that look to be up to no good. But never have we ever, worried about “real” thieves. It would never happen to us. But then, it did! After returning from a business trip out of town, my wife and I walked into our home to discover that we had been robbed. Whoever had done it had completely cleaned our clocks! They had stolen everything from cash, debit cards, computers, and clothes, to all our important documents including passports, Social Security cards, and birth certifi cates. Our whole house had been turned upside down. Sheriff Travis Ash was the fi rst on the scene, fol- lowed by Deputy Talon Colton. As gut wrenched and full of anger as we were, we felt like we were in very good hands. Their investigation included a full home inspection with hundreds of pictures inside and out. Footprints and tire tracks were studied, measured and photographed. The search for the suspect led the team to Moses Lake, Washington, where Travis and Talon actually traveled. Thanks to their many long hours of hard work, the suspect was found and subsequently arrested. We were very impressed with how thorough and professional both Travis and Talon were throughout the process. They were very personable and approach- able. They were cool and collected, positive and up- beat. We are grateful to them and everyone else who assisted in bringing the man to justice. These are two of the thousands of honorable men and women of law enforcement that we are proud to call our own! Our community is in great hands. Bryson Allen Baker County Sharon Smith did not “feel right” with the Connerys staying with them, Hinshaw said. “She did not tell me why. She just said she did not feel right with them there,” Hinshaw said. “She wanted them to go.” When she got news of the fi re and heard the Smiths were missing, Hinshaw said she knew they were not away Mourning the death of former Baker on a fi shing trip as some County Assessor Allen Phillips suggested because she had It is with a heavy heart that I am informing the spoken to Sharon Smith residents of Baker County of the passing of Allen hours before the fi re. Phillips, former Baker County Assessor, in Ontario Hinshaw said she would after a long battle with cancer. have never suspected Isaac Allen was a person you could count on to help you Connery would have been out in his role as Assessor and as a friend and com- capable of a crime of this munity member. He was great to work with, and as caliber. Baker County Assessor he allowed me to learn and “(The Connerys) were all grow into a job that I enjoy each day. Allen was the just the nicest kids,” Hinshaw Submitted photo said. “(The Smiths) bought Baker County Assessor from 1989 until his retirement in November of 2008. Allen started working for Baker them things and took care County as an appraiser in June of 1986. Allen Phillips of them like they were their had been with the Baker City Fire Department for the Smiths sold them property own kids. They were wonder- several years, sold real estate as a Century 21 Broker, in Hawaii. She said Isaac Con- ful people just trying to help.” shoed horses, bought and sold cattle, and was a good nery was 10 or 11 years old at Palmer said in the release friend that supported all activities in Baker County. the time. the sheriff’s offi ce worked Allen Phillips will be missed by all of those who knew Hinshaw said the Smiths with Jones, arson and crime and worked with him over the many years. I will miss helped the Connerys start a lab personnel from the Or- my friend Allen Phillips. business and buy property, egon State Police, the Oregon At this time we do not know of when or where there and gave the family a free State Medical Examiner’s will be a service. Baker County Assessor’s offi ce is place to live. Hinshaw said Offi ce, the Oregon State Fire reaching out to the family for details and will ask that the Smiths owned about 60 Marshal, Boise (Idaho) Police his obituary be run in the Baker City Herald. properties, and they would Department and various Kerry Savage sell property to young families agencies in Arizona, New Baker County Assessor who were just starting out for Mexico and Hawaii. little to no money down. “They would buy properties, and pay a little bit and move on and build themselves a life,” she said. “And so that’s what they did with the Con- nerys.” Hinshaw said Gabrielle Connery moved into one of the Smiths’ properties with her children, but defaulted on the payments and gave it back. She said the Connerys moved between the mainland and Hawaii, and during that time, Terry Smith built the Connerys a fruit stand business, with air- conditioned containers to store the fruit, and the Smiths put them up in a home they owned nearby at no cost. 515 Campbell Street Baker City “They were just part of the family,” Hinshaw said. 541-523-4318 Weeks before the fire, Hin- shaw said her sister told her on a phone call that Isaac and Gabrielle Connery showed up at their cabin in Grant County after their car had broken down. Open for dining in 6 am to 12 am Daily Take out and Catering is Available. Visit the store for Baker’s best Gifts
