SATURDAY BAKER, CASCADE RENEW FOOTBALL RIVALRY THIS AFTERNOON: SPORTS, A6 In OUTDOORS, B1 Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com September 4, 2021 Local • Outdoors • Sports • TV IN THIS EDITION: QUICK HITS Good Day Wish To A Subscriber A special good day to Herald subscriber Irv Townsend of Baker City. BRIEFING County seeking volunteers for committees Baker County is seeking volunteers for the follow- ing boards/committees: • Baker County Cultural Coalition • Baker County Planning Commission • Fair Board Advisory Committee • Early Learning Re- gional Council • Transportation/Traffi c Safety Committee • Baker County Mental Health Advisory Commit- tee • NEOEDD Budget Board • Local Public Safety Coordinating Council Volunteers must submit a form, which can be found at www.bakercoun- ty.org/commissioners. Haines Fire District board to meet The Haines Fire Protec- tion District board will meet Sept. 13 at 7 p.m. at the main station, 616 Cole St. All residents of the district are welcome to attend. COVID-19 safety protocols will be in effect. Greenwood pleads, avoids murder trial None of the three District Attorney charges for which Greg Baxter said. Greenwood was Judge Matt Shawn Quentin Green- convicted carries a Shirtcliff of Baker wood, the Vale man accused mandatory minimum of fi rst-degree murder in the County Circuit sentence, so he will be January 2020 fatal shooting Court sentenced eligible for a reduction Greenwood to a of Angela Parrish in Baker Greenwood in sentence based on total of 90 months City, pleaded no contest to good behavior and three lesser counts on Friday, in prison on the other factors. three convictions, which Sept. 3 in Baker County Baxter issued a press re- include criminally negligent Circuit Court. lease early Friday afternoon. Five other counts, includ- homicide, a Class B felony, ing fi rst-degree murder, were fi rst-degree burglary, a Class It reads: “The Baker County Dis- dismissed, and Greenwood’s A felony, and attempting to trict Attorney’s Offi ce offered trial, scheduled to start Sept. elude law enforcement, a the plea agreement in this Class C felony. 8, was canceled. case after it was apparent Greenwood will be cred- Although Greenwood, 50, ited for time already served. that many important pieces pleaded no contest rather of evidence would not be He has been in the Baker than guilty, the no contest available at trial due to the County Jail since his arrest plea has the same effect as lead police investigator listen- on Jan. 13, 2020. a conviction, Baker County By JAYSON JACOBY jjacoby@bakercityherald.com WEATHER Today 86 / 41 Sunny Sunday 90 / 45 Mostly sunny Monday 90 / 48 Sunny Full forecast on the back of the B section. Samantha O’Conner/Baker City Herald The space below is for a postage label for issues that are mailed. $1.50 Finding the way in the fog ing to privileged telephone conversations between the defendant and his attorney. The Parrish family members and the other victim, Nathan- iel Brown, supported this decision given that this was the best possible sentence under the circumstances and that Greenwood was willing to accept some responsibility for the crimes he committed.” “The state believed that at trial, that the defense would have focused on the actions of Baker City Police Detective Shannon Regan thereby clouding the evi- dence concerning the crimes committed by Greenwood. A forensic investigation by the Department of Justice caused the state to determine that it could not ethically call the de- tective to testify at trial. Key evidence that she touched was either suppressed or would not have been able to be presented since she could not testify.” Basically, the prosecution was in a position of potential- ly taking to a jury a murder case without being able to call as a witness the lead detective, or show the jurors key pieces of evidence, or, potentially, calling witnesses who could testify about the collection of that evidence. New owner renovating former Baker House into condos Health offi cials answer COVID questions By SAMANTHA O’CONNER soconner@bakercityherald.com The former Baker House building at 2330 Fifth St., near St. Elizabeth Towers, is getting a make- over, inside and out. Gordon Holman, who bought the three-story building three months ago, plans to turn the structure into six condominiums. “When I had an oppor- tunity to see the building for the fi rst time, I liked the way the building felt when I walked into the entry way,” Holman said. “I thought there were great opportunities despite the fact that we were looking at so much debris, so much clutter.” The renovation will not be an easy or quick process, he emphasized. The building was constructed in 1939 and has passed through many hands, including being used as a mental health center focusing on addiction and recovery, when it was known as Baker House. The former Baker House building, at 2330 Fifth St., is being renovated into condominiums. See, Condos/A5 West Nile virus found in more mosquitoes Baker City Herald Four more groups of mos- quitoes trapped in the Keat- ing Valley area, east of Baker City, have tested positive for West Nile virus, the Oregon Health Authority announced Friday morning, Sept. 3. So far this summer, a total of 19 “pools” of mosqui- toes collected in the county have been infected with the virus. Mosquitoes can transmit the virus to people through bites. Most people infected with the virus have no symptoms, according to the state health offi cials, but about 20% will have symptoms such as a fever, headache, body aches, vomiting, diarrhea or a rash. In rare cases the virus TODAY Issue 50, 12 pages can be fatal. Of the four most recent pools of infected mosquitoes — a pool usually consists of 10 to 50 insects — two were collected in a trap in Keating Valley on Aug. 25, and the other two were taken from traps near Keating Valley on Aug. 25 and 26, said Matt Hutchinson, manager of the Baker Valley Vector Control District. Hutchinson is responsible for controlling mosquitoes in the 200,000-acre district, which includes most of Baker, Keating and Bowen valleys. The district’s budget comes from two property tax levies. The Vector Control District maintains a network of traps across the district. Classified ............. B2-B4 Comics ....................... B5 Community News ....A3 Mosquitoes from those traps are mailed to a laboratory at Oregon State University, there they’re tested for West Nile virus. Another group of traps is monitored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, as part of a campaign to protect sage grouse, an upland bird that can also be infected with the virus through mosquito bites. Hutchinson said mosquito populations — including the culex tarsalis species, which is most likely to carry West Nile virus — are dropping in the area due to cooler temperatures and a scarcity of standing water. But trapping will con- tinue, along with measures Crossword ........B2 & B4 Dear Abby ................. B6 Horoscope ........B2 & B4 to kill adult mosquitoes and their larvae, as long as neces- sary, Hutchinson said. Most of the infected mosquitoes this summer have been trapped in or near Keating Valley. The one exception is a trap about four miles north of Baker City, which also collected infected mosquitoes in early August. So far this year there have been no cases of people being infected with West Nile virus in Oregon. The virus has been detected in mosquitoes in fi ve counties — Morrow (21 pools, also one bird); Baker (19 pools); Jackson (three pools); Malheur (two pools); and Umatilla (one pool). The virus also was found in one horse in Klamath County. Jayson Jacoby ..........A4 News of Record ........A3 Obituaries ..................A2 Opinion ......................A4 Outdoors ..........B1 & B2 Senior Menus ...........A2 INSIDE — MAGAZINE PROFILING THE PENDLETON ROUND-UP See, Plea/A5 By SAMANTHA O’CONNER soconner@bakercityherald.com Baker County offi cials had a one-hour virtual town hall Thursday evening, Sept. 2, to discuss the current surge of COVID-19 cases and concerns regarding hospital capacity. The panel consisted of: • Dr. Eric Lamb, Baker County public health offi cer • Dr. Lily Wittich of St. Luke’s Eastern Oregon Medi- cal Associates • Priscilla Lynn, president and chief nursing offi cer for Saint Alphonsus Medical Center-Baker City • Nancy Staten, director of the Baker County Health De- partment • Mark Bennett, a Baker County commissioner and the county’s incident commander during the pandemic. The town hall followed a question-and-answer format, with many questions submitted by email prior to the event. See, Health/A5 Offi cial implores people to talk with contact tracers By JAYSON JACOBY jjacoby@bakercityherald.com Nancy Staten is imploring Baker County residents who test positive for COVID-19 to help stem the virus, which spread more rapidly here during Staten August than in any other month. And all they have to do is answer a few questions. Unfortunately, in Staten’s estimation, some people refuse to do so. And their reluctance to talk to contact tracers is dulling what should be one of the See, Tracing/A3 Sports ........................A6 Turning Backs ...........A2 Weather ..................... B6