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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2018)
TRACK TEAMS COMPETE IN PRAIRIE CITY The PAGE A10 Blue Mountain EAGLE Grant County’s newspaper since 1868 W edNesday , a Pril 11, 2018 • N o . 15 • 18 P ages • $1.00 www.MyEagleNews.com Court members face off for county judge position Hamsher running for judge Concerned about mandates and regulations By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle Grant County judge candidate Jim Hamsher, 52, Prairie City, was born and raised in the Prairie City area. Af- ter graduating from Prairie City High School, he worked in ranching, at local sawmills, as a fuel truck driver and for a helicopter company with Forest Service contracts. Hamsher is in his first term as Grant County commissioner. He also served one term as a Prairie City councilor and is in his third term as Prairie City mayor. The need for more jobs is a main issue facing the county, he said, but he also cit- ed unfunded mandates and too many regula- tions coming from state and federal government. Many state laws nega- Jim tively impact rural East- Hamsher ern Oregon, he said, but the eastern counties get “out-voted” in Salem. “We need to get more involved in the legislature,” Hamsher said. “We need more voice in the legislature. It’s the only chance we’ll have.” Hamsher is concerned the county court did not perform its due diligence when it joined the Grant County Digital Network Coalition to bring broadband to the county. He wanted to see more Election 2018 EDITOR’S NOTE If either can- didate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the May primary, as is likely, that person will win the election outright, and the position will not appear on the ballot in November. See HAMSHER, Page A18 Myers running for re-election Touts experience, common sense and patience By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle Scott Myers, 63, Canyon City, is run- ning for a second term as Grant County judge. Prior to that, he served two six- year terms as a county commissioner. After graduating from high school, Myers worked for 10 years in construc- tion before landing a job at the Malheur Lumber Co. mill in John Day, where he worked from 1983-1998. He’s been a self-employed building contractor since then. The biggest issues facing Grant County are jobs, housing and public safety, he said. “In any order,” he added. Myers has support- ed John Day’s proposal to bring broadband in- ternet service to Grant Scott County, including the Myers county’s participation in the Grant County Digi- tal Network Coalition with John Day and Seneca. “I think we need it,” he said. “We need competition. The small communi- ties at the will of the internet providers need help.” Myers has been at the table re- viewing options to replace the ex- isting 911 dispatch center now operated by the city of John Day See MYERS, Page A18 Saving Bates Pond, and the fish Changes will improve stream health By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle M ore than a year after a collaborative group could not agree about whether to tear down the dam at Bates State Park and return Bridge Creek to its natural flow, consensus was reached at a fourth meeting in March — the dam and the pond behind it will stay. Scott Nebeker, the park development administrator for the Or- egon Parks and Recreation Department, delivered the news during a presentation at the Grant County Court March 14. Competing interests The court has a stake in the outcome — it backed a $400,000 loan in 2007 so the Bates Park and Museum Foundation could purchase the former town and mill sites for a future park. Commissioner Boyd Britton was a member of the foundation’s board. But soon after the state purchased the land from the county for $406,612 in lottery funds, and plans for Eagle file photo a state park progressed at A plan to improve fish habitat “light speed” under Gov. will retain Bates Pond by Ted Kulongoski’s “park- improving the fish ladder and a-year” plan, a political creating a bypass channel for division formed between Bridge Creek. Construction passionate supporters of cul- could begin in 2020. ture, history and recreation and equally passionate sup- porters of native fish and free-flowing streams. Friends of Bates State Park wanted to honor the memory of the little company town and the mill that supported it from 1917 to 1975, and the county court and OPRD wanted to add the site to a historical grouping that boasted Canyon City’s gold rush days, the Sumpter Valley Railway and dredge site and the Kam Wah Chung State Heritage Site. Federal, tribal and non-governmental entities, however, aligned themselves in favor of fish. See POND, Page A18 Eagle file photo Bates State Park, about 17 miles north of Prairie City, is one of the newest gems in the Oregon State Park system. The Eagle/Sean Hart Contributed image A conceptual image of Option A for improving the mill pond at Bates State Park. The fish ladder at Bates Pond. The ladder would be improved or replaced under a plan to retain the pond and improve fish passage. Motions heard in Elliott manslaughter case Parties agree to a May settlement conference By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle Grant County Circuit Court Judge William D. Cramer Jr. listened to oral arguments April 6 in the case of a John Day man accused of shooting and kill- ing a neighbor near Dog Creek Road and Marysville Road on Aug. 24. Thomas J. Elliott, 55, faces three charges in the shooting death of Todd Alan Berry. As amended in a March 1 indictment, he faces two counts of first-degree manslaughter with a fire- arm, one recklessly with indifference to the value of life and one intention- ally while under the influence of emo- tional disturbance, as well as one count of unlawful use of a firearm. Cramer appeared by video from the Harney County Thomas Courthouse. Elliott Joseph Elliott and about 20 people were in the court- room as Grant County Sheriff’s Depu- ty Dan Komning and former John Day Police Officer Mike Durr testified on the stand. Defense attorney Matthew Baugh- man had filed a Jan. 17 motion to suppress portions of the police inter- rogation that took place after Elliott’s arrest. In court, he conceded that Komning’s body camera recorded the deputy giving Elliott his Miran- da warning, but Baughman requested that any statements made after Elliott invoked his right to silence after being transported to Blue Mountain Hospital not be admitted. Colin Benson, an Oregon Depart- ment of Justice attorney assigned by Grant County District Attorney Jim Carpenter to prosecute the case, re- sponded to Baughman’s motion on Feb. 2, citing Komning’s body camera recording at the scene. “The deputy asked the defendant if he understood his Miranda rights, and the defendant replied by nodding his head,” Benson said in his motion. “Komning then asked the defendant if, with those rights in mind, the de- fendant wanted to continue talking to him. The defendant replied by saying ‘sure.’” According to Benson’s motion, the defendant’s son then approached and warned Elliott not to say anything without a lawyer. Elliott replied, “It’s OK” and “Everything is going to be all right.” Elliott showed signs he was intox- icated and admitted to consuming five or six drinks. He also told Komning that he had been assaulted by Berry and had sustained injuries. Elliott was transported to the hos- pital for treatment where he spoke with Durr and Oregon State Police Senior Trooper Erich Timko. Grant County Sheriff’s Deputy Tyler Smith was also present. Benson cited Durr’s body camera recording in his response motion. Benson concluded that Elliott, “having been given his Miranda warnings by Deputy Komning, hav- ing been asked if he understood those rights and answering ‘sure,’ and even after having had the benefit of his son See ELLIOTT, Page A8
