T he C olumbia P ress
2
May 29, 2020
Public safety calls
t hefts and Burglaries
• Shoplifting, 9:36 p.m. May 15,
Fred Meyer. Corey E. Jones, 26,
of Astoria was cited for sec-
ond-degree theft and criminal
trespassing after she allegedly
left the store but was caught in
the parking lot by police with
$158 in speakers, phone cards,
and shoes.
• Shoplifting, 10:52 p.m. May
17, Fred Meyer. Mako L. Peter-
son, 46, of Portland was cited
for third-degree theft and an
outstanding warrant after she
The week ahead
allegedly attempted to leave the
store without paying for $55 in
clothes.
• Shoplifting, 10:52 p.m. May 17,
Fred Meyer. Emilee K. Doolittle,
31, of Happy Valley was cited for
second-degree theft and criminal
trespassing after she allegedly
attempted to leave the store
without paying for $230 in mer-
chandise, including an electric
toothbrush.
• Shoplifting, 2:25 p.m. May 23,
Walmart. Amanda K. Rowden,
32, of Warrenton was cited for
second-degree theft after she
allegedly attempted to leave the
store without paying for $161 in
clothes and drinks.
s uspiCious CirCuMstanCes /
M onday , J une 1
• Astoria City Council,
7 p.m. via Zoom. Visit the
city’s website for details.
t uesday , J une 2
• Port of Astoria Com-
mission, 5:30 p.m., via
Zoom videoconference. Call
503-741-3300 for details.
W ednesday , J une 3
• Gearhart City Council, 7
p.m., via GoToMeeting. See
website for details.
disturBanCes
• Man walking into traffic, 1:02
p.m. May 22, Harbor Drive near
Youngs Bay Plaza.
• Domestic disturbance, 3:43
p.m. May 23, Highway 26 at Ju-
bilee Road. Oregon State Police
and sheriff’s deputies stood by
while one party retrieved per-
sonal items.
V ehiCles
• Vehicle into retaining wall,
12:19 p.m. May 16, Ninth Street
west of Southwest Cedar Ave-
nue. James C. Cartwright, 36,
of Warrenton was arrested on
suspicion of driving under the
influence of intoxicants.
• Traffic stop, 7:43 p.m. May 19,
1300 block Northwest Warren-
ton Drive. David Dean Fisher
Jr., 43, no known address, was
arrested on suspicion of driving
under the influence of intoxi-
cants, refusing to take a breath
test, reckless driving, failure
to install an ignition interlock
device, driving while suspended
and having no insurance. He
was booked at Clatsop County
Jail.
• Vehicle into embankment,
no injuries, 1:06 p.m. May 20,
Highway 26 near Saddle Moun-
tain turnoff.
• Vehicle vs deer, 9:46 p.m. May
22, Highway 26, 1 mile east
of Highway 101. The driver, a
46-year-old Oregon City man,
was cited for driving too fast
and having an open container of
alcohol.
• Speeding, 5:14 p.m. May 23,
South Main Avenue at 10th
Place. Driver cited for going
45 in a 35 mph zone, driving
without a license and having no
insurance.
• Multiple violations, 7:54 p.m.
May 23, Highway 30 at Valley
Creek Lane, Knappa. Jamie Hill,
41, city not given, was arrested
on suspicion of driving under the
influence of intoxicants.
• Traffic stop, 8:56 p.m. May 24,
South Main Avenue at Whiskey
Road. Driver cited for having no
insurance or license.
• Traffic stop, 10:23 p.m. May
24, Harbor Drive at Neptune
Avenue. Driver cited for driving
while suspended and having no
insurance.
• Traffic stop, 6:26 a.m. May 25,
South Main Avenue at Ninth
Street. Brandon D. May, 47, of
Warrenton was cited for criminal
failure to carry and present a
license, driving while suspended
and having no insurance.
• Traffic stop, 11:43 p.m. May 25,
Ridge Road at KOA. Driver cited
for driving while suspended and
having no insurance.
f ire and serViCe Calls
• Transformer fire, 8 a.m. May 21,
Pacific Drive at Seventh Avenue.
• Fire alarm, 2:12 p.m. May 22,
1100 block Southeast Flightline
Drive.
• Unattended bonfire, 1 a.m. May
24, Hammond viewpoint.
M ediCal Calls
• Medical assistance, 8:29 p.m.
May 20, 600 block Alternate
Highway 101.
• Medical assistance, 2:23 a.m.
May 21, 900 block King Salmon
Place.
• Medical assistance, 8:57 a.m.
May 21, 800 block Fifth Avenue.
• Medical assistance, 3:28 p.m.
May 22, 100 block Alternate
Highway 101.
• Medical assistance, 3:08 a.m.
May 23, 0-100 block Southwest
Main Court.
• Medical assistance, 10:29 p.m.
May 23, 100 block Northwest
Fourth Street.
• Medical assistance, 11:25 p.m.
May 23, 100 block Southwest
Gardenia Avenue.
• Medical assistance, 5:29 p.m.
May 24, 0-100 block Alternate
Highway 101.
• Medical assistance, 11:59 p.m.
May 24, 90900 block Highway
101.
• Medical assistance, 1 a.m. May
25, Jetty Road.
• Medical assistance, 8:01 p.m.
May 25, 300 block Marlin Ave-
nue.
• Medical assistance, 12:04 a.m.
May 26, 100 block Northwest
Fourth Street.
Employment Department vows to do better
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The Columbia Press
Oregon is facing unprece-
dented unemployment and
hundreds of thousands of
Oregon families have sought
unemployment benefits to
pay for their basic needs.
But the agency acknowl-
edges it has an unacceptable
backlog and has begun a pro-
gram to combat it.
“While the Oregon Employ-
ment Department has paid a
record number ... within two
to three weeks, for too many
Oregonians, their claims are
in a backlog,” the agency
wrote. “We know how frus-
trating it has been for those
who are trying to reach us
about the status of their
claims and have been unable
to get through.”
The goal of Project Focus
100 is to process 100 percent
of the 38,000 backlogged
claims by hiring more staff,
putting the most experienced
agents on the oldest and most
complex claims and tempo-
rarily reassigning job center
employees to answer calls.
“It’s way overdue at this
point. They failed miserably,”
Warrenton City Commission-
er Mark Baldwin said.
Baldwin brought up the
state agency’s shortcomings
during a recent meeting af-
ter employees on temporary
layoff from his construction
company could get no relief.
Mayor Henry Balensifer fol-
lowed up by writing a letter
to the agency expressing the
city’s dismay.
“I’ve not heard one person
saying they’ve heard from the
Employment Department,”
he said. “They should priori-
tize communicating to those
who’ve waited the longest and
work their way to the recent.”
This week, House Speaker
Tina Kotek suggested moving
employees from some state
agencies to Employment as a
way to speed up the process.
Balensifer likes that idea.
“Communication sucks. It
really does,” he said.
The agency has said it’s in-
stigating new ways of contact-
ing Oregonians to let them
know where their claims are
in the system.