Heppner, Ore., Gazette-Times, Thursday,
Rustlin
While il seems unlikely
and few would like to see the
return of lynching, that pos
sible solution to cattle rustlina
does crop up in conversations
where one finds stockmen
discussing mutual problems.
"It's hard enough to pay the
mortgage and taxes without
having some damn rustler
picking off a calf or twoor a
dozen head of yearlings or
nearly two dozen young cows
and calves as is happening
these days," one Eastern
Oregon cattleman declared
recently as he drank his coffee
in a local restaurant.
Livestock theft is increasing
all over Oregon just as in other
cattle producing states. In
Eastern and Southern Oregon
where population centers are
few, distances between ranch
es is considerable, and roads
criss-cross the rangelands, it
isn't hard for persons with
theft in mind to put a plan into
effect and wind up with a
beef in their freezer or, as
some apparently are doing,
walk off with enough to sell to
someone who isn't too con
cerned about exactly where it
comes from.
"Cattle rustling today in
Oregon and throughout the
nation is a bigger problem
financially and in terms of
number of cattle stolen, than it
ever was in the 'days of the old
west'," according to Ermie
Davis, president of the 3400
member Oregon Cattlemen's
Association. Davis also stated
that, "Cattle losses due to
thefts, costs Oregon ranchers
hundreds of thousands of
dollars each year, Today when
our industry is losing millions
of dollars due to a depressed
market and high production
costs, the loss of a few cattle
can mean the difference
between a yearly profit or loss
to many Oregon ranchers. Our
Association is doing every-
Dagtonj
-40.000-mile guarantee,
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Telephone numbers have a
way of slipping your mind or
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needed. Emergency numbers,
your doctor's or baby sitter's
number and new, unlisted or
out-of-town numbers.
To keep these numbers
handy -and to help hold down
Directory Assistance costs - your
telephone company would like to
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Just write to: Personal
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big
thing possible in cattle theft
protection and detection."
Anti-cattle theft programs
of the Association include
close working cooperation
with state, county and local
police; a $1,000 reward pro
gram for information leading
to the arrest and conviction of
cattle thieves; strengthening
of brand inspection laws; and
working with individual
ranchers whos areas have a
higher incidence of ' cattle
theft.
Donald Ostensoe, executive-vice-president
of the OCA,
stated that, "Nationally, more
than $50 million a year in
losses can be attributed
directly to cattle thefts and
stolen beef carcasses at the
packing house level." Osten
soe continued, "Congress last
year called on government
law enforcement agencies to
crack down on the racketeer
ing in the meat industry. Some
early reports from this in
vestigation indicated that the
mafia and other organized
crime were directly involved
in stealing and re-selling of
stolen beef carcasses."
Gene Kunkle, head of the
livestock theft division of the
Oregon Department of Agri
culture, when contacted said,
"Rustling is a relative thing."
He commented that the total
number of animal's stolen is
small in comparison to the
total in the state, "however,
when a person is a small
operator, he can ill afford to
lose one or two."
Kunkle said there are about
1.600,000 head in the state and
1,406 were reported stolen last
year. Of these incidents 475
were cleared up. "We need to
keep this . in proper pro
spective." he said.
In Harney County ranchers
have formed a vigilante posse
in an area where a number of
animals have been found
Yes, we have
CAMP TRAILERS FOR RENT
alo a fine stock of
Steel Radials
Tires to fit most imports
risk losing.
j r- r -
Aug. 22, 1974
business in
slaughtered. Obviously, the
situation is serious. "Any
person caught shooting live
stock in that area," said Kay
Smith, a livestock owner,
"can expect to get a close-up
look at sagebrush from the
end of a rope while being
dragged across the land
scape." During the past
month, about 40 cattle, horses
and burros have been found
dead from gunshots.
Malheur County Sheriff Bob
Ingram said recently he
hesitated to estimate the
number of cattle which are
taken each year on his county
"but I'd guess it is consider
able." Sheriff Ingram has had
occasion to see several
rustling cases come to court
just recently he and his
department cooperated with
other agencies in the appre- '
hension of two men charged
with theft of a beef cow. These
men were subsequently con
victed on first degree theft
charges. Sheriff Ingram
praised private citizens who
cooperaled with his. depart
ment in the incident.
He related the story saying
that a local farmer, Raymond
Anthony, reported seeing car
lights in the early morning
hours at the George Russell
feedlots near Vale. The next
morning Richard Russell re
ported that a cow had been
shot and butchered. A gate
had been torn out in the
incident.
An immediate investigation
ensued and two Russell
employees. Ray Sheppard and
Lowell Redman reported see
ing two cars "fooling around"
in the area. This man was able
to give an excellent descrip
tion of the autos, Ingram said.
Sheppard told the law of
ficers he thought he could
identify the vehicle which had
been seen in the area of the
feedlot because he had seen it
parked at a Vale restaurant.
Checked out by sheriff's
officers, the information paid
off when a stake-out of the
man's house brought the
arrest of Richard Noblit. Then
a second man was apprehend
ed and Noblit and Charles See
stood trial and were convicted
of first degree theft and were
subsequently sentenced to 4
years each in the state
penitentiary.
Inflation has caused a
certain amount of rustling.
ka m
both Ingram and Bert
Hawkins, OCA vice president,
think. And apparently this was
what brought Noblit and See to
their downfall. Hawkins says
few cattlemen are financially
prepared to lose cattle this
way, after all inflation has hit
the cattle producer too.
Some stockmen in Malheur
County report losses of as high
as 30 head at a time, some
even more, while many report
one or two disappearing.
Apparently some are moved
out in one bunch, possibly
trucked on back roads com
pletely out of the area and
perhaps even out of the state.
There is the possibility that
some feedlots aren't to picky
about brand inspections and
then too, papers can be
falsified, Sheriff Ingram com
ments Hawkins said one of the best
deterrents he has heard of is
Lake County where enough
ranchers have been deputized
and have sheriff's patrol
emblems on their vehicles
that rustlers with theft in
mind, think twice.
Laws nowadays seem to
protect a criminal in many
instances and law enforce
ment people have a real job on
their hands when they begin to
put together a case against
someone charged with theft.
This has caused officers to
delay release of information
at times.
Several years ago a plane
was spotted in an unlikely
place and checking indicated
someone had butchered a beef
and was preparing to load it
on board. The person escaped
but the incident isn't closed.
Landing strips scattered
throughout the rangelands
make this easy. The plane was
identified but complications
failed to apprehend the pilot.
Something new is taking
place in Idaho, just across
Oregon's state line in Owyhee
County. Owyhee County
Sheriff Tim Nettleton is using
an aircraft to check out the
thousands of acres of range
land. In that county, the cattle
out number the people by at
least 10 to l. It's a huge county
and taxes from the small
population don't allow for a
large law enforcement unit.
Nettleton is able, in a few
hours of flying time, to cover
some areas so remote and
desolate, where one would
never expect to find a law
officer. The plane drops down
Oregon and
over a vehicle to check make,
license, etc. and Sheriff
Nettleton can quickly tell, if it
is a local truck with business
in the area. If there is a
question over its presence in
the area, a deputy on the
ground is alerted to intercept
the rig and check it out.
Motor bikes, campers, en
closed vans and the like are
suspected of having a hand in
some of the thefts. Sheriff
Ingram said he supposed that
corrals and loading chutes
erected by ranchers to facil
itate working cattle away
from home, are used by
rustlers for their clandestine
work.
Some ranchers indicate they
feel quite a bit of the cattle
theft "is to fill the family
freezer." But it still hurts the
rancher's pocket. "It isn t
easy to tell the banker that 30
head of cattle just up and
vanished; but it is happening
in Oregon." says one farmer
rancher. Some don't think further
legislation will help, but
Ingram says Laws aren't as
effective as they might be.
"We need more men and
bigger patrols. We check
everything we see moving -
TO
DA
1LJ. fj - j
i Jy,5fl
m
MUSIC BOTH NIGHTS BY:
but they are still getting
away." After a minute's
meditation, he noted "It looks
like some would turn up
somewhere! However, a
person can falsify a bill of sale
or slap a brand over another
and sometimes get away with
it."
Kunkle commented, "The
laws in Oregon are adequate
and he noted that of the cases
cleared up last year, 253 were
documented with physical
evidence of theft such as wires
cut, entrails, a head or hide."
LIGHT SENTENCES
Queried as to how many
Malheur losses are legitimate
Ingram said, "these we get
are probably all legitimate.
These ranchers have nothing
to lose by these reports. They
just hope we can help them
find some of the critters.
There are other problems
involved in this business and
livestock men comment that
'sympathy' is often with the
poor guy who just couldn't
afford meat for his family
although his shopping cart
carries such items as cigar
ettes, beer and nylons. Plea
1
DANCE EACH NIGHT
IDAY ad SA?tAY
August 23-24
Morrow County Fair Pavilfcn
Heppner, Oregon
THE LEOtlfllGS
Admission $3.50 per person
the nation
bargaining engineering by
lawyers often lightens a
sentence. Too often a judge
and or jury finds sympathy for
the rustler while at the same
time the rancher or farmer or
feedlot operator is expected to
pay his bills and taxes, yet
keep on producing meat to
feed the hungry of the world,
while absorbing natural losses
and those not so natural.
Yep! A person might almost
understand the desperation
felt by cattlemen with the
(JAYNES)!
pJnanaC m s. main
BUSINESS PfNOUTTON, OREGON
MACHINES PHONI27""
INC.
PUSNITURE
typewriters Richard Wellman
-jS'SIsnw Owner-Manager
-copy machines jerry Haines
. adding machines Co Owner
DICTATING EQUIPMENT
i mm
LJ'L!
Page 3
weather, the market and the
rustler all teamed up against
him. It brings some talk of
need for return of vigilantes.
Few livestock producers
question that laws need teeth,
law enforcement agencies
need the financing and nelp to
seek out. prosecute and con
vict those guilty of rustling.
No one wants to see the law
taken into the hands of those
injured.. .but it did happen in
years past!
4 I