Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 27, 2016)
A14 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2016 FROM PAGE A1 Many county races uncontested in May 2016 primary vote By PHIL WRIGHT Staff Writer A former candidate for Umatilla County commis- sioner is challenging incum- bent Bill Elfering. Thomas Bailor is seeking to unseat Elfering in the May 17 election. He was one of six candidates that ran in 2013 for an open seat on the coun- ty board of commissioners. George Murdock won that race. Bailor has a background as a culture resource coor- dinator for the Confederat- ed Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, accord- ing to his candidate iling. His entrance also makes the election something of a classic in Umatilla County: Bailor is from Pendleton and Elfering is from Herm- iston. Elfering is seeking his second term on the board. He oversees economic devel- opment for the county and is the board’s law enforcement liaison. Circuit Judge Ron Pahl did not ile to seek another term in position 2 for 6th Ju- dicial District. But the race for the circuit courts of Umatilla and Morrow counties will be contested. John Ballard of Herm- iston will compete against Jon Lieuallen of Pendleton for the seat currently held by Pahl. (See related story on this page). Circuit Judge Dan Hill is running unopposed, as is Umatilla County District At- torney Dan Primus. In the race for Umatil- la County sheriff remains between incumbent Terry Rowan and challenger Ryan Lehnert. Candidates take differing approaches to the bench By PHIL WRIGHT Staff Writer The two attorneys vying for the local circuit court have attitudes on opposite ends of the judicial spectrum. Jon Lieuallen of Pendleton and John Ballard of Hermis- ton were part of a candidates forum Thursday in Heppner. Ballard told the crowd of about 50 that he would not coddle criminals. “There are certain people who need to die in prison,” he said. “And I have no qualms about sending someone to prison for the rest of their life.” Lieuallen said most people who go to prison also get out. “Reformation needs to be something you focus on, be- cause the person is going to be back (in the community),” he said. Ballard, though, con- tended rehabilitation doesn’t work: “It costs just as much to lock them up, and we’re safe that way.” Ballard, 51, has been practicing law for 19 years in Hermiston. He is twice di- vorced and has a 25-year-old daughter attending Columbia University, New York City. Campaign inance ilings show he put $10,000 of his own money into the race for the bench. Lieuallen turns 48 this summer and has been an at- torney since 1999. He and his wife married in 2001 and have two boys and two girls. The family strode down Main Street in Adams last Saturday in the town’s annual parade. He was the lone candidate VOTE: continued from Page A1 better, faster response for our citizens.” On the ballots in the mail this week, voters in both areas will see ballot measure 30-108, which forms the new Umatilla County Fire District 1. Vot- ers in Hermiston will also see 30-109, dissolving the current Hermiston Fire District, and voters in Stanield will see measure 30-110, dissolving the Stanield Fire District. All three measures must pass to create the new district; if any one fails, then the refor- mation fails. Stanton said this could lead to cutting one staff position in Hermiston, longer response times, longer delays between responses and higher maintenance costs. “If it doesn’t pass, there’s some tough decisions to be made,” Stanton said. “It’s not a good picture.” Stanton said the number of calls Hermiston receives has continued to climb. From Jan. 1 through Feb. 29, for example, Hermiston Fire and Emergency Services ran 687 total calls — on track for more than 4,100 calls this year compared to 3,900 in 2015. Because the ire districts handle both ire and emergency medical response, Stanton said the districts sim- ply need more personnel. “In 66 years, the district has never asked for money, and we’re at the point now that we need to take it to the voters,” Stanton said. “It’s a need.” If the reformation passes, the increased funding will be used to staff ireighter/med- ics at station two on Diagonal Road — 24 hours a day, sev- en days a week. The new district will give everyone within the com- bined district a tax rate of $1.75 per $1,000 of assessed property value. The rate means: * Most Hermiston resi- dents within city limits will see no change due to com- pression, where tax rates are capped. • Stanield residents will see a discount of 31 cents per there and even pulled a red wagon lying election signs. Ballard also is working to drum up votes. His elec- tion sign towers over Sunset Elementary School in Herm- iston. He spoke earlier this week about the campaign. Ballard said about 50-60 percent of his practice now is divorce, most of the rest is criminal and he throws in some civil cases to boot. And for several years he has been the backup judge in the city court in Hermiston. “I think I would probably be more effective as a judge in this stage in my life,” he said. The work of a trial at- torney has its rewards and downsides, he said. Paying clients expect him to be avail- able 24/7, every day of the year, and by his own choice he has not taken a week’s vacation since at least 2006. A judge’s workload is “more condensed,” he said, but win- ning would mean a “hefty pay cut.” The position pays about $124,500 a year, and the term is for six years. A judge is akin to a base- ball umpire, Ballard said, determining if a ball is fair or foul. Courtrooms are illed with close calls, he said, and his experience will help him to make the right decisions. “You would be hard pressed to ind a facts scenar- io I’ve not run into,” he said. “And my BS meter is proba- bly set fairly high.” Lieuallen was a deputy district attorney in Prineville, worked in public defense in STAFF PHOTO BY GEORGE PLAVEN John Ballard, left, speaks to the audience as Jon Lieuallen looks on at the Heppner Chamber of Commerce candidate’s forum on Thursday in Heppner. Umatilla County and in 2004 joined the Milton-Freewater irm of Monahan, Grove & Tucker, where he made part- ner three years later. A former high school champion wres- tler, he said he is competitive and aspires to be at the top of his profession. Thus the race for the bench, he said, where the key to success is exemplifying a judicial temperament. “You have to be irm and fair,” he said, “but you also have to be willing to listen and be unbiased. I think some of his (Ballard’s) stuff can be sharp.” So sharp the Oregon State Bar Disciplinary Board in 2013 put Ballard on trial to consider if he violated a re- straining order and broke the law while representing a cli- ent in a divorce. The East Oregonian ob- tained a copy of the three-per- son trial panel’s 8-page opin- ion. The panel consisted of Bend attorneys Carl W. Hopp Jr. and Ronald L. Roome, both of Bend, and retired den- tist John G. McBee of Pend- leton. Ballard’s client owned a Ford F-150 pickup, which the client’s wife used. Ballard or- dered his assistant to take the pickup at dawn on June 29, 2010 and keep it out of view. Marylu Lopez, the wife in the case, reported she iled a complaint with the Bar. Ballard said that led to an inquiry, and the Bar cleared him. Then came an appeal, and he prevailed again. But Lopez and Aaron Guevara, her attorney in the divorce case, pushed for the trial pan- el. The trial was Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, 2013, in Hermiston. Ballard, Guevara and others testiied, including Hermiston police Capt. Daryl Johnson. The panel concluded Ballard did not violate the restraining order when he took the pick- up. But the opinion also stat- ed the panel “unanimous- ly disapproves of Ballard’s conduct,” found his “actions were overzealous,” and his claim he owed no duty to the wife “rang hollow.” He left Lopez without a vehicle for an extended peri- od of time, according to the panel, and “caused actual harm to the wife, to the cou- ple’s daughter, and to the per- ception of lawyers held by the community at large.” The panel also found it “offensive” for Ballard, an attorney and oficer of the court, to “surreptitiously” pull off the scheme. “An attorney snatching and holding the opposing par- ty’s sole means of transporta- tion relects poorly on all law- yers,” the panel stated. “What if there had been a breach of the peace and someone was hurt? What if wife’s attorney, following Ballard’s example, took the vehicle back? Where do personal, self-help style, snatch and grab activities by attorneys end?” McBee as “representative of the conscience and norms of the community,” found Ballard was wrong and broke the law. Ballard said he anticipated this would come up during the campaign. He said he hits hard as an attorney, and the trial panel “didn’t like me one bit,” but he was protecting his client in that situation. Ballard said his client owned the pickup and had a report of people drinking and driving in it. If someone crashed it while drunk, Bal- lard said, his client would have been liable. “I made a judgment call to have the truck picked up at dawn,” he said, and as- serted there was a receipt in the pickup for “$70 or $80” worth of alcohol and “beer bottles all over it.” He also said he called Hermiston police and said he took the pickup so they would know it was not stolen. Good, bad or otherwise, he said that’s what happened. But it was by the book, and that is how he would be as judge. “I’m fairly balanced and very procedural,” he said, and he suspected his rulings “will be a little stronger than my opponent’s.” Lieuallen said he knew of the trial panel but he would not make it a campaign issue. He said he was talking about his experience and communi- ty involvement, including as a member of the Milton-Free- water Rotary Club and pres- ident of the Pendleton youth wrestling club. He said he plans to spend about $5,000 on mailings to voters in Mor- row County and the west side of Umatilla County. Lieuallen campaigned in 2012 against sitting Circuit Judge Lynn Hampton and lost by about 55 percent to 45 percent. And this week the Bar re- leased the results of its judi- cial preference poll, in which local lawyers cast their votes for judge candidates. Lieual- len won with 30 votes while Ballard received 18. But the real verdict in the May election rests with the voters of Umatilla and Mor- row counties. George Plaven contribut- ed to this story. What’s on the Ballot Hermiston • 30-108 - Forming the Umatilla Fire District 1 • 30-109 — Dissolving the current Hermiston Fire District • Nominees for the fire board for the new district, consisting of three current Hermiston Fire Board members and two current Stanfield Fire Board members. Stanfield • 30-108 - Forming the Umatilla Fire District 1 • 30-110 — Dissolving the current Stanfield Fire District • Nominees for the fire board for the new district, consisting of three current Hermiston Fire Board members and two current Stanfield Fire Board members. Note: All three measures must pass in order to create the combined fire district. thousand as the current Stan- ield rate is $2.06 per thou- sand. * Rural residents around Hermiston, such as in the Hat Rock area, will see an in- crease of 55 cents per $1,000 of property value. The reformation is ex- pected to generate about $900,000. In addition to adding staff, the funding will also go toward replacement of deteriorating vehicles and preventing the need to go out for a bond. This is the second time the ire districts have sent the ref- ormation to the voters. Eighteen months ago, the measure failed, but Stan- ton has high hopes for next month’s election. The ire departments have had more time to talk to the communi- ty, to clear up misconceptions and to explain the purpose be- hind the reformation in text, video and “coffee with the chiefs” discussion formats. “I think people understand it better now,” Stanton said. “More people understand the process now, and I think they do understand why we need it.” Voters in both cities and rural areas will also see names on the ballot for nom- inees for the ire board for the new district, consisting of three current Hermiston Fire Board members and two current Stanield Fire Board members. MOTHER’S DAY MAY 7TH Put a IS smile on the ~ORDER E EARLY~ A power R L Y heart with the of flowers. Put a smile on the heart with the power of flowers. *ON APPROVED CREDIT. TERM VARIES BETWEEN MODEL. PLUS TTD. UP TO 60 MONTHS. **STK# 16T396. NET CAP COST $26,979. GFU $16,997. $750 LEASE CASH PROVIDED BY TOYOTA FINANCIAL SERVICES. 3 YR/12,000 MILE LEASE = $199MO. $2,629 DOWN. PLUS TTD. ON APPROVED CREDIT. Need Shade or Outdoor Living Space? W e’ve Got YOU covered! Paio Covers Pergolas · Sunrooms Retractable Awnings FREE estimates! Screen Rooms 541-720-0772 Handrail · Sun/Solar Visit our showroom: Shades & More! 102 E Columbia Dr. License License #188965 #188965 Kennewick, WA 99336 www.mybackyardbydesign.com ***STK# 16T378. ON APPROVED CREDIT. 3 YR/12,000 MILE LEASE. AFTER $1,000 LEASE CASH PROVIDED BY TOYOTA FINANCIAL SERVICES. $1,529 DRIVE-OFF CASH OR TRADE. NET CAP COST $18,795. LEV $12,273. ****AFTER $1,000 CUSTOMER CASH AND $1,000 ROGERS DISCOUNT. ON APPROVED CREDIT. *FOR ALL OFFERS: NO SECURITY DEPOSIT REQUIRED. ON APPROVED CREDIT. A DOCUMENTARY SERVICE FEE OF $75 MAY BE ADDED TO VEHICLE PRICE OR CAPITALIZED COST. DOES NOT INCLUDE TAXES, LICENSE, TITLE, PROCESSING FEES, INSURANCE AND DEALER CHARGES. SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY. OFFERS VALID THROUGH 5-3-16.