Hermiston
TAKING AIM
Herald
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WEDNESDAY, MAY 18, 2016
HermistonHerald.com
Bulldogs trapshooting
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DRUG COURT
GRADUATES
ABOUT TOWN
Election
Results too
late for press
Due to press dead-
lines for the Hermiston
Herald, we were un-
able to include election
results in today’s print
edition.
Look for results for
local races for the May
17, 2016, election on-
line at www.Hermis-
tonHerald.com. Results
will also available in the
May 18th print edition
of our sister paper, the
East Oregonian, includ-
ing details on statewide
races and the Oregon
presidential primary.
New workshop
highlights
trauma response
STAFF PHOTO BY JENNIFER COLTON
Christine Massingale, of Hermiston, addresses the crowd at Umatilla County Drug Court graduation on Friday. Massingale is one of 46 local
residents who will complete the program this year.
Local residents complete ‘life-changing’ program
By JENNIFER COLTON
Staff Writer
“
Without this program, I would be dead.”
For most situations, the quote is hy-
perbolic, spoken with passion and ex-
aggerated to emphasize a point. For
the graduates of Umatilla County Drug
Court, the quote has sincerity.
“I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, but I was
afraid. I was afraid of losing my family, of going to
jail, afraid that I couldn’t stay clean,” Christine Mass-
ingale, of Hermiston, said Friday. “Drug Court saved
my life. It really did.”
Umatilla County Drug Court is an intensive drug
and alcohol treatment program that combines group
sessions and individual counseling as an alternative
to incarceration. Participants attend rehab, have reg-
ular drug tests, have counseling and do community
service. On completion, many members have crimi-
nal charges dismissed.
Originally started as a two-year, grant-funded pro-
gram, Umatilla County Drug Court is now in its 10th
year. Friday, Drug Court celebrated its 18th gradua-
tion — for a total of 187 graduates.
“Over the years, we’re now in the hundreds of
graduates, most of which are very successful,” Cir-
cuit Court Judge Eva Temple said Friday. “This is
what works in Umatilla County.”
The recidivism — reoffender — average for Uma-
tilla County is now 20.35 percent — a 10 percent de-
crease since the program was implemented in 2006,
according to Umatilla County Community Justice
Director Dale Primmer. Most Drug Court partici-
pants — 75 percent — do not receive a new convic-
tion in the three-year period tracked after graduation.
That 75 percent fi gure stays consistent at the county,
state and national level.
“If you were to pull up the jail roster on any day,
80-90 percent of those are drug-related charges,”
Temple said. “If you took out everyone in jail who
had a drug- or alcohol-rleated crime, we’d have 10-
12 people left.”
See DRUGS, A14
Veterans town
hall includes
free lunch
STAFF PHOTO BY JENNIFER COLTON
Christine Massingale, of Hermiston, receives a rose of recovery from Sen. Bill
Hansell, R-Athena, at Umatilla County Drug Court graduation on Friday.
Keys named BMCC Hermiston director
By JENNIFER COLTON
Staff Writer
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Jacelyn Keys has been named
the new center director for BMCC
Hermiston.
A workshop de-
signed to assist people
with defusing danger-
ous situations is being
offered by the Crisis
& Trauma Resource
Institute.
The session is tar-
geted for people who
work in an environ-
ment where there is
potential for violence
and want to develop
the skills needed to
de-escalating potential
incidents. De-escalat-
ing Potentially Violent
Situations includes an
overview of violence,
different styles of an-
ger, how to disengage
and problem-solving
strategies.
Presented
by
CAPECO, the train-
ing costs $99, which
includes lunch. The
session is Friday,
May 27, at New Hope
Community Church,
1350 S. Highway 395,
Hermiston
Pre-registration is
required. To register,
visit www.eventbrite.
com
and
search
“De-escalating Poten-
tially Violent Situa-
tions.” For more in-
formation, call Karen
at 541-278-5674.
After seven years with Eastern
Oregon University, Jacelyn Keys
will move to Blue Mountain Com-
munity College this summer as the
director of BMCC Hermiston.
Keys will step into the role full
time on July 1, replacing Harvey
Franklin, who retires at the end of
this academic year.
“We are very excited to have Ja-
celyn join us at BMCC. She brings
with her a solid background in in-
struction, a history of supporting
students in reaching their goals, and
a tremendous amount of enthusi-
asm to the job,” BMCC president
Cam Preus said Tuesday. “She will
join a great team committed to serv-
ing the Hermiston community and
students of BMCC.”
Born and raised in Eastern Ore-
gon, Keys attended Central Oregon
Community College, where she fell
in love with the community college
setting. Two master’s degrees later,
Keys is fi nally returning to a com-
munity college.
“I’m really excited to take over
this role and to start working with
the community,” Keys said.
The Hermiston center serves
the western half of BMCC’s dis-
trict and includes an annual student
count of more than 5,000 — about
20 percent of the college’s total en-
rollment. Keys said she sees that
enrollment continuing to grow and
refl ect the needs of businesses, stu-
dents and community members in
the area.
See KEYS, A14
The director of the
Jonathan M. Wain-
wright Memorial VA
Medical Center will
speak at the Tri-Coun-
ty Veterans Round-
Up.
Lunch
will
be
provided during the
Veterans Town Hall,
which is Wednesday,
May 25 from 9 a.m. to
1 p.m. at the Hermis-
ton Conference Cen-
ter, 415 S. Highway
395. Those planning
to attend are asked
to register at www.
co.umatilla.or.us/vet-
erans/index.html.
In addition to Bri-
an Westfield, other
guest speakers include
Dave Cooley, veterans
service officer; Zach
Knight, case manager
with Oregon Support-
ive Services for Veter-
ans; and Dave Beebe,
a team leader at the
Walla Walla VA.
For more informa-
tion, call 541-922-
6420, 541-278-5482
or 541-667-3125.