A4 • Friday, May 21, 2021 | Seaside Signal | SeasideSignal.com
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Police see rise in mental health calls
SEEN FROM SEASIDE
R.J. MARX
It was timely coincidence that delivery
of the annual report of the Seaside Police
Department came the same night as a proc-
lamation for National Police Memorial
Week.
The proclamation honored the valor, ser-
vice, and dedication of all police offi cer and
publicly saluted the service of each of the
city’s offi cers.
Read by Mitch Brown, the department’s
communications manager, at Monday’s City
Council meeting, the proclamation invited
citizens to refl ect and remember Sgt. Jason
Goodding, the Seaside offi cer who lost his
life in 2016 in the line of duty.
COVID-19 changed daily operations
for the Seaside Police Department in 2020,
Police Chief Dave Ham said in present-
ing the 2019 and 2020 report. “The use of
personal protective equipment, social dis-
tancing and restrictions in gathering has
impacted the department as we learned to
navigate the ever-changing guidelines and
rules presented.”
Throughout the pandemic, Seaside
police have focused eff orts toward educa-
tion of the public rather than pursuing pen-
alties for not wearing masks, socially dis-
tancing or gathering in large groups, Ham
said.
Like other communities, Seaside had
politically-themed demonstrations and a
recognition of the use of police force after
the death of George Floyd who was killed
by Minneapolis police.
Rallies at City Hall and the Turnaround,
Ham said, proved “stressful and tense short-
lived politically themed protests.” A posi-
tive result of these events was the update the
department’s use of force and First Amend-
ment assembly policy.
The city saw a 3% rise in calls for ser-
vice from 2019, but overall, the fi ve-year
change was a decline of 5% in calls. There
were no homicides in either 2019 or 2020;
Communications manager Mitch Brown and Police Chief Dave Ham address the Seaside City Council last week.
the department reported six rapes in 2020
and four in 2019. Incidents of vandalism
rose 42%, to 198; there were 309 larcenies
in 2020, up 10% from the previous year.
Drug arrests declined 40%, largely a
result of Measure 110, which decriminal-
ized most possession charges, Ham said.
“It’s not a crime, straight up, anymore to
possess. You can have under two grams of
methamphetamine, cocaine. It’s not even a
misdemeanor crime anymore.”
Of 352 arrests in 2020, 84 involved use
of force, with a Taser used 16 times. Police
pointed fi rearms 22 times, mostly for felony
traffi c stops.
As a result of the Statistical Transpar-
ency of Policing, or STOP program, all Ore-
gon law enforcement agencies must collect
data related to traffi c and pedestrian stops.
Of racial statistics compiled by Seaside
police at traffi c stops, about 82% of those
stopped were white; 11% identifi ed as His-
panic; Black, 2% and Asian 3%. Two-thirds
of those stopped were male.
Police responded to 394 mental health
calls in 2019 and 528 in 2020, a 25% jump.
Seaside police started monitoring calls
for service involving homelessness in late
April, Ham said. Over 252 days in 2021,
the city had 183 homeless contacts and 44
aggressive homeless contacts.
“What it really boils down to is some
dedicated funding that’s going to pay for the
services, the places for these people to go
to to get those services and get some hous-
ing,” he said.
Seaside’s dispatch includes seven tele-
communicators and Brown, who also
advises the North County dispatch on a
part-time basis. Seaside dispatches for Sea-
side, Gearhart and Hamlet fi re departments
and Seaside, Gearhart and Cannon Beach
police. The city received about 7,400 911
calls in 2020, a 6% increase from 2019.
Police responded to more than 32,000 none-
mergency calls.
Cpl. Mike Baugher retired after 21 years.
When Lt. Bruce Holt retired after 37 years
with the department, Guy Knight was pro-
moted to lieutenant.
Two patrol vacancies led to the hiring
of Timothy “TJ” White and Jenson Segui.
Seaside increased the detective unit to four,
with Sgt. Josh Gregory, David Davidson,
Cpl. William Barnes and Det. Cpl. Shauna
Stelson. The department is beginning the
search for a detective to replace newly pro-
moted Sgt. Stelson, who was reassigned to
patrol.
“The recent promotional processes have
resulted in some staff achieving a higher
rank within the department,” Ham said.
“But what these processes have also done is
identify some of the up and coming future
leaders that are already operating as a team
within the department and community.”
Entering new worlds with the comfort of a book
BETWEEN
THE COVERS
ESTHER
MOBERG
The Seaside Public Library
and the North Coast Library
Cooperative;
a
partnership
between the Astoria Public
Library, Seaside Public Library,
and Warrenton Community
Library, will be off ering a sum-
mer full of fun activity packets
and reading all summer long for
children and teens. This summer
the theme is “Reading Colors
Your World,” “Leer da Color a tu
mundo.” Reminding all of us that
reading brings life and joy and
worlds we can escape into from
the comfort of a book.
Sign-up for summer reading
starts on June 1, and on Saturday
June 12, we will have a special
sign-up with distanced activities,
free books and take-and-make
packets available in the commu-
nity room of the Seaside Public
Library. Stop by to sign up and
get a free book and kit.
Every time kids and teens
turn in a completed reading form
they get another free book and
their name put into a county-
wide drawing for grand prizes.
Prizes include Lego sets with
Lego book, baskets of books, and
teen prizes will include a wire-
less Bluetooth speaker or a cash
prize.
This year we are also off ering
museum connection kits from the
Museum of Natural and Cultural
History University of Oregon.
Diff erent themes each month
include “Oregon’s Dino Story,”
“Power of Plants” and “Oregon’s
Amazing Animals.” We will also
off er a variety of art and craft
take-and-make activity kits.
Our storytime will continue
every Thursday at 10:30 a.m.
through ZOOM, Teen Tuesdays
at 2:30 p.m. and our Thursday
Teen Book Club at 2:30 p.m.
Did you know children and
teens who participate in public
library summer reading programs
score higher in reading and math
when they return to school? A
new study found signifi cant dif-
ferences between students who
read for pleasure outside of class
and those who primarily read
books to satisfy school assign-
ments. Not only was there a pow-
erful link between reading for
fun and stronger language skills,
but students who disliked read-
ing frequently attributed their
negative outlook to experiences
they had in classrooms. Sum-
mer reading is the perfect time
to take reading for fun as seri-
ously as we take academic read-
The Seaside Library off ers museum
connection kits from the Museum
of Natural and Cultural History
University of Oregon, including
“Oregon’s Dino Story,” “Power of
Plants” and “Oregon’s Amazing
Animals.”
ing during school.
Library cards are free for all
children in Clatsop County, thanks
to the Libraries Reading Out-
reach program in Clatsop County
and the generous support of indi-
viduals and The Francine Rein-
gold and Val Winstanley Libraries
ROCC Endowment fund, Clatsop
County, and United Way. If your
child does not have a library card,
bring them to the closest public
library to where you live to sign
up for free.
Don’t forget, your library card
works in all three public libraries
in Clatsop County. You can check
out books in person with your
library card or place holds and
have them delivered to the library
of your choice. The North Coast
Library Cooperative continues
to seek ways to better serve our
library users. We off er a shared
card and a shared library cata-
log. Only library of things items
including guitars, waffl e makers,
telescopes, and other large or frag-
ile items, must be picked up and
returned at the library they belong
to.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Time to put focus
on housing
To the business own-
ers of the northern Oregon
coast:
I am curious as to why
all businesses have not used
their economic and politi-
cal power in this county (in
all coastal counties, hon-
estly) to create housing for
employees?
Everywhere there are
help wanted signs. Every-
where there are stories
about how impossible it is
to fi nd and keep employees.
This problem is not new.
It is, however, now, worse
than ever.
Collectively the busi-
nesses on the coast are
responsible for the eco-
nomic prosperity or fail-
ure of their communities.
Why haven’t these busi-
nesses used that collec-
tive power to incorporate
aff ordable housing and sus-
tainable living options for
employees they need for
their businesses to thrive
and succeed?
I honestly want to know.
I reside in Seaside. I would
like to see the businesses
here thrive and succeed. My
household supports local
businesses.
We also mourn the busi-
nesses we used to support
that no longer exist.
As we look toward the
end of the pandemic and
the return of tourists visit-
ing, businesses are facing a
bleak reality with few peo-
ple to sustain them, when
there is no way to live here,
work here, and have a life
here.
Christina Buck
Seaside
Provide world
access to vaccines
ple in low-income coun-
tries. The US alone has
secured well over 550 mil-
lion excess COVID-19 vac-
cine doses.
We are in a race against
time. These vaccines are
desperately needed around
the world and will save
lives and stem further
mutations that could result
in a resurgence of the virus
in the US and around the
world.
Gov. Kate Brown, U.S.
Sen. Jeff Merkley and U.S.
Sen. Ron Wyden should
call on the Biden adminis-
tration to do more to share
America’s vaccine stock-
pile equitably with coun-
tries in need.
Regardless of whether
you live in Seaside or
Soweto in South Africa
we’re all in this fi ght
together. Sharing excess
vaccines isn’t just the
humane thing to do, it’s the
smart thing to do to reduce
the spread of variants,
reopen our global economy,
and help to end this pan-
demic faster, everywhere.
Elizabeth Dix
Beaverton
MONDAY, JUNE 8
cityofseaside.us.
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m.,
cityofseaside.us.
TUESDAY, JUNE 15
Seaside School District, 6 p.m.,
www.seaside.k12.or.us/meet-
ings.
The COVID-19 out-
break in India is a human-
itarian crisis with global
implications. It’s also a
powerful reminder that we
won’t end this pandemic
anywhere unless we end it
everywhere.
The world is facing a
vaccine access crisis. While
wealthy countries continue
ramping up vaccinations,
only 0.4% of COVID-
19 vaccines globally have
been administered to peo-
PUBLIC MEETINGS
Contact local agencies for lat-
est meeting information and
attendance guidelines.
Seaside Planning Commission,
6 p.m., 989 Broadway St.
Seaside Airport Advisory Com-
mittee, 6 p.m., 989 Broadway St.
TUESDAY, MAY 25
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 2
MONDAY, MAY 24
Sunset Empire Park and Recre-
ation District, regular meeting,
sunsetempire.com.
Gearhart City Council, 6 p.m.,
work session, cityofgearhart.
com.
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m.,
cityofseaside.us.
CIRCULATION
MANAGER
Jeremy Feldman
ADVERTISING
SALES MANAGER
Sarah Silver-
Tecza
PUBLISHER
EDITOR
Kari Borgen
R.J. Marx
PRODUCTION
MANAGER
CONTRIBUTING
WRITERS
John D. Bruijn
Skyler Archibald
Darren Gooch
Joshua Heineman
Rain Jordan
Katherine Lacaze
Esther Moberg
SYSTEMS
MANAGER
Carl Earl
MONDAY, JUNE 14
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m.,
Sunset Empire Park and
Recreation District Board
of Directors, 5:15 p.m., 1225
Avenue A.
Gearhart Small Business Com-
mittee, 6 p.m., cityofgearhart.
com.
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