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GP Police & Firefighters Protected Community during the Week Before Christmas

Grants Pass police officers and firefighters continued protecting the community during the week before Christmas. According to the Weekly Report filed by Grants Pass City Manager Aaron Cubic, police officers responded to a total of 543 calls for service along with 268 officer-initiated calls last week which resulted in 33 arrests, 39 citations, 44 warnings and five highly-intoxicated people being lodged at the Sobering Center. Cubic also reported that officers conducted a total of 66 traffic stops in the city and they made 26 referrals to the Oregon Department of Human Services. The GPPD Community Response Team (CRT) contacted a total of 200 potential troublemakers while arresting two people, citing three more and warning 40 others. The CRT unit also trespassed three individuals, posted 148 transient camps and removed trash from five campsites. Grants Pass Fire & Rescue responded to a total of 94 calls last week including 32 for emergency medical service, five for reports of fire or smoke, 20 lift assists and six assists to other agencies. The Grants Pass 9-1-1 Communications Center fielded a total of 1,049 emergency calls.

Posted on 12/23/24 6:00AM by Sam Marsh

Rogue Credit Union Raises Over $246K for Regional Medical Center in Medford

Earlier this month, Rogue Credit Union leaders visited Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center to present a donation of nearly $247,000 and gift a wagon-full of "Wally the Wolf" stuffed animals to children receiving care. The donation includes funds raised throughout 2024 by Rogue Credit Union members and team members. This contribution is part of Rogue Credit Union's ongoing commitment to support the Pediatrics Unit of the Olsrud Family Women's and Children's Hospital at Asante Rogue Regional in Medford, which opened in January of this year. Members of Rogue's leadership team and Asante staff were accompanied by Wally the Wolf -- a mascot from the credit union's Rogue Rangers program -- as they delivered dozens of stuffed animals to the delight of patients and their families. Deliveries were made to children receiving care in the Pediatrics Unit and NICU, both of which provide some of the only specialized care available in the Southern Oregon region.

Posted on 12/23/24 5:58AM by Sam Marsh

Deputies Incarcerated CJ Man for Kicking Woman in Face with Steel-Toed Boot

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a man for a vicious attack on a woman in Cave Junction yesterday. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 62-year-old James Marvin Henslin for the incident in the 200-block of East Hanby Road on Thursday at 11:58 p.m.. Deputies said they responded to a report of a bleeding woman who had been assaulted in a wooded area near the Dollar General store. They contacted a group of people including Henslin as an ambulance picked up and transported the victim to Three Rivers Medical Center for treatment of serious injuries. According to the report, Henslin admitted to beating up the woman for stealing a gun from him. Witnesses told deputies the man kicked the woman in the face with a steel-toed boot while she was sitting down. He was placed into custody. Henslin was transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail on felony charges of 2nd-Degree Assault and Unlawful Use of a Weapon. He was being held without bail. His boots were seized as evidence and a knife was taken for safekeeping.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:23AM by Sam Marsh

GP Police Jailed Chainsaw-Wielding Man for Hitting Family Members with Pipe

Grants Pass Police jailed a man for frightening family members with a chainsaw and hitting two of them with a PVC pipe at a southwest city residence yesterday. The Police Department reports officers responded to a domestic disturbance at a home in the 1,000-block of SW I Street on Thursday around 2:50 p.m.. Police said a woman called 9-1-1 to report that her brother -- 55-year-old Jeffrey Alan Washburn -- threatened to attack her with a chainsaw he was using to cut wood in the backyard. The caller also said that her brother hit her and her niece with a PVC pipe before continuing to wield the chainsaw in a threatening manner. According to the report, both the woman and her niece sustained minor injuries. Washburn was interviewed and admitted to officers that he hit the women in order to defend himself. He was immediately placed into custody and lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon and 4th-Degree Assault. He was being held without bail. Family members told police Washburn tried to burn down their house a few days ago and stated they were working to obtain a restraining order against him.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:22AM by Sam Marsh

OSP Snared Pair on Outstanding Warrants after Domestic Disturbance Call

The Oregon State Police arrested two people on outstanding warrants yesterday after responding to a domestic disturbance call east of Grants Pass. OSP reports troopers were alerted to a possible domestic violence incident near the corner of Rogue River Highway and Gordon Way on Thursday at about 2:45 p.m.. Upon arrival, troopers contacted 39-year-old Jimmy Dean Couch of Fresno, California, and 28-year-old Alyssa Josephine Arias of Grants Pass, finding that no physical disturbance had happened. However, they discovered that Arias was in violation of a court order by being with Couch and both were wanted on warrants. Couch was wanted on a California fugitive warrant while Arias was wanted on a local warrant for Contempt of Court. Both were placed into custody at the scene. Arias was additionally charged with Restraining Order Violation. Couch and Arias were transported to Grants Pass and lodged at the Josephine County Jail without bail. They were still in custody this morning.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:19AM by Sam Marsh

GP Police Nabbed Man on Warrant after Camping Call at Eastside Church

Grants Pass Police arrested a male transient on a local warrant early yesterday after he was found to be illegally camping near a church on the east side of the city. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a trespassing complaint at Edgewater Christian Fellowship on NE Industry Drive and Assembly Circle on Thursday around 9:15 a.m.. Police said a church employee called 9-1-1 to report 33-year-old Donald Gene Strunk was camping at the site in a green tent and that he had been asked to leave on Wednesday. Officers contacted Strunk and discovered that he was wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for 2nd-Degree Criminal Mischief. He was lodged in jail and trespassed from the church property. His belongings were logged into evidence for safekeeping.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:17AM by Sam Marsh

GP Police Arrested Woman on Warrant after Trespass Call at Former Cafe

Grants Pass Police arrested a woman on a local warrant after catching her loitering at a recently shuttered restaurant late last night. The Police Department reports officers responded to a trespassing call at a building on NE Agness Avenue that formerly housed Shari's Cafe & Pies on Thursday at 11:35 p.m.. Police said they found 38-year-old Shani Renee Fedosky sitting outside the former restaurant with litter scattered everywhere around her. She was found to be wanted on a Grants Pass warrant for failing to appear in court for Criminal Trespass. During a consent search, Fedosky was found in possession of smoking devices and baggies of a white substance that field-tested positive as methamphetamine. They were seized for destruction. Fedosky was lodged in jail on the warrant plus a new charge of Meth Possession.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:16AM by Sam Marsh

GP Police Arrested Transient for Camping in Doorway of Downtown Bank

It wasn't Santa Claus, but Grants Pass Police arrested a man who reportedly looks like Kris Kringle for trespassing at a downtown bank early yesterday. According to the Police Department, officers responded to a trespassing call at First Interstate Bank on SE 6th Street on Thursday at 7:12 a.m.. Police said a caller reported "an older white male who resembles Santa Claus" was sleeping at the front entrance to the bank and he had been trespassed from that area on Wednesday. Responding officers contacted a man they identified as 72-year-old Russell Dewitt Coe and placed him into custody. He was lodged in jail for Criminal Trespass and his belongings were logged into evidence for safekeeping.

Posted on 12/20/24 11:14AM by Sam Marsh

GP Police Collared Man on California Warrant during Porch Piracy Investigation

Grants Pass Police apprehended a man on a California fugitive warrant while investigating the theft of a package off the front porch of a northwest-city home this week. The Police Department reports officers arrested 41-year-old Jeffrey Michael Zink for the incident in the 1500-block of NW Lawnridge Avenue on Wednesday. Police said they contacted Zink when he matched the description of a male subject who stole a package from a residence. Officers obtained video footage from a ring camera which confirmed that he stole the package. He was also found to be wanted on a Siskiyou County felony warrant for Identity Theft, Resisting Arrest and Drug Possession. During a consent search, Zink was found to be in possession of a glass pipe with methamphetamine residue and a small bag containing a white substance that was later determined to be fentanyl. Those items were seized for destruction. Zink was lodged at the Josephine County Jail on the extraditable warrant plus new charges of Meth Possession, Fentanyl Possession and 3rd-Degree Theft. The stolen package was returned to its rightful owner.

Posted on 12/20/24 6:30AM by Sam Marsh

Deputies Jailed Man for Five Crimes after Car-Clouting Calls in Cloverlawn Area

The Josephine County Sheriff's Office jailed a man for multiple crimes while investigating car-clouting incidents in the Cloverlawn area this week. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies arrested 33-year-old Tyler Dewayne Armstrong at the Cloverlawn Market on Wednesday morning. Deputies said they responded to at least one report of a male subject attempting to open car doors while he was walking down Walker Road. They said a female caller told dispatchers the man came onto her property and tried to open her car doors. After contacting Armstrong at the neighborhood market, deputies determined he was wanted in connection with a recent burglary incident in which a mini bike was stolen. Deputies located the stolen pit bike and discovered that approximately $500 in damage was done after the suspect removed some vital components. The owner of the mini bike was contacted to come retrieve their vehicle. Armstrong was lodged at the Josephine County Jail for Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, 1st-Degree Burglary, 1st-Degree Theft and two counts of 2nd-Degree Criminal Trespass. He was being held without bail.

Posted on 12/20/24 6:29AM by Sam Marsh

OSP Nabbed GP Man for Very Impaired Driving after South-City Traffic Stop

The Oregon State Police arrested a Grants Pass man for extreme impaired driving early yesterday following a traffic stop in the south part of the city. According to OSP, troopers pulled over a Toyota Tacoma driven by a 34-year-old male subject near the intersection of Williams Highway and Union Avenue on Thursday at 12:18 am.. Troopers said they stopped the pickup for a traffic violation and the driver showed strong signs of impairment by alcohol. They said he performed poorly in sobriety tests and provided a breath sample that was more than three times the legal driving limit. The suspect was charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Reckless Driving. He was cited and released at the Sobering Center, but his truck was impounded.

Posted on 12/20/24 6:27AM by Sam Marsh

Jackson County Deputy Rescued Stranded Dirt Bike Riders on John's Peak

The Jackson County Sheriff's Office rescued some dirt bike riders who became lost and stranded on John's Peak near Jacksonville last weekend. The Sheriff's Office reports deputies received an Emergency Communications of Southern Oregon dispatch alert about the lost dirt bikers on Sunday night. Due to the inclement weather and trail difficulty, the riders became lost and one of their dirt bikes broke down. The riders advised dispatchers that they were not dressed for the weather, had no food or water, and their cell phone batteries were dying. A Jackson County Sheriff's Office Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) deputy with knowledge of the John's Peak area responded and quickly located the subjects. They were cold and wet, but otherwise unharmed. The deputy drove them to a patrol car at the Pair-a-Dice Ranch Road staging area where they received a ride back to their family. The dirt bikes were recovered from the trail the following day. The Sheriff's Office works closely with the Motorcycle Riders Association (MRA) and regularly patrols the 1,200 acres of OHV trails in the John's Peak area.

Posted on 12/20/24 6:13AM by Sam Marsh

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