STATE CROSS COUNTRY PREVIEW INSPORTS, 7A
LA GRANDE, ENTERPRISE,UNION/COVE QUALIFIERS HEADEDTO STATE CROSS COUNTRY MEETS INOUTDOORS 8r.REC, 1 C: :
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UNION COUNTY COURT
By Cherise Kaechele The Observer
Edward Garcia was found guilty of first-degree trespassing after a six-person jury took just over one hour to deliberate Friday morning The trial for the misde-
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Garciafound guiltVoftresnass • La Grande City council candidate sentenced Friday
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m eanortrespassing case took all day Thursday and just over two hours on Friday at the Union County Courthouse. Union County Circuit Court Judge Brian Dretke sentencedGarcia,49,following the jury's unanimous verdict. Garcia'swa sordered to serve18 months probation and comply with a no-contact SeeTrial / Page5A
SFS closes down its food bank • Decision made due to logistics of impendingmove
day, according to Teresa Crouser, the organization's executivedirector.The food bank, wlnch was located In the shelter' s advocacy center, By Dick Mason had operated for atleast10 The Observer years. It was open five days Union County is losing one a week fora totalof32-V2 ofitsmost accessible food hours during the advocacy banks. building's operating hours. Shelter From the Storm None of the other food closed its food bank WednesSeeClosure / Page5A
Tim Mustoe/The Observer
Deputy DistrictAttorney Jared Boyd cross-examines Eddie Garcia on the witness standThursday. One of the two pieces of evidence was a series of text messages between Garcia and the victim that night.
WALLOWA COUNTY B It',E I SAF ETY
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By Katy Nesbitt The Observer
ENTERPRISE — In a judgement released Thursday, U.S. District Court Judge Ann Aiken threw out a lawsuit against Wallowa County, the Wallowa County SherilI"s Ofice,ChiefDeputy Fred Steen f and Wallowa County Commissioner Paul Castilleja. The suit, filed by Bruce and Venese Hampton in March 2012, originally named Steen and the county as defendants in a case that included chargesofracketeering,defamation of character and unlawful debt collection. In the second and third amended complaints, Lloyd Trackwell, then a citizen of Wallowa County, and Castilleja, were also named as defendants. 'The county always believed the suit was without merit and the court's ruling confirms that position," Commissioner Susan Roberts said. SeeRuling / Page5A
Tim Mustoe/TheObserver
A bicycle stands chained to a street sign near the Foley Building in downtown La Grande. At least four bicyclists have died in Oregon due to collisions with motor vehicles since Aug. 12.
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• M otorists and bicyclistsneedtowork togethertofollow safetytipsthatcouldpreventtragedies By Dick Mason The Observer
The stati sticsare heartwrenching. At least four bicyclists in Oregon have died in collisions with motor vehicles since Aug. 12, and others have been seriously hurt. The numbers strike a painful chord locally, for among those seriously injured while bicycling this fall was Bruce Kevan, the popular principal of Central Elementary School. Kevan is now recovering in a Boise hospital from injuries suffered after colliding with a car Oct. 2 while riding his bike down M Street in La Grande.
Kevan's accident is one of four bicycle-motor vehicle accidents that have taken place in La Grande since July 1, according to the La Grande Police Department. Fortunately, no injuries were suffered in the other three mishaps, but the accidents have heightened an awareness ofbicycling safety in La Grande and have people asking, "How can such collisions be prevented?" The answer sometimes may be as simple as looking twice, said Lt. Derick Reddington of the La Grande Police Department. "Always do a visual double-take check at an intersection," Red-
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dington said. He explained that drivers should look both ways twice before moving forward at an intersection. Reddington said that drivers may miss a cyclist on their first look because they are conditioned to looking for other motor vehicles, not bikes. "Bicyclists can be easy to miss," Reddington said."It never hurts to do a second look." A second look by a driver may have prevented the accident in which Kevan was injured. The Central principal was hurt when his bike collided with a motor vehicle that pulled out in front of
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541-963-3161 Issue 131 4 sections, 32 pages La Grande, Oregon
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him at the intersection of Second Street and M Avenue shortly before 9 a.m. Kevan, who frequently cycled to and from school, was wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. "His helmet probably saved his life," Reddington said. Kevan has made a pointof always wearing a helmet, to set a good example for students. "I never saw Bruce ride without a helmet," Reddington said. Oregon law requires everyone younger than 16 to wear protective headgear when bicycling. All helmets must meet federal SeeSafety / Pbge 5A
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