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WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2014
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American journalist beheaded Another American hostage at risk by Islamic State ■
BY LARA JAKES The Associated Press
By Tim Novotny, The World
Law enforcement maintains security at the scene of a double fatal shooting at Bastendorff Beach in the early hours Tuesday morning.
Carnage at Bastendorff Beach A Dillard man is believed to have killed his father in Fairview before killing another man near the Coos Bay south jetty ■
BY TIM NOVOTNY AND THOMAS MORIARTY The World
CHARLESTON — Police believe Zachary Brimhall killed his father before going on a shooting rampage that claimed the life of a Michigan man who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. It then ended as suddenly as it started, with Brimhall, 34, taking his own life. Authorities still are unable to answer why, after shooting his father, Brimhall decided to drive with a small arsenal in his car to the beach in the middle of the night. Investigators can say the homicide victim at Bastendorff Beach has been
identified as 43-year-old Walker, Mich., resident David Jesse Hortman. Brimhall’s father, 58-year-old Ray Brimhall, was discovered dead later Tuesday morning. According to the Coos County District Attorney’s Office, at about 1 a.m., the Coos County Sheriff’s Office received several 911 calls of multiple gun shots at Bastendorff Beach. Upon arrival, deputies found at least five vehicles that had been hit by gunfire, but only Hortman, who appears to have been shot while sleeping, was struck. District Attorney Paul Frasier said it was fortunate there were not more victims. “It appears that he (Brimhall) just started driving down the beach road shooting at cars,” Frasier said, speaking at the scene Tuesday morning. “Then, when he got to the south jetty parking lot, he parked his car near the restrooms, and he could see the three vehicles from that location, and he just opened fire from inside his vehicle or right next to his vehicle. Then he got in his car and committed suicide.” Randall Vachta, 28, was just 150 feet
“It appears he just started driving down the beach road shooting at cars.” Paul Frasier
The World
COOS BAY — David Hortman decided to take a jaunt west after working at an RV rally in Redmond last week. The 43-year-old wrapped up his Dometic Corporation exhibit at the Family Motor Coach Association’s rally in Redmond on Saturday and packed up his car. Then he made his way to the Bay Area, extending his vacation to see the beautiful Oregon coast. He found that perfect view at Bastendorff Beach, where he parked his car in the south jetty’s parking lot. Hortman fell asleep and never woke up.
Coos County District Attorney Paul Frasier said 34-year-old Zachary Brimhall drove by at 1 a.m. Tuesday, firing several rounds at five parked cars, including Hortman’s. Then, Brimhall apparently shot and killed himself, Frasier said. Hortman grew up in Walker, a suburb about 15 minutes northwest of Grand Rapids in southwestern Michigan. Four years ago this November, Annemarie Hortman lost her husband of 44 years. Today, she learned she has to bury her son. Annemarie was busy with funeral arrangements at Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Walker on Tuesday. Hortman attended services
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Coos County District Attorney
away from the shooter’s car. He says he was sleeping in his own vehicle when the shooting started. “I woke up to gunfire, and then a lot of gunfire,” he said Tuesday morning. “Then I laid in the back of the car and tried to figure out what to do.” Among a handful of witnesses who had to stay on the scene throughout the investigation, as authorities combed through the large crime scene, Vachta said there wasn’t a lot of time to think about what was happening. “Not getting shot was definitely SEE CARNAGE | A8
Victim was just visiting the Oregon coast BY CHELSEA DAVIS
WASHINGTON — In a horrifying act of revenge for U.S. airstrikes in northern Iraq, militants with the Islamic State extremist group have beheaded American journalist James Foley — and are threatening to kill another hostage, U.S. officials say. The White House must now weigh the risks of adopting an aggressive policy to destroy the Islamic State against resisting any action that could result in the death of another American. It will also confront the potentially necessary step of pursuing the Islamic State in Syria, where President Barack Obama has resisted launching airstrikes or deploying significant American firepower. Obama was expected to make a statement Wednesday about Foley’s killing. U.S. officials confirmed a grisly video released Tuesday showing Islamic State militants beheading Foley. Separately, Foley’s family confirmed his death in a statement posted on a Facebook page that was created to rally support for his release, saying they “have never been prouder of him.” “He gave his life trying to expose the world to the suffering of the Syrian people,” said the statement, which was attributed to Foley’s mother, Diane Foley. She implored the militants to spare the lives of other hostages. “Like Jim, they are innocents. They have no control over American government policy in Iraq, Syria or anywhere in the world.” Foley, 40, from Rochester, New Hampshire, went missing in northern Syria in November 2012 while free-
“every once in awhile” with his mom, said a Kingdom Hall representative. Hortman was a 1989 graduate of nearby Kenowa Hills High School and attended Grand Rapids Community College and Kent Career Technical Center. Since then, he’s honed his skills as a mechanical designer and technical writer for several companies in the Midwest. A Dometic representative was not immediately available for comment. Reporter Chelsea Davis can be reached at 541-269-1222, ext. 239, or by email at chelsea .davis@theworldlink.com . Follow her on Twitter: @ChelseaLeeDavis.
St. Louis police shoot man who brandished knife BY JOE HOLLEMAN AND LISA BROWN St. Louis Post-Dispatch
ST. LOUIS — An agitated crowd of nearly 200 people gathered at the shooting scene, chanting, “Hands up, don’t shoot.” Police Chief Sam Dotson walked from a sidewalk press briefing toward the crowd at midday Tuesday. As he was describing the scene, someone scolded the others, “Listen up.” Another added, “Keep quiet.” Dotson said a city alderman had witnessed the shooting. Afterward, Dotson said, “I want this message to be out as quickly and truthfully as possible.” The tension on the street seemed diminished. About 12:30 p.m., Dotson said, two of his officers had shot and killed a man who, they said, attacked them with a knife. The victim was later identified as Kajieme Powell, 25. Officials said he wasn’t from St. Louis but was staying with his grandmother here. The intersection of Tuesday’s shooting is only 2 miles from West Florissant Avenue and Canfield Drive in the suburb of Ferguson, the scene of repeated protests and nighttime disturbances since the shooting death of Michael Brown, 18, by a Ferguson police officer on Aug. 9. City police officers and Dotson have been participating in some of the police actions on West Florissant. The “hands up” chant is a common refrain at the Ferguson protests. SEE ST. LOUIS | A8
Government’s no-fly list rules will get changes
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to, from or within the United States. The no-fly list is one of the govcontroversial most ernment’s post-9/11 counterterrorism programs because of its lack of due process, long criticized because people cannot know why they were placed on the list and lack an effective way to fight the decision. Changing how people can challenge their designation could amount to one of the government’s most significant adjustments to how it manages the list.
Freeman Button, Coos Bay Teddy Gay, North Bend Gerald Wilson, Broadbent James McIntyre, Coos Bay
Obituaries | A5
“It’s long past time for the government to revamp its general procedures,” said Hina Shamsi, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union. Shamsi is among the attorneys who represent 13 plaintiffs who sued the federal government over the current policy, saying it violates their constitutional right to due process. Earlier this summer, a federal judge in Portland agreed with them. The Portland case is one of five around the country challenging some aspect
Schools at risk Oregon Senate President Peter Courtney calls for state to take on $200M in debt to earthquake prepare state’s schools. Page A5
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WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is promising to change the way travelers can ask to be removed from its no-fly list of suspected terrorists banned from air travel. The decision comes after a federal judge’s ruling that there was no meaningful way to challenge the designation, a situation deemed unconstitutional. In response, the
Justice Department said the U.S. will change the process during the next six months. As of late last summer, about 48,000 people were on the no-fly list. The government’s policy is never to confirm or deny that a person actually is on the no-fly list, citing national security concerns. In many of these cases, travelers assume they are on the list because they are instructed to go through additional screening at airports or because they are told they can’t board their flights
STATE
The Associated Press
DEATHS
BY EILEEN SULLIVAN
of the terror watch lists. So far, the government is offering few details about upcoming changes. In a court filing earlier this month, it said it will “endeavor to increase transparency for certain individuals denied boarding who believe they are on the No Fly List.” One of the plaintiffs in the Portland lawsuit, Abe Mashal, was unable to print his boarding pass before a flight out of Chicago four
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