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Serving Central Oregon since 1903 www.bendbulletin.com
Jefferson County has vacant jail beds it wants to fill But they’re not an option long term for Deschutes’ crowded jail, sheriff says
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
Family deaths leave haunting riddle: Why?
Pascal Steffan, 7, whose death and that of his parents is under investigation, has been described as a smart, goodnatured child.
As police sort clues, friends and neighbors speak of possible immigration status woes
By Lauren Dake The Bulletin
Time flies Sunday Don’t forget to set clocks ahead one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday AP
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Pete Erickson / The Bulletin
A day after three family members were found dead at their Sunriver-area home, a teddy bear, flowers and cards were tied to the fence in front of the house. Investigators say they are treating the incident as a homicide, but they aren’t seeking any suspects and the community is not at risk. r ve Ri g rin Sp
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The Bulletin
Gov. Ted Kulongoski signed a bill earlier this week that will benefit certain property owners facing foreclosure by closing a loophole in Oregon’s non-recourse law that was inadvertently created by the 2009 Legislature. House Bill 3656, signed Wednesday by Kulongoski, ensures lenders can’t pursue so-called deficiency judgments against Oregon borrowers after their property has been auctioned off due to a non-judicial foreclosure, said Tamara MacLeod, an attorney with Karnopp Petersen in Bend. A deficiency judgment allows a lender to recoup the remaining balance of a loan after a foreclosure sale by suing the borrower. Oregon is one of 11 so-called anti-deficiency states that prohibit such action for all non-judicial foreclosures. A non-judicial foreclosure typically occurs when a borrower defaults on a loan secured by property and the property is sold or seized by the lender. By contrast, a judicial foreclosure occurs when a lender seeks foreclosure through legal action. See Deficiency / A6
Police records reveal details of Tiger’s crash The Orlando Sentinel
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To La Pine Greg Cross / The Bulletin
figure out what could have gone wrong — and struggling with the sudden loss of their friends and co-workers. Nickole Harris, whose son was a friend and classmate of Pascal’s, said Joachim and Dagmar were a happy couple who loved their smart, goodnatured son. In recent weeks, however, she said the couple
By Andrew Moore
By Rene Stutzman
South Century Dr.
SUNRIVER — Police say they’ll have to wait for toxicology results before they’ll know for sure what happened in a Sunriver-area home where three family members were found dead Thursday morning. Detectives wrapped up their work at the house on Hermosa Road late Thursday evening, but on Friday, they released few additional details about the deaths of Joachim and Dagmar Steffan and the couple’s 7-year-old son, Pascal. Capt. Marc Mills of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office said officials have a working theory about what happened but are not prepared to disclose it or any other information about why or how the deaths occurred. They have said Joachim Steffan
was found hanging outside the garage, while the mother and son were found inside the home. Investigators would not call the incident a murder-suicide but confirmed that they are not looking for any outside suspects and do not believe the community is at risk. Mills said there was not a gun involved in any of the deaths. “It’s a homicide investigation,” he said. “We’re trying to determine cause, trying to determine manner, trying to figure out how it all occurred. We know what the end result is, and we’re trying to go from A to Z and answer all the questions.” Two cats and a dog were also found dead inside the home. As investigators worked to piece together information about the Steffans, others who knew the family said Friday they were trying to
Solar Dr. Des chut es R iver
The Bulletin
Stellar Dr.
By Erin Golden
Ponderosa Dr.
MADRAS — While the Deschutes County sheriff is hoping voters will approve a $44 million bond to expand his county jail this spring and add extra beds, about 40 miles up the road, the acting Jefferson County sheriff is working to fill empty beds. Jim Adkins said one of his top priorities is to avoid any more cutbacks and to contract with more agencies to fill the beds. Deschutes County Sheriff Larry Blanton said he has been asked why he doesn’t use open beds in Jefferson County instead of taxing citizens to build a new jail, but he maintained renting beds is not a long-term solution. Since Adkins took over as the acting Jefferson County sheriff last month, four jail employees have been laid off as the department dips into reserve funds to keep the jail within its budget. The Jefferson County jail is a 160-bed facility and with current staffing can house about 90 inmates. The number of beds available fluctuates daily, but Adkins said he has lowered the daily bed rental price to $60 a bed, from $76, per day, to keep the Crook County sheriff’s business, and he’s recruiting new contracts with other agencies. This week he had about 15 empty beds, which if filled would bring in about $900 a day. Adkins said he’s also re-evaluating the levy, which will likely be put to voters on the November ballot and hopes he doesn’t have to raise it. The current levy is set to expire June 20, 2011. Right now, it costs property owners 99 cents per $1,000 of assessed value and raises $1.2 million to help operate the jail. “There’s not enough money coming in from the levy and contracts,” Adkins said. See Jail / A6
Bill restores protection in Oregon foreclosures
had been upset about their immigration status. About six weeks ago when she went to the couple’s house, Harris said Dagmar revealed that she and her husband were going to have to move back to their home country of Germany because of trouble renewing their visas. See Deaths / A6
ORLANDO, Fla. — While she waited for an ambulance to take her unconscious husband to a hospital in the early morning hours after Thanksgiving, Tiger Woods’ wife went into their Isleworth home, retrieved Tiger Woods two bottles of pain pills and said he had taken some earlier. Elin Woods also tried to ride in the ambulance with her husband, but the crew wouldn’t let her, saying it was a case of domestic violence — though officials later were confused because they uncovered no evidence to support that. See Woods / A6
INDEX Abby
B2
Local
C1-8
Business
C3-5
Movies
B3
Classified
F1-6
Obituaries
C7
Comics
B4-5
Sudoku
B5
Community B1-6
Sports
D1-6
Crossword B5, F2
Stocks
C4-5
Editorial
C6
TV listings
B2
Horoscope
B5
Weather
C8
We use recycled newsprint The Bulletin An Independent Newspaper
MON-SAT
Vol. 107, No. 72, 66 pages, 6 sections
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CLOCK TICKING FOR HAITI A woman prays Friday in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Two months since the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake, despite government promises, 600,000 people still live in makeshift shelters, and an upcoming rainy season has the makings of a new catastrophe. See story, Page A3. Esteban Felix / The Associated Press
TOP NEWS INSIDE HEALTH REFORM: Pelosi: Next INTERNET: Debate brews over vote ‘won’t be long,’ Page A2 plan to widen access, Page A2
MEDICAL TRENDS
Do we undergo too many tests? Studies suggest so By Lindsey Tanner The Associated Press
CHICAGO — Too much cancer screening, too many heart tests, too many cesarean sections. A spate of recent reports suggests that many Americans are being overtreated. Maybe even President Barack Obama, champion of an overhaul and cost-cutting of the health care system. Is it doctors practicing defensive medicine? Or are patients so accustomed to a culture of medical technology that they insist on extensive tests and treatments?
A combination of both is at work, but new evidence and updated guidelines are recommending a step back and more thorough doctor-patient talks about risks and benefits of screening tests. Americans, including the commander in chief, need to realize that “more care is not necessarily better care,” wrote cardiologist Dr. Rita Redberg, editor of Archives of Internal Medicine. She was commenting on Obama’s recent physical. See Tests / A6