Category Public Safety
Grand jury finds officer justified in shooting, wounding man in West Salem
Polk County grand jurors found that two Salem police officers legally shot a man in self defense on Sept. 13 in West Salem. Police said at the time the man got out of a car with a knife while suspected of kidnapping, but he has not been charged with a crime.
Sharp divide in Oregon over bill to step up logging to prevent wildfires
Republicans are backing a proposal to scale back environmental regulations to thin forests while Democrats and environmentalists want to fund community preparedness.
Man charged with manslaughter, DUI in Sept. 16 crash that killed 2 in SE Salem
Terrance Quackenbush-Benson, 29, is accused of driving while under the influence of an inhalant when he was involved in a crash that killed Blanca M. Franco-Ramos, 28, and Heriberto Rangel-Rangel, 46. Another passenger remained hospitalized as of Thursday.
Salinas seeks range of solutions to fentanyl crisis
U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas talked to local officials and law enforcement in each county in her district about the fentanyl crisis.
Retired Marion County Sheriff Jason Myers dies from cancer
Jason Myers spent nearly 30 years at the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, retiring as sheriff in 2019. He served as a mentor for local law enforcement, advocated for better mental health treatment in Oregon and helped broker deals on contentious police reform issues in the Legislature.
Salem police cutting downtown, behavioral health teams
Salem police will be less able to respond to downtown nuisances and people in behavioral health crisis after disbanding two units on Jan. 1, 2025. Police Chief Trevor Womack says his staffing hasn’t kept up with rising service demand.
UPDATED: McKay student, 17, facing criminal charges after bringing gun to school
School employees found a gun during a routine bag search of a McKay student Monday. The student did not make any threats, district officials said.
Over $10,000 in damage at Englewood Elementary from weekend break-in
Extensive damage to Englewood Elementary School following a weekend break-in prompted a late start Monday morning.
Salem teen arrested 7 months after escaping from juvenile facility
The Oregon Youth Authority declined to explain how three young men escaped from MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility in February, but security measures put in place since then were focused on blocking vehicle access and adding fencing.