At 9:37 p.m. Wednesday, the suspect came into the Subway on Center Drive, and demanded money from the lone employee, according to Medford Police Sgt. Kim Budreau. The suspect was described as being 25 years old, wearing a Halloween mask, black shirt, and plaid shorts. He was not armed, and the employee was not hurt. After obtaining an undisclosed amount of cash, the suspect fled.

Officers arrived on scene a short time later, and found the mask and other items on the ground outside the store. Minutes later, an officer across the street at the Walmart encountered a man fitting the suspect’s description. That person is being held as a person of interest, and police will look at surveillance video from nearby businesses to determine if he is indeed the same person who robbed the Subway.

Fire crews are training as a task force that goes out on emergency wild fires. Their training includes structure protection, hose pack use, and mobile attacks. They say communication is a key element in the training especially because they have a limited number of resources.

“You’re not always going to have a fire engines sitting in your driveway  but what they are going to do is save the savable homes and be able to communicate in this case… with a task force leader…resource needs and i can communicate that and we can request more,” said Medford Fire Rescue Chief Erin Sawall.

Fire crews are expecting more fires than usual this year due to the dry weather forecast. The training will finish up on Friday.

According to Medford Police, the mailman dropping off mail noticed several doors had been open at Progress Estates apartments. Police suspect someone used a screwdriver to break the locks.

“Initially, I was worried about anything that could be in the mail like identity stuff that identity thieves could’ve been looking for. But I think mostly they were looking for checks and stuff like that,” said resident Chris Casav.

Police say tampering with mailboxes or mail is a federal offense.  Residents say there was no surveillance cameras or witnesses who may have seen someone opening them.

ASHLAND, Ore. — The situation was staged. The guns were artificial and the injuries were fake. Local police said, however, the experience and skills gained are very real.

“We just want to be able to respond to any active threat that would come onto a college campus or high school campus and be prepared for that, said” Ashland Police Deputy Chief Corey Falls.

Wednesday morning officers from several Rogue Valley law enforcement agencies teamed up with Southern Oregon University to train for a situation where an active shooter is in a dormitory on campus.
Officers cautiously poured through the doors of the building while emergency responders arrived outside.
Organizers said emergency situations can be unpredictable and the training was planned to have the scenario as realistic as possible.

“You’re going to have officers showing up at different times, so we just want to make it as realistic as we can to coordinate that response when officers show up,” said Deputy Chief Falls.

SOU officials activated a test alert to university officials’ cell phones via text message or voice recording. The scenario was practiced three times with a different agency and a different twist every time.  University officials said they hope to never have to use the experience gained Wednesday but are ready to act if needed.

“We had to think on our feet, and we had to find out where the resources were that we needed at the time,” said university spokesman Jim Beaver.

After each drill, the agencies gathered to share what they learned and how to improve, should the real thing ever strike.

“We’ve debriefed those and talked about what we could have done better, so it’s extremely important to do these exercises so we can learn,” said Deputy Chief Falls.

MEDFORD, Ore. –Police end up at Cedar Lodge again for the third time in less two weeks for criminal activity.

Wednesday morning, the Medford Area Drug and Gang Enforcement task force found several pounds of heroin and drug trafficking materials at the motel.

Originally, officers were at Cedar Lodge investigating two suspected drug traffickers. During that investigation, they ended up arresting more people next door and in the parking lot.

In the initial search warrant, MADGE officers arrested California residents Keith Rogers and Paul Byers. They found three ounces of heroin, weapons and other drug trafficking materials in their room. Then, a detective knocked on the door next to the room. A woman, later identified as Kalia Ruthstrom answered and let them in.

Officers say another man in the room jumped out of the back window and ran. They say Chad Castellano was found hiding in the bushes. Officers found more heroin and a scale in his room. Ruthstrom was also arrested for a parole violation warrant and the possession of methamphetamine.

MADGE says the two groups did not know each other.

“It’s not too common that we make multiple arrests. We have a target that we’ve identified and investigate it for a significant amount of time. and usually people don’t roll in after us or if they do, they see police vehicles and move off,” said Medford Police Lt. Brett Johnson.

During these two incidents, an officer recognized a man named David Smith who pulled up to the motel. They found an ounce of meth on him and a pipe on another passenger in Smith’s car.

MADGE says Medford police swat helped in the search warrant.

ASHLAND, Ore. – State police confirm the young woman found wandering naked and confused along I-5 early Sunday morning was apprehended with a Taser.

Officials say that woman is a juvenile. She was found just after 4:00am between mileposts 18 and 19, apparently unresponsive and unaware of her surroundings.

And it was Adam Bednar who found her.

“I stopped the car in the middle of the freeway, I backed up. She kind of looked in my window, she kind of laughed and just kept on walking,” said Bednar.

Bednar says he drove alongside her while he called police. He says the trooper who arrived called for her to stop, and when she didn’t respond threatened twice to taze her.

After giving no response, two little red dots appeared on her back, then metal barbs.

“She seized up and she fell face first on the ground,” said Bednar.

State police officials say it was necessary to prevent her from wandering further into the road and putting herself in danger.

Bednar, who helped troopers apprehend the girl on the hood of his car, says he isn’t so sure.

“She wasn’t going off the road, she was set on walking down the freeway,” said Bednar. “And I think that, had [the trooper] waited for back up, they could have gotten her without the Taser.”

As for the reasons for her behavior, OSP says she likely has Autism.

Bednar says whatever it was, it was baffling.

“I thought she was drugged. I thought she was on bath salts, too much meth, something.”

What is certain is that the young girl, whose identity is not being revealed, was not the victim of a crime. She reportedly wandered out of the house, and is now safe with her family.

Officials also say she will not be charged with any crimes because she wasn’t aware of her surroundings.

Officials say the fire occurred in a structure that housed mining equipment and supplies near the Rough and Ready Lumber Mill. Fire Officials say the structure was fully engulfed and is a complete loss.

State Fire Marshals and the Illinois Valley Fire Department were at the scene.  The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

MEDFORD, Ore. – New data from the National Student Clearinghouse reveals Medford School District, along with several other area school districts, are not meeting a state goal.

Two years ago, the state of Oregon set a goal wanting to 80% of high school graduates to enroll in college.  The latest data shows only 56% of graduates from Medford Schools enrolled in a university.

Even though this number is not high enough to reach the state goal, Todd Bloomquist, the Director of Secondary Education for the Medford School District, said reaching the goal is going to take time, but the school system is doing everything they can to make it possible.

They are offering advanced placement classes, which will give students college credit after they complete the course. They are also introducing the idea of attending college to elementary students.  Select classrooms are university themed to help get young kids in the mindset that college is a possibility.  A spokesperson for Southern Oregon University says this is a good idea.

“The sooner we can introduce them to that idea… the greater the possibility they will go onto higher education,” said SOU spokesperson Jim Beaver.

No school in the Rogue Valley met the state goal.  They still have time though.  2025 is the year set for every school to reach the state goal.

Find out how your school did by contacting your district office.

http://www.ode.state.or.us/home/

MEDFORD, Ore. — There are so many soil options out there, it may be more beneficial and cheaper to make your own.

There are lots of soil formulas that you can get online. This segment shows just a general potting mix that you use with most vegetables or most flowers or you can just use it in pots or in a raised bed. The first ingredient is 5 gallons of pumice; put that in first, because when you mix it up, pumice tends to float to the top.

Then, add 5 gallons of coconut core. After that is 5 gallons of aged bark and it needs to be aged because otherwise it will suck all the nitrogen out of your mix. Then, we’re going to add a quarter cup of bloodmeal, we’re going to add a quarter cup of alfalfa. Next you add one cup of bonemeal and a half cup of kelp.

After you add the ingredients, you just take a hoe or a shovel and you start mixing and add water to it. You want the mix to get wet enough so that when you pick up a handful of it and squeeze it, it’ll kind of stick together but it won’t be drippy wet.

For more information, consult the OSU Master Gardeners Hotlines:
Jackson County: 541-776-7371
Josephine County: 541-476-6613
Klamath County: 541-883-7131
Curry County: 541-247-6672

Britt hopes to inspire artists, offering training and direction to get their creative minds flowing. This year a record number of people enrolled in the rock camp.

It is led by the L.A. independent band, Raining Jane. They will spend five days teaching song writing, instrument instruction and band dynamics.

“Each one of the students becomes a member of a band and then they actually have to write perform and compose an original piece,” said Britt Festival Executive Director Donna Briggs

The participants will perform Saturday June 22 at 5 p.m. they will be at the Ronky Tonk Bar and Grill in downtown Medford.