Police have arrested the former owner of Park and Sell RV, a consignment lot operating for about one year in Redmond during 2005, for allegedly selling recreational vehicles and failing to pay at least five owners the sale proceeds, police announced Tuesday. Duncan Swift Brewer, 48, of 20894 SE Desert Woods Drive in Bend was cited to appear in court for first-degree aggravated theft and theft by deception. He was released after processing last Thursday, June ... [full story]

PITTSBURGH - Five children from two families died early Tuesday in a house fire in Pittsburgh. Investigators were seeking a teenager who was reportedly babysitting the children, The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported. The girl disappeared and her boyfriend, who may also have been in the house at the time of the fire, was also missing. The dead children were between the ages of 3 and 7. Two children, both 8, were rescued from the house and ... [full story]

SALEM, Ore. — The Oregon House of Representatives today unanimously approved a K-12 education budget that designates $6.245 billion for public education in the next biennium. Funding for public education in the 2007-09 biennium will increase by 18 percent over 2005-07 levels with the budget approved by the House today. “This is a budget we can all be proud of,” said House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D-Portland). “This year Oregon kids won’t have to worry about their ... [full story]

Bills prohibit ‘golden parachutes’ contracts, promote solar energy, honor Congressional Medal of Honor recipients and require self-extinguishing light bulbs in schools Governor Ted Kulongoski signed four pieces of legislation on Monday designed to prohibit ‘golden parachutes’ contracts for school administrators, require public construction projects use funds for solar energy, designate special license plates for Congressional Medal of Honor recipients and require self-extinguishing light bulbs be used in schools. The four pieces of legislation the Governor signed include: SB ... [full story]

Bend Fire personnel, Redmond HazMat team members, and a utility crew responded to a possible hazardous materials incident at a local dental office on Saturday when occupants reported headaches and difficulty in breathing, officials reported. The report of a natural gas odor at the Willamette Dental Group located at 62968 O.B. Riley Road was received just after 8:20 a.m., according to a news release issued by Bend Fire Battalion Chief Dave Howe. Fire personnel monitored the ... [full story]

A small fire reported by a neighbor of a Deschutes River Woods homeowner sounded a warning early enough to allow the residents to extinguish the blaze -- later traced to an improperly discarded cigarette -- before firefighters arrived Sunday night, officials reported. The fire at 19038 Choctaw Road, a two-story home owned by Dennis Friore, was reported about 11:35 p.m., Bend Fire Captain Chuck Goss said.  The apparent cause of the blaze was found to be ... [full story]

Elk Meadow Elementary students pitching in for philanthropic project to help peer, expect to raise $3,000 The students of Elk Meadow Elementary School will head to Mount Bachelor on Wednesday, June 13, to raise money for Tyler Eklund and learn about the ecology of the area. The field trip is a project for the school's Sparrow Club and is sponsored by Mount Bachelor. About 575 students—plus teachers, parents and Mount Bachelor staff—will spend the morning ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. — Deschutes National Forest fuel specialists are planning to conduct a series of three small underburns to provide forest ecologists the opportunity to study how bitterbrush responds to fire. The prescribed burns are tentatively scheduled for today and Wednesday.The plots are seven acres in size and are scattered throughout the Deschutes National Forest east of Highway 97.  The first plot is located three miles southwest of Pine Mountain, and the other plot to ... [full story]

Scheduled road work will result in traffic signals being turned off on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of this week at three different intersections in Bend. The City of Bend has announced that from 8:30 a.m. to noon, flaggers and signs will be in place to maintain and control traffic through the following work zones while valve boxes are replaced. Tuesday June 12: Intersection at Boyd Acres Rd. and Butler Market Rd.Wednesday, June 13: Intersection at ... [full story]

WASHINGTON - Talks are scheduled on a plan to release millions of dollars in frozen North Korean bank deposits by running them through Russia. The arrangement to be discussed this week was being made to help move along a deal on North Korea's nuclear program. The Yonhap news service said Tuesday that the U.S. Treasury confirmed that the United States was working with Russia on a transfer plan for about $25 million frozen in a ... [full story]