"Ruby leaned down, pinched the rattlesnake behind the jaw, flipped it over and milked its venom sacs. Its rattler buttons ticked like a Timex gone haywire. She reached for the deadbolt on the back door. The snake's tail flopped and the rattler buttons shook. The slick scales felt loose between her fingers, so she tightened her grip, enraging the rattlesnake even more. Once she got the door open, she flung the rattler with all her ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. -- Families interested in enrolling their children in one of Bend-La Pine Schools magnet programs are encouraged to contact the schools about visits and necessary information as the deadline for the enrollment lottery approaches. Applications are due to the school of choice by 4 p.m. on Friday, March 21. Applicants may apply for only one magnet program. Lottery results will be mailed on Thursday, April 10.The magnet schools, Amity Creek at Thompson School, ... [full story]

Moratorium on Inspections Could Have Negative Business ImpactBEND, Ore. -- Economic Development for Central Oregon Executive Director Roger Lee called on the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to avoid actions which would threaten Central Oregon's thriving aviation manufacturing industry.  For more than twenty years, experimental class (also called kit) aircraft manufacturers have constructed the fuselage, wing skins, horizontal skins and spars which are provided as parts in the assembly of an aircraft.  Over time, the industry ... [full story]

COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ore. -- Four Washington State residents received non-life threatening injuries Thursday afternoon in a three-vehicle crash on Highway 30 near the intersection with Lindberg Road in Columbia County, police reported. According to Oregon State Police (OSP) Trooper Justin Oxenrider, about 3:40 p.m. on March 13, Judith Ann Davidson, 64, was traveling west on Highway 30 in a 2000 Ford Contour when she stopped in the left lane to turn left onto Lindberg Road. ... [full story]

Oregon State Fire Marshal Nancy Orr urges residents to check their smoke alarms when changing their clock to Daylight Savings Time (DST) on Sunday, March 9. Many Oregonians have smoke alarms with ten-year batteries so the old saying, 'Change your clock, change your batteries' may not be correct for many households.Smoke alarm laws in Oregon are different from most other states. Since 1999, law requires all ionization-only smoke alarms sold in the state to have ... [full story]

EUGENE, Ore. -- A 41-year old woman died Tuesday evening when she lost control of her motorcycle on Franklin Boulevard at Brooklyn Street in the Glenwood area of Eugene, Oregon, police reported. Margaret Ann Chrisman, 41, of Eugene was riding westbound on Franklin Boulevard approaching the Brooklyn Street intersection about 7:15 p.m., March 4, when the accident occurred. When she crashed and was thrown over the front of the motorcycle. Chrisman landed on the road then ... [full story]

SALEM, Ore. -- Murder suspect Jose Rosendo Carrillo-Padilla, wanted for a 2001 murder, was recently spotted in the Salem area. Carrillo-Padilla has been on the Salem Police Department "most wanted" list since 2001 and is sought in connection with the shooting death of Miguel Ochoa-Ochoa in September of 2001.   2001 photo of murder suspect Jose Rosendo Carrillo-Padilla, fbi.gov photoCarrillo-Padilla was spotted on February 22 in the area of Lancaster Drive NE and Sunnyview Road NE in ... [full story]

SALEM, Ore. — If you're waiting for a kicker check that never came, it may have been returned to the Oregon Department of Revenue because it couldn't find you. The U.S. Postal Service returned 25,000 undeliverable kicker checks to the department. So far, only 12,000 have been claimed by their rightful owners. "We still have almost 13,000 unclaimed kicker checks," said Department of Revenue Financial Manager Ken Ross. "We've posted on our website the names ... [full story]

Redmond Fire and Rescue has implemented a new outdoor burning permit program. If residents conduct any outdoor burning inside of the city limits that meet the following criteria, they will first be required to obtain an outdoor burning permit: -- If you are planning to burn a field or lot that has not been cut and placed in a pile. -- If you are planning to burn a pile of vegetation that exceeds 6 feet ... [full story]

BEND, Ore. -- The long-awaited opening of the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office Work Center began Monday with the transfer of inmates to the newly remodeled facility, closed in 2003 due to a shortage of funds. Voters approved permanent funding for the Sheriff’s Office in 2006 to allow the center, which will add 90 jail beds and many expanded inmate programs such as drug and alcohol treatment, to be reopened. The programs offered in the work ... [full story]