Oregon governor commutes all 17 of state's death sentences
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced Tuesday that she is commuting the sentences of all of the state's 17 inmates awaiting execution, saying their death sentences will be changed to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Brown, a Democrat with less than a month remaining in office, said she was using her executive clemency powers to commute the sentences and that her order will take effect on Wednesday. โI have long believed that justice is not advanced by taking a life, and the state should not be in the business of executing people โ even if a terrible crime placed them in prison," Brown said in a statement.
news.yahoo.comOregon's governor pardons thousands for pot convictions
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced Monday she is pardoning an estimated 45,000 people convicted of simple possession of marijuana, a month after President Joe Biden did the same under federal law. โNo one deserves to be forever saddled with the impacts of a conviction for simple possession of marijuana โ a crime that is no longer on the books in Oregon,โ said Brown, who is also forgiving more than $14 million in unpaid fines and fees. Biden has been calling on governors to issue pardons for those convicted of state marijuana offenses, which reflect the vast majority of marijuana possession cases.
news.yahoo.comRepublican candidate for Oregon governor Drazan concedes
Republican candidate for Oregon governor Christine Drazan conceded on Friday that she lost the race to Democrat Tina Kotek. Drazan said the math shows that, even with ballots remaining to be counted, she cannot win. โThis is a unique moment in Oregonโs history and an extraordinary opportunity for leadership that recognizes the dynamics of this race that call for moderation and inclusivity moving forward,โ Drazan said in a statement.
news.yahoo.comRepublican candidate gains momentum in Oregon governor's race
Oregon may be on the verge of electing its first Republican governor in a generation next month. It would be a heavy blow for Democrats, an indictment of the partyโs brand in what has been one of the most progressive states in the country.
news.yahoo.comOregon governor's clemency of murderer unleashes criticism
In 1994, Kyle Hedquist led a teenager down a remote logging road, then shot her in the back of the head because he feared she might tell police about burglaries he'd committed. Gov. Kate Brown granted clemency to Hedquist, who was serving a life sentence without parole after being convicted of murdering Nikki Thrasher when he was 17. Brown's act is unleashing a storm of criticism from prosecutors and law enforcement.
news.yahoo.comNative American confirmed as head of National Park Service
The U.S. Senate has unanimously approved the nomination of Charles โChuckโ Sams III as National Park Service director, which will make him the first Native American to lead the agency that oversees more than 131,000 square miles of parks and other landmarks.
Oregon illegal pot grows: More calls to send National Guard
On the same day last week that a southern Oregon county declared a state of emergency amid a sharp increase in illegal cannabis farms, police raided a site that had about two tons of processed marijuana and 17,500 pot plants. The raid illustrates that the proliferation of industrial-scale marijuana farms has gotten so bad and so brazen that Jackson County Commissioners asked Gov. Kate Brown to send in the Oregon National Guard โto assist, as able, in the enforcement of laws related to the production of cannabis.โ During last Wednesday's raid in Medford, Oregon, police found a vast outdoor growing operation, plus harvested plants hanging upside down on drying racks and 3,900 pounds (1,800 kilograms) of resinous buds stashed in huge bags and in stacks of plastic storage containers.
news.yahoo.comOverwhelmed by illegal pot, Oregon county declares emergency
A county in southern Oregon says it is so overwhelmed by an increase in the number and size of illegal marijuana farms that it declared a state of emergency Wednesday, appealing to the governor and the Legislature's leaders for help. The Jackson County Board of Commissioners said law enforcement officers and county and state regulators and code enforcers are overwhelmed and warned of an โimminent threat to the public health and safety of our citizens from the illegal production of cannabis in our county.โ Illegal marijuana grows have been a persistent problem throughout the West, even in states like California that have legalized pot.
news.yahoo.comOregon Gov. Kate Brown announces outdoor mask mandate
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) on Tuesday announced a new statewide outdoor mask mandate requiring people to wear masks in most outdoor settings regardless of vaccination status.State of play: Starting Friday, Oregonians will be required to wear masks outdoors when physical distancing is not possible. While the mandate does not apply to outdoor gatherings in private residences, masks are "strongly recommended" when people from different households cannot remain socially distanced. Get market news wo
news.yahoo.comOregon, once a virus success story, struggles with surge
Oregon was once the poster child for limiting the spread of the coronavirus, after its Democratic governor imposed some of the nationโs strictest safety measures, including mask mandates, limits on gatherings and an order closing restaurants.
Parents get coached on how to escape mask and vaccine rules
An Oregon school superintendent is telling parents they can get their children out of wearing masks by citing federal disability law. A pastor at a California megachurch is offering religious exemptions for anyone morally conflicted over vaccine requirements. While proponents of these workarounds say they are looking out for children's health and parents' rights, others say such stratagems are dishonest and irresponsible and could undermine efforts to beat back the highly contagious delta variant.
news.yahoo.comCOVID-stricken Oregon deploys National Guard to hospitals
Oregonโs governor said Friday she will send up to 1,500 National Guard troops to hospitals around the state to assist healthcare workers who are being pushed to the brink by a surge of COVID-19 cases driven by the Delta variant. Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, said the first group of 500 Guard members will be deployed next Friday to serve as material and equipment runners in the most stricken hospitals and to help with COVID-19 testing, among other things. Troops will be sent to 20 hospitals around Oregon.
news.yahoo.comNew Oregon law suspends graduation testing requirement
A new Oregon law that suspends a requirement for a basic-skills test in math, reading and writing to graduate high school is being praised by advocates as a way to rethink education standards and sharply criticized by others as a misguided effort that will hurt childrenโs learning in the long run.
COVID: Oregon issues mask mandate, warns of hospital surge
Gov. Kate Brown on Tuesday announced a statewide indoor mask requirement in Oregon as coronavirus hospitalizations and cases reach record high numbers in the state and health care systems are overwhelmed. Beginning Friday, everyone who is 5 years or older in Oregon โ regardless of vaccination status โ will be required to wear masks in indoor public spaces. The newest coronavirus health and safety measure in Oregon applies to all indoor public spaces, including businesses, grocery stores, indoor entertainment venues and gyms.
news.yahoo.comOregon to order indoor mask mandate for vaccinated and unvaccinated residents across state
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) will resume a statewide indoor mask mandate for all residents, regardless of their vaccination status, to combat a rise in COVID-19 cases, her office announced Tuesday.The big picture: Oregon is the third state, after Hawaii and Louisiana, to require residents who are fully vaccinated against the virus to wear masks. Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Oregon, which has recorded some of the lowest numbers of cases and deaths from
news.yahoo.comCalifornia fire prompts evacuations; Oregon blaze balloons
A rapidly growing wildfire south of Lake Tahoe jumped a highway, prompting more evacuation orders and the cancellation of an extreme bike ride through the Sierra Nevada on Saturday as critically dangerous wildfire weather loomed in the coming days. The Tamarack Fire, which was sparked by lightning on July 4, exploded overnight and was over 32 square miles (82 square kilometers) as of Saturday evening, according to the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest. It has destroyed at least three structures, authorities said, and was burning toward the Alpine County Airport after jumping a highway.
news.yahoo.comOregon among blue states slow at lifting COVID restrictions
Even as the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention moved earlier this month to ease indoor mask-wearing guidance for fully vaccinated people, some blue states like Oregon and Washington are still holding on to certain longtime coronavirus restrictions.
Democratic governors accuse Trump administration of misleading them about vaccine stockpile
Several Democratic governors are criticizing the Trump administration for apparently misleading public health officials about holding a stockpile of Covid-19 vaccines in reserve. The newspaper, citing state and federal officials, said the Trump administration had already started shipping its available supply in December. The Democratic state leaders say the lack of a federal reserve will upset plans to increase the speed and scope of their vaccination campaigns. It's time for the Trump administration to do the right thing and help us end this pandemic," the governors wrote. We started releasing those second doses at the end of December so people could get their second doses.
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