David Jaques, The Roseburg Beacon

The saga of Ajay Pichette, the single mother who battled the state of Oregon for more than four years for the return of her daughter Nakota (Kota), winning twice in the Oregon court of appeals, continues as she was taken back to court earlier this month defending against a claim for custody and visitation by the former state appointed foster parents, Douglas County Sheriff’s Deputies, Mike and Kim Root. 

Liam, Lilly, and Nakota (Kota)The nightmare, as Ajay defines it, all began back in November of 2007, when five armed officers entered her mother’s home in Curtin, where she was staying, and stripped her seven week old baby, Nakota Ruth Eckel from her arms. The 18-year-old single mother, Ajay Eckel (now Pichette) described the scene that night as “chaotic and terrifying”. 

By David Jaques

An exchange of gunfire between suspect Jonathan Lackey and numerous police officers resulted in an over 3 hour standoff with dozens of police at the Casa Loma Motel on N.E. Stephens in Roseburg, Oregon. The incident began with the investigation of a possible homicide which occurred earlier that same day and ended when 23 year old gunman, Jonathan Lackey, surrendered.

OSP Forensic Unit at crime scene investigation, Tuesday outside Casebeer home on Ramp Road. -Photo STAFF/Beacon

At approximately 3:00 pm on Monday, December 17, 2012, several law enforcement units were dispatched to the Casa Loma Motel seeking a man characterized by police as a “local transient”, to investigate a possible connection to the death of an elderly man who resided at 437 S.E. Ramp Road.

According to a statement from the Roseburg Police Department; upon arrival at the Casa Loma Motel, Detectives with the Douglas County Major Crimes Team attempted to make contact with Lackey. After knocking on the door repeatedly, Lackey finally exited the room and “aimed a handgun at one of the Detectives and fired it.”

Forensic investigators measure trajectory of bullets on Tuesday, following Monday’s shooting incident. -Photo STAFF/Beacon

Several detectives positioned outside the motel returned fire, and Lackey was forced to retreated back into the room. Police reports state that Lackey then broke out the rear window of the motel room and fired additional shots. Witnesses at nearby businesses and residences confirmed hearing multiple gunshots.

Within minutes of the exchange of gunfire, law enforcement had closed N.E. Stephens St. (Highway 99) from Winchester Blvd. on the South to Garden Valley at the North.

Meanwhile snipers took up positions facing the door of Room 2 of the Casa Loma Motel, pinning down the lone gunman. Law enforcement officers, with full body armor and riot gear, took up positions in the road on N.E. Stephens, on the roof of an adjoining motel, and in strategic positions behind the motel in the Little Caesar Pizza parking lot.

More than three hours elapsed as several snipers were rotated periodically due to extreme cold temperatures and freezing rain which fell off and on throughout the ordeal.

As the afternoon gave way to nightfall, additional law enforcement vehicles arrived on the scene, including a large panel truck from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and an armored vehicle also from the DCSO. During that time spot lights were focused on Room 2 in an effort to illuminate the target and “reduce visibility” for the perpetrator lodged inside.

Assets from Roseburg P.D., the D.C. Sheriff’s office, State Police, Sutherlin P.D., and Winston P.D. were deployed to the scene and used to cordon off side streets and access points to that section of Stephens.

Several businesses in the area were vacated in an effort to protect bystanders from errant gunfire.
The Beacon learned through confidential informants that Lackey was being sought for questioning as to his possible involvement in the death of 71 year old Roseburg resident, Richard Casebeer, whose home on Ramp Road was partially burned earlier in the day, on Monday, December 17.

Police close traffic on N.E. Stephens during standoff with gunman. -Photo STAFF/BeaconNeither fire investigators nor law enforcement have officially released the name of the deceased, found inside the home, however the Beacon confirmed the identity of the homeowner with family members. Though no cause of death has been released, an informant confirmed that his death was not fire related.

Casebeer had no children, and his wife Linda has been deceased for many years. He is survived by two cousins, one living in eastern Douglas County, the other in Jackson County. Both said it has been several years since they’ve spoken with Richard.

Lackey in custody escorted to Roseburg P.D. squad car. -Photo STAFF/BeaconCasebeer, a retired City of Roseburg public works employee, was characterized by neighbor, Faye Mentzer, as a “pleasant man”. Mentzer said that during the past summer she observed a young man, who she described as being in his late teens or early twenties, approximately 5’ 10”, and of slender build, helping Casebeer around his property. She said the young man usually wore a stocking cap and had most recently been helping Casebeer build a gazebo in his front yard.

23 year-old shooter, Jonathan Lackey surrenders to police in parking lot of Casa Loma Motel after 3 ½ hour ordeal. -Photo STAFF/BeaconThough Mentzer was unaware of a connection between the arrest of Jonathan Lackey and the house fire across the street from her home, there appears to be a resemblance between her description of the young man helping her neighbor during the past spring and summer, and that of Jonathan Lackey.

Roseburg Police Department’s PIO, Sergeant, Jeff Eichenbusch, told the Beacon the two incidents are being investigated independently, but would not deny a connection between them.

When the first reports of gunfire were received, police units were initially sent to the Ramp Road location, before being rerouted to the Casa Loma Motel on N.E. Stephens.

The standoff at the Casa Loma Motel ended at approximately 6:30 pm, after several hours of intense negotiations. Lackey surrendered, exiting Room 2, by backing out of the room at the command of law enforcement with hands over his head. He was then told to get down on his knees, hand cuffed, and led to a waiting Roseburg squad car. Lackey was lodged in the Douglas County Corrections facility.

On Tuesday, Lackey was arraigned before Judge Julie Zuver. The video arraignment lasted about three minutes. He was charged with: five felony counts of Attempted Aggravated Murder; five counts of Attempted Felony Assault 1; one count Class C Felony Unlawful Use of a Weapon; one count Class A Misdemeanor Menacing; one count Class B Misdemeanor Disorderly Conduct; and one count Class A Misdemeanor Recklessly Endangering Another.

Snipers pin down Jonathan Lackey at Casa Loma. -Photo STAFF/BeaconJudge Zuver directed that public counsel be assigned and denied bail. At this time the D.A. has not filed any charges relating to the death at the Ramp Road fire.

Investigative teams spent Tuesday at the Casa Loma scene marking, photographing, and gathering forensic evidence both inside the room and in the parking lot. Several gunshot entry points were marked and labeled in the front of the room where Lackey had been holed up.

The Oregon State Police Forensic Evidence Team, on Tuesday, also had tents and investigation units stationed at the Ramp Road home and were assisted by local law enforcement.

My name is Nadine Hanhan and I am writing to express my severe disappointment with the Oregon Republican Party.

On June 23, I attended the District 4 Convention in Roseburg with fellow Republicans as a precinct committeewoman to vote for delegates, alternates and other elected positions. I was excited to participate, to run as an alternate delegate, to record my video, and to see how our Republic works first hand. I was proud to see that others had cheered for me upon watching me give my speech on the screen—most people did not get cheers. I have never been so passionate about politics until this election, and I was very excited to participate for the first time in my life.

Roseburg, OR-More than two hundred republican activists and elected precinct committee persons gathered early Saturday morning, June 23, at Umpqua Community College, to participate in the Fourth Congressional District Convention, their purpose, to elect national delegates to attend the Republican National Committee’s (RNC) nominating convention scheduled for August 27-30 in Tampa Bay, Florida.

Republican PCPs gather at UCC to elect delegates to the Republican National Convention in TampaSimultaneous, four other Oregon congressional districts from across the state held similar meetings. At stake was the selection of 28 delegates who will attend the national convention. The number of delegates was apportioned in Oregon based upon the percentage of votes each candidate garnered in the republican primary election.

Commissioner Laurance - Photo STAFF/Beacon

On Monday, December 19, Hall, who had been travelling on Harvard Avenue, noticed a dark blue sedan drifting into his lane. The driver, he said, was “apparently preoccupied with something on the passenger seat”. Hall said he tapped his horn to alert the driver but the car kept heading towards him, at which point, he said, “I hit the horn again”, convinced that if he hadn’t the sedan would have struck the passenger side of his pickup.

Slater filed the suit after she was fired for requesting to be excused from processing same sex marriage applications which she said is against her religious beliefs.

The settlement came on the heels of a ruling by the ninth circuit that the county did not even explore options to accommodate Slater’s request. They also ruled that Douglas County only received 37 applications over a two year period, with each taking approximately 10 minutes, and that allowing her to exchange work to accommodate her religious rights would not have been a hardship to the county or other employees. They then forwarded the case to a jury trial.

The parties settled the Lawsuit during a judicial settlement conference with United States Magistrate Judge Mark D. Clarke on February 1, 2011 pending approval by the Commissioners. Slater will receive two checks. The first for $25,438 will cover her lost wages, and a second for $70,254 “for damages for the alleged violation of her rights and her alleged emotional distress and pain and suffering”.

The third payment of $49,308 will be paid to Brian L. Pocock, Slater’s attorney.

The county also agreed to amend Slater’s personnel file to show that her employment with Douglas County ended due to a reduction in work force and that she is eligible for rehire.

The settlement stems from a lawsuit brought by Kathy Slater, a 10 year employee of the Clerk’s office, under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as amended in 1972).

Slater was fired by County Clerk, Barbara Neilsen after asking to “be excused from doing any work related to domestic partnership registrations”. Slater claimed the processing applications for same sex marriage would be a violation of her religious belief that homosexuality is a sin.

Slater, a 10 year veteran of the Clerk’s office, made the request after Oregon began allowing same-sex domestic partnership registration in 2008.

County Clerk, Barbara Neilsen refused Slater’s request, arguing that all employees must be willing to process the registrations, and to do so would have burdened other employees with additional work.

Slater’s suit claims the county violated federal and state law by failing to accommodate her religious beliefs.

The County filed for a motion with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals for summary judgment, arguing that the  county did accommodate Slater’s request by offering her a position outside the Clerk’s Office if one came available.

The Ninth Circuit ruled that the county’s vague offer to transfer Slater did not reasonably accommodate her.
They also noted that Slater had been subsequently rejected for four positions in different departments.

The court also took into consideration that only 37 applications for domestic partnership registrations were processed in Douglas County in the two years that it had been allowed. With each application taking approximately 10 minutes to process, they concluded that having another employee do the job would not have been a hardship for the office.

The Court pointed out that Clerk Neilsen did not make inquires to ascertain the details of Slater’s requested accommodation and that the county failed to “engage in an interactive process” which is required by law.

The court denied the County’s motion for summary judgment and required they present their evidence before a jury. The Commissioners will consider the settlement agreement in a further attempt to avoid going to court.