Salem's hyperlocal news and statehouse watch.
Salem's hyperlocal news and statehouse watch.
Latest reporting from the Public Safety desk.
Latest reporting from the Public Safety desk.
Latest reporting from the Public Safety desk.
Public Safety
Zachary Nicholas Mertens, 20, of Burlington, Kentucky, died Monday, Aug. 10, after climbing over a safety barrier at the top of South Falls in Silver Falls State Park and falling 177 feet. Marion County Search and Rescue recovered his body from the base of the falls.
Public Safety
Public Safety
Zachary Nicholas Mertens, 20, of Burlington, Kentucky, died Monday, Aug. 10, after climbing over a safety barrier at the top of South Falls in Silver Falls State Park and falling 177 feet. Marion County Search and Rescue recovered his body from the base of the falls.
Public Safety
Public Safety
Zachary Nicholas Mertens, 20, of Burlington, Kentucky, died Monday, Aug. 10, after climbing over a safety barrier at the top of South Falls in Silver Falls State Park and falling 177 feet. Marion County Search and Rescue recovered his body from the base of the falls.
Public Safety
A former inmate at Salem's Oregon State Penitentiary filed a $1.5 million lawsuit alleging prison staff failed to diagnose and treat his dislocated ankle, the latest legal challenge to medical care in Oregon's prison system.
Public Safety
Keizer police and five partner agencies served search warrants on three River Road North massage parlors on Monday, July 13, seizing more than $26,000 in cash and citing workers in what investigators say is an active prostitution and human trafficking investigation.
Public Safety
Polk County Circuit Judge Rafael A. Caso sentenced Philip James Mancuso, 37, of Dallas, Oregon, to 50 years in prison on Tuesday, July 21, for sexually abusing a child under 12, following a multi-agency investigation that included the Salem Police Department.
Public Safety
Oregon's emergency management agency is directing Salem residents to donate money through 211info.org, volunteer through ORVID, and avoid self-deploying to fire zones as more than 140 new wildfires burn across the state.
Public Safety
The National Weather Service issued a Heat Advisory for Salem from 10 a.m. Tuesday, July 21, through 11 p.m. Wednesday, July 22, with temperatures expected to reach 95–98°F; wildfire smoke could moderate highs but may also affect air quality.
Public Safety
Salem's transit agency finalized the purchase of a 5.47-acre site at Commercial Street and Wiltsey Road, clearing the path for a new South Salem Transit Center backed by more than $10 million in federal and state funding.
Public Safety
The Oregon Health Authority issued a recreational use health advisory for Pettit Reservoir in Marion County on Friday, July 10, warning Salem-area residents to avoid swimming due to elevated microcystin levels from a harmful algal bloom while encouraging safer activities like fishing and hiking.
Public Safety
Marion County Judge James Edmonds sentenced Richard Pennise, 52, of Gervais to two months in prison and 36 months of probation after he pleaded guilty to three felony bias crime counts for directing racial slurs and death threats at a neighboring Hispanic family.
Public Safety
Marion County deputies evacuated Enchanted Forest on Thursday, July 9, after a bomb threat call that the sheriff's office says resembles a swatting incident; a 90-minute search found nothing suspicious, but the park stayed closed for the rest of the day.
Public Safety
The Marion County Sheriff's Office search for 68-year-old John Nelson, missing since a camping trip near Russell Lake in the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness, entered its third day on Thursday, July 9, with no resolution announced.
Public Safety
Marion County Search and Rescue teams are actively searching for 68-year-old John Nelson, reported overdue from a camping trip near Russell Lake in the Mount Jefferson Wilderness on Tuesday, July 7, and officials are asking anyone who visited the area recently to call 503-588-5032.
Public Safety
ODOT will close the southbound I-5 Exit 248 off-ramp to Delaney Road SE for 48 hours starting Sunday, July 12, as part of the $55.5 million I-5 widening project in south Salem; drivers should detour via Exit 252 to Kuebler Boulevard.
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©2026 Cherry City Chronicle
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