At approximately 5:00 p.m. a man robbed Key Bank at 2829 West 11th Avenue with what he purported to be an explosive device. He left with an undisclosed amount of cash. An officer, in close proxmity to the robbery, responded and encountered the suspect who was armed with a handgun in a parking lot behind Burger King at 2777 West 11th Avenue. The armed suspect was subsequently shot and taken to a local hospital where he (was) in stable condition.

The man died at 1:46 p.m. Monday. The officer’s name is Joe Kidd. The man shot was 58-year-old Richard Allen Morrison. Here are articles about the death from the Oregonian and the San Jose Mercury, which reports, too that “District Attorney Alex Gardner of Lane County said his office decided Kidd was justified in shooting Morrison. Gardner said the officer returned fire after the suspect pulled out a gun and fired at least once.”

Joseph Le Gros, 56, flew to the United States to ride his bike from Yorktown, Va., to Astoria, Ore. He got as far as Eugene, where he made the mistake of cable-locking his bike outside the Eugene Public Library on Friday.

An hour later, he came back to find the bike missing, police said. He reported the theft and has since been forced to rent a bike to complete his trip. Here’s the relevant information about the bicycle:

The bike is generally described as an Idworx Off Rohler, grey (platinum black), and had silver Vaude side bags on front and rear, and yellow Ortlieb rack top bag.

According to Le Gros, a reward is being offered to the finder of the bike. If you have information about this crime, please call 682.8888.

The suspect fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash. No weapon was displayed or purported during the robbery. He is described as a white male with tan skin, late 40s to early 50s, 5′6″ to 5′9″ tall, with a very slender build. He is reported as having dark curly hair covered with a black baseball hat displaying “Summit Racing” in white writing, and a white goatee. He was last seen wearing a leather motorcycle vest and blue jeans.

Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to please contact the Eugene Police at 682-8888.

The Register-Guard reported that this is the fifth bank robbery in 15 days.

In other crime and safety news, a press release from the Greenhill Humane Society contains the following tips for protecting your pets on Independence Day: “Make it a dry event for your pets. Alcohol is potentially poisonous to animal companions,” and “Don’t let your pet fire up the grill or light the bonfire. Matches and lighter fluid can be very irritating to the stomach, lungs and central nervous system of your pet. Keep these items away from your furry friends.”

On June 8^th 2009 at approximately 8:28 pm, a family had just finished their eight day of a bicycle trek from Washington to start across the United States. The trek was going to end in Washington DC. This was going to be a memorable trip for their nine year old son, who was riding on a tandem bike with his father.
They made a stop at Safeway, 1500 Coburg road and had left their road bikes unattended for a few minutes, just to step inside the store. One of the bicycles was stolen from the front of the Safeway.
The stolen bicycle was a Novara Randonee, 27 speed touring bike. It was a large frame bike, Green in color. The bike had four Ortlieb panner saddlebags that carried their wallet, prescription medication, a laptop computer and personnel effects for the trip.
Anyone who might have observed the bike or has information on the stolen touring bike and property, can contact the Eugene Police Department so we can get the family back on the road to finish their journey.

Frohnmayer is accused of not telling the vehicle’s owners, his sister Mira Frohnmayer and Marcia Baldwin, to engage their parking brake, which the gardner, Loretta Jane Brubaker, said constituted negligence. She is demanding $61,000.

Just after 10 p.m. Sunday, May 31, a woman reported that two men approached her when she was in her car at West 18th Avenue and Chambers Street.

The men forced their way into the car and threatened use of a weapon, police report. The suspects demanded that she drive to various ATMs to withdraw money. She was allowed to drop them off around East 8th Avenue and Ferry Street, according a Eugene Police Department press release.

One suspect was reported to be a Hispanic male, about 25 years old with short, dark hair, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans. The other suspect was described as a white male, about 25 years old, with a slender build, wearing a light baseball cap.

In the previous two incidents, women were also abducted by two men and forced to drive to ATMs to withdraw cash.

The University ran programs for its architecture and journalism schools out of the Willamette Building in downtown Portland until 2008, when it moved them to the iconic White Stag Building. The building also housed an outpost of the University of Oregon Duck Store.

PCC paid the Oregon University System $5 million for the 127-year old building. The community college has already begun the building’s first rennovation since 1980, which will cost a further $6.7 million.

Sentenced this morning in Lane County Circuit Court, Van Ornum had no visible reaction upon hearing Judge Jack Billings’ decision.

Prior to the sentencing, defense attorney Laura Fine spoke on Van Ornum’s behalf and urged the judge to consider her client’s past volunteer work in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and in Minneapolis soup kitchens.

Eugene police officers Bill Solesbee and Judd Warden, who arrested the student, attended the hearing. During Van Ornum’s arrest, Warden stunned Van Ornum twice with a Taser gun, a fact that has drawn great interest in the case.

Van Ornum has 30 days to appeal the verdict in appellate court.

Posted by Emily E. Smith