A Mesa, Arizona, police officer was killed in a motorcycle accident that occurred Monday (Aug. 14) while he was riding on Twisp-Carlton Road, Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers said in a press release Tuesday (Aug. 15). Kurt A. Carlson, 42, was riding with two other friends when the accident occurred at about 7:10 p.m., Rogers […]
Okanogan County Sheriff
Winthrop man charged with second-degree assault in shooting incident
A 35-year-old Winthrop man was arrested and charged with second-degree assault after a shooting incident Monday night (July 10) that injured a Winthrop woman. Troy T. Triplett was charged in Okanogan County Superior Court and released on bail Tuesday afternoon. The victim, Tracy Schrum, 48, of Winthrop, sustained injuries to her leg in the incident […]
Alvin Hymer remembered for his devotion to community
Family and friends of Alvin Hymer remembered him with affection and admiration — and secured some degree of closure — after Hymer’s body was recovered from the Columbia River about 4 miles south of Pateros on Sunday (July 9).
Hymer, age 74, had been trying to rescue his two dogs on July 1 when he fell into the …
In the Wright place at the Wright time
Retiring sheriff’s deputy has been a familiar and respected figure in the Methow Valley By Ann McCreary After more than two decades of working in the Methow Valley as an Okanogan County sheriff’s deputy, Laura Wright is retiring from the department. Her final day was Wednesday (May 31), ending a law enforcement career that spanned […]
One in custody, one still on run after high-speed Mazama chase
A woman is in custody and a man is still on the run after a high-speed chase on the North Cascades Highway that reached speeds up to 110 mph on a 6-mile stretch near Early Winters.
Okanogan County Sheriff’s Deputy Laura Wright was patrolling on Wednesday …
County educates citizens on legal, moral ramifications of self-defense
Okanogan County wants its residents to be safe. But it’s not enough for people to know how to defend themselves — they also need to take into account the legal, moral and emotional components of self-defense.
That was a fundamental message of a detailed four-hour class on Self-Defense and …
State auditors: county surplused vehicles without proper documentation
Okanogan County did not follow its own policies when it disposed of 16 vehicles it no longer needed, with nine sheriff’s vehicles given free to other police agencies and several cars sold at auction — all without officially being declared as surplus by the county commissioners, according to a state audit of county procedures.
Christmas Day fire draws full District 6 response
Firefighters from Okanogan County Fire District 6 responded to a Christmas Day fire in a house on Sky Ranch Road, west of Twisp.
A fire was reported at 12:35 p.m. in the attic of the house at 21 Sky Ranch Road. All available firefighters from the Twisp, Winthrop and Mazama stations responded.
Saving something for themselves
When a Search and Rescue team was needed to travel miles into the rugged backcountry of the Cascade Mountains to rescue someone, Okanogan County Sheriff Frank Rogers referred to the mission as “an Ottis hike.”
He means Ottis Buzzard who, with his wife Vikki Buzzard, have been the go-to team for search and rescue work in the mountains, on snow or in whitewater.
“They can just go at an incredible …
Suspect charged with burglary at marijuana store in Winthrop
An Oregon resident was booked into Okanogan County Jail last Friday (March 18) in connection with a burglary at Fresh Greens, a licensed recreational marijuana dispensary in Winthrop. Jonathan Stern, 32, of Bend, was charged with burglary, theft and malicious mischief after he was arrested at a residence just south of Twisp on Friday afternoon, […]
