KLAMATH COUNTY, Ore. -- Officers open fire, shooting a man, after a standoff with police that lasted several hours.

Oregon State Police says the standoff started early this morning in northern Klamath County. They say an adult man was holding a woman hostage inside a cabin in the Crescent Lake area. Just before 5 p.m., OSP says officers shot the suspect. He is now suffering non-life threatening injuries. OSP says the hostage was not injured.

This all started after officers received a tip that a vehicle possibly related to a missing person case in Umatilla County was spotted in the area. The Klamath County Major Crimes Team will be investigating the officer involved shooting.

Tomatoes are a favorite of both serious gardeners and backyard growers. They grow best in warmer soil, which is the top few inches.

Chief Meteorologist Scott Lewis is out in the garden with OSU Master Gardener Jane Moyer to tell us more about a different way of planting tomatoes to ensure success.

By Ron Brown

NEAR ASHLAND, Ore. -- A state program that hands out lottery money for parks repair and development may be short-changing county parks programs; that's the assertion from Jackson County Parks officials. Jackson County Parks Managers are doing their own investigation, but say accurate numbers are hard to get.

Emigrant Lake is one of several Jackson County parks that relies upon some state funding to keep facilities up and running. Parks Director John Vial and his Assistant Steve Lambert told Jackson County Commissioners that, based on numbers from state parks, county parks may be getting shortchanged when grants are handed out.

"Since 2008, the counties have received 3%. Why is that? Are counties not applying? And actually the number of applications have dropped-off. Why are they not applying? What we're hearing from our members is we're not applying because we don't have the 50% match," says Lambert.

"We're just asking some questions to see if the counties are getting our fair share. And if not, why is that and what can be done to remedy that," stated Vial.

But County Administrator Danny Jordan warned that more information may be needed if commissioners are asked to wade into the discussion; and there are also concerns about upcoming changes in distributions of registration fees from recreation vehicles.

Jackson County Parks officials say they're not entirely sure if they're receiving all the money that they expected to get from the state lottery fund. And they say if they're not getting what they should get it could well be that many other counties are not receiving their fair share as well. So far the county has received a one-time grant of $1.5 million to help repair the Rogue Valley Greenway Bike Path.

By Steven Sandberg

EAGLE POINT, Ore., -- As the Eagle Point School District and employees union engaged in another bargaining session, the community gathered outside in support of the teachers.

A crowd of parents, teachers and students marched down Main Street, carrying signs, chanting, and giving their support to the employees union as it met with the district. Some parents said they were hoping for a quick resolution that will not result in a strike, and said students' educations were on the line.

The employees union has set a strike date of May 8, and both sides said Tuesday's bargaining session was an attempt to avoid a strike. The two sides met for several hours Tuesday night.

The school district says it has not finalized a plan about whether they will have to close schools in the event of a strike. That decision will come once it has had a chance to meet with the school board.

by Chris Leone

Roseburg overcomes a pair of three-run deficits, scores five in the sixth to beat Crater 8-6. North Medford dominates Ashland, winning 15-4 in six innings. Grants Pass falls to Mountain View, 3-1.

SOU will play its first game in Medford since 1994 as the Raiders open their 2012 schedule with a game in Spiegelberg Stadium.

For over a year the Eagle Point School District and the employees union have been in contract negotiations. A final attempt at an agreement started at 1 p.m., Monday afternoon. As of 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, over 16 hours later, no solution had been made, and teachers began a strike.

The district had already closed all schools for Monday and Tuesday, but after the teachers began their strike district officials closed schools for the rest of the week and plan to reopen without the striking teachers Monday, May 14th.

The only exceptions to the school closures are varsity athletics, senior spring board presentations, and the High School's FFA plan sale. The Eagle Point School District has set up a hotline with more information at 541-830-6698.

As you decided what to plant this summer, you don't have to be limited by last year's growing area.

Those who have had gardening success in the past might be encouraged to branch out and increase growing space.

Chief Meteorologist Scott Lewis is out in the garden with OSU Master Gardener Rhianna Simes to tell us more about how to smother grass out to establish a new garden bed.

By Sharon Ko

EAGLE POINT, Ore. -- Several part-time teachers were missing from the strike today that's because employees who do not work a certain amount of hours a day cannot join the union.

Employees who are picketing and holding up signs like, "I'd rather be teaching on strike", can as part of the union; but part-time teachers who do not work more than 3.75 hours a day cannot and are standing by the sidelines.

"We used to have full-time kindergarten teachers, but now we have the 3.75 and so they are not part of our union," says Union Spokesman Dave Carrell.

This rule however did not stop at least one part-time teacher.

We've had one of our members, who was 3.75, quit so she could come march with us," says Carrell.

Striking teachers, who did not want to go on camera, fear the district will strip her of her teaching license; but district officials and a union spokesman say: that's not true. Only the teacher standard and practices commission can make that call. Even if part-time teachers decide not to join the strike the union spokesman and teachers say no hard feelings.

"There's not tension between us and people who work 3.75 hours," Carrell says. "We actually have a lot of sympathy."

Sympathy, because he says being exempt from the union means part-time teachers are only paid their wage and the district does not provide them benefits.

In response to this, an eagle point school district spokeswoman says she did not want to comment on whether or not a teacher resigned to join the strike. She also says she had no comments of what she called "rumors" of part-time teachers' jobs being threatened if they supported the union.

By Steven Sandberg

EAGLE POINT, Ore. -- Not all teachers agree the strike is the best move. The school district says a number of teachers have crossed the picket lines and agreed to go back to work. These are people who have worked alongside one another for years, but now some are taking different sides.

Striking teachers lines the street leading to Eagle Point High School on Tuesday, chanting and scolding at teachers who were crossing the picket line and being bused to and from the school.

The school district would not give us an exact number, but said a number of teachers and support staff have broke ranks with the union and crossed the picket line. The teachers on strike say that hurts their cause, and could destroy relationships among educators.

"There's going to be a lot of feelings hurt, and I think a lot of people are going to be ostracized. And what'll happen is, there's going to be friendships broken, and things happen. And that's not what we want for our community, that's not what we want at all," says Eagle Point High School Disciplinarian Rick Bender.

Some striking teachers said they understand that some people are looking for job security by crossing the line, but said their cause is more important in the long run. The replacement teachers were being trained inside eagle point high school Tuesday, getting ready for when classes are set to begin again next Monday.

By Yessenia Anderson

A strike began first thing this morning in Jackson County School District 9 - more commonly known as the Eagle Point School District. Class is cancelled in White City, Eagle Point, Shady Cove, and other schools in the Upper Rogue Area through Friday at least.

Negotiators are still working to come to an agreement right now, more than 29 hours after starting a final bargaining effort Monday. With no compromise in hand as of yet, both bargaining teams are still working on a proposal that meets both of their needs.

Both negotiations teams have been locked inside the school district building for what has been more than 24 hours now, trading proposals - hoping one will be the key to a resolution.

Both teams say of the three issues they are still having trouble coming to a compromise on, they believe one is close to that finish line. That's the issue of the potential for sub contracting bus drivers and custodial staff; there is no word yet on what the specifics of the agreement might be.

Educators say there have been approximately 10 proposals handed back and forth between the teams. Just before noon, the teachers union handed over a proposal that included a cost analysis of pro rating insurance for part time employees and a plan in addressing the teacher time issue.

The teams say these back and forth reviews can take an hour or two if it is only one of two points that are discussed.

by Chris Leone

Oregon scores 3 in the first inning, and holds off Oregon St. to even the 2012 Civil War Series with a 3-2 win.

North Medford edges Crater in baseball 4-2, while the softball team edges the Comets 1-0.

Courtesy: Oregon Sports Information

EUGENE, Ore. – Jimmie Sherfy earned his 13th save of the season, keeping the game-tying run at second in the top of the ninth as the No. 9 Ducks defeated No. 23 Oregon State 3-2 on Tuesday night at PK Park.

With the win, the Ducks (35-14) even the season series with the Beavers (30-16) as the teams will end the regular season with a three-game Pac-12 series in Corvallis, May 25-27.

Oregon did a little two-out damage in the bottom of the first to take a 3-0 lead as Ryon Healy started the rally with a triple off the wall in center field. He scored from third asBrett Thomas drove his team-leading 12th double down the first base line. The inning continued as Kyle Garlick was walked, and a double steal put both runners in position to score on Ryan Hambright’s two-run single as the Ducks led 3-0 after the first.

After the first inning, the 2,726 fans in attendance watched six consecutive innings of shutout baseball until Oregon State broke through with two runs in the top of the eighth.

The Beavers put two runs on the board as reliever Jordan Spencer gave up back-to-back singles before Sherfy was brought out in relief. A sacrifice moved the runners to second and third, and Danny Hayes’ pinch-hit sacrifice fly scored OSU’s first run of the game. Ryan

Barnes then drove a shallow RBI single into center allowing Jake Rodriguez to score as OSU closed 3-2. 

In the ninth, Sherfy issued walks to Ryan Dunn and Kavin Keyes, putting runners at first and second with two outs, but his strikeout of Jake Rodriguez thwarted a Beaver comeback.

Sherfy earned his league-leading 13th save of the season tossing two shutout innings and striking out three. 

In the first start of his career, Tommy Thorpe tossed four shutout innings – a new career high -  and allowed just one hit while issuing one walk and matching a career best with three strikeouts. He retired the final eight batters he faced.

Joey Housey (3-0) earned the win in relief of Thorpe after tossing two shutout innings on one hit while striking out one. Spencer allowed two runs on two hits and one walk in his one inning of relief.

In the loss, Oregon State starter Taylor Starr (4-2) surrendered three runs on five hits and two walks in two and 2/3 innings of work.

Oregon returns to action at 2 p.m., Saturday to host a three-game series against USC.

By Kaylin Krashesky

EAGLE POINT, Ore. -- The strike officially began at 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, when more than two hundred Eagle Point School District employees picked up a sign, and marched to the district office.

Union members started gathering around 5:45 this morning waiting to hear if the strike would actually happen. A little before six, acting EPEA President Dave Carrell spoke to those employees and said while progress was made overnight, it was time to pick up the picket signs and officially start the strike. Together, the employees walked to the district office and started chanting, hoping those inside negotiating could hear.

"It was amazing to see so many people out not just because its early cause we're used to that but just that the support and the solidarity was amazing," says striker Matt Boren.

While many picketers say they will stand outside with signs until an agreement is reached, the union president says they plan to picket in 8-hour shifts. Those striking are foregoing a paycheck from the district. However, they will still receive benefits until the end of the month.

If the strike continues for six days, the teachers will get paid retroactively, up to 100 dollars a day from the Oregon Education Association. The union has a welfare committee set up to provide members who have extra need during this time.

"We want to help with short term loans, etc. we want to make sure our people are taken care," says Carrell.

The OEA does have a strike fund set up, that fund will pay the teachers who were actively picketing, if the strike goes on for more then six days. That fund will also pick up the tab for benefits, if the strike continues into June.

By Ron Brown

NEAR JACKSONVILLE, Ore. -- There are many old mine shafts and tunnels hiding in the hills around Southern Oregon. They provide valuable habitat for some very helpful flying mammals.

Two mine surveyors from bat conservation international are headed down into an abandoned mine shaft near Jacksonville, looking for possible bat habitat. They're also taking measurements to see what it would take to close this shaft opening so no one will fall in.

The hills around Southern Oregon are riddled with old mine diggings. Some are very dangerous, especially to the curious, or to hunters or wildland firefighters, and those walking in the dark.

"In the last 2-1/2 years, I think we've found close to 2,000 mine shafts and addits," says Duane Ericson, a BLM archeologist and historian. "Most of those are collapsed, but a fair amount of them are open, like this mine, that present a hazard. And I don't think we were every expecting to find that many."

This opening is about 35 feet across and 85 feet to the bottom. An addit, as it's called, down the hill is connected to this mine. You can feel the breeze coming out where a bat gate is already in place.

"I'm not sure what solution we'll have on this large hole here. We'll have to engineer something that's appropriate for it, depending on what they find here," states Mine Closure Co-Ordinator Susan Lee.

The steel gates that are put up by the BLM are designed so people can get in and out and not hurt themselves, but the bats will still be able to fly in and out and be able to do their work. The bat habitat surveyors from Bat Conservation International were here in March making similar studies, and may return later to survey other mines slated for closure.

By Steven Sandberg

CENTRAL POINT, Ore. -- As people begin to think about what they would do in the event of a catastrophe, it also means some companies are cashing in.

Preparing for disaster is serious business; in more ways than one. Disasters and emergencies over the past year have brought a new focus on preparing for anything. Someone has to sell all of those supplies and business is up and the Army Navy Store in Central Point.

"We've all seen like, that whole thing in Japan, with the nuclear meltdown after the tsunami, after the earthquake," says store employee Dave Ewing.

The store says more people are coming in with concerns about a future emergency; anything from a short power outage, to the national grid going offline.

"People are displaced, they have nowhere to go, and at that point, nothing's functioning around them. The government's not functioning," Ewing speculates.

That means stocking up to survive. Food...tents...sleeping bags...water... in extreme cases, people who think 2012 will bring the end of the world are buying ammo. But the army navy store says most of its shoppers are preparing on a boy-scout level, not a doomsday prepper level.

"We do get a lot of people that are also putting together long-term food storage," Ewing says.

But some say it's not out of the ordinary to always be ready for a widespread disaster. The Northwest Outdoor Store in Medford has also seen an increase in demand from people preparing for anything.

"We starting to stock larger 10 pound cans of freeze-dried food, it has a 15 to 25 year shelf life. And that's in response to people asking for it. So we're definitely seeing an up tick," states owner Scott Keith.

And with images like the tsunami or the financial crisis hanging over people's heads, Keith is not surprised.

"This isn't a new movement," Keith says. "This is just getting back to what we should have been doing all along."

He says the prepper movement is just people getting back to a turn of the century mindset: becoming self-reliant, in order to avoid depending on anyone else during an emergency.

"Just if the whole national grid were to have any problems that disrupt the flow of goods," Keith says. "The grocery stores, the shelves become empty, then you want to have your family with several weeks' worth of food."

Stores say there's no shortage of potential emergencies...and that will keep people coming in and stocking up. 

By Bryan Navarro

EAGLE POINT, Ore. -- The strike continues as bargaining comes to a halt.

After nearly 30 hours of negotiation talks, both sides said fatigue won out.

Proposals, ideas, and conessions were shuffled between bargaining teams almost non-stop. The men and women in the discussion hardly stopped for sleep or a change of clothes.

The chair of the Eagle Point Education Association bargaining team, John Harding, drank coffee and energy drinks to keep working from 1 p.m. Monday to about 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

The union and the district traded proposals address three unresolved issues. Educators wanted benefits for part-time teachers, no prep time taken away, and a guarentee that union members could continue to provide bus service.

Harding said, "We thought we were very close. Just before noon we sent over a proposal and as much as we thought it was going to address their needs, it just didn't quite do it."

Not too long later both sides decided to wave the white flag. "We're just fatigued to the point we need to refresh," explained Harding.

District officials did not comment on- or off-camera Tuesday evening, saying they were too tired from the negotiations. Contract talks will being again Thursday at 10 a.m. On Wednesday, teachers will picket in front of their individual school sites.

By Yessenia Anderson

GRANTS PASS, Ore. -- Voters have less than a week to get their ballots in before the May 15th deadline and some counties say they are already coming up short. Residents only have a few days to make sure their vote makes it in.

Jackson County election staff says of approximately 115,000 ballots they have received only 11%. Klamath County reports almost 22%, that is down from 28% four years ago; but one Southern Oregon county has managed to begin their tally on top.

The Josephine County Clerks Office is facing one of their busies times of the year and an increase in turnout.

"We are about three percent higher than we were four years ago," states Josephine County Clerk, Recorder Art Harvey.

As of Tuesday the county had received 23% of their ballots; but counting those documents is only the first step. County officials believe the percentage spike is a result of the issues on that ballot line up.

"I would attribute that to our law enforcement levy. Anytime there's a money measure on the ballot turn out tends to increase a little bit," says Harvey.

That increase carries the power to pass or strike down that levy proposal. Reducing sheriff resources by more than half. Leaving one person to patrol the city streets.

"It's going to devastate us in terms of being able to provide a service we are going to lose 70 people," Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilbertson says.

County officials say a typical turn out for a primary election is between 48 and 50%.

"I hope we beat it substantially the more people that vote the more people that are weighing in on the decisions," says Sheriff Gilbertson.

While those votes weigh heavily on the future of his office, Sheriff Gilbertson says he wouldn't lighten the load. "Vote yes, vote no," he says. "To the people in this community I'll respect your call which ever you decide. Exercise your voting power."

Officials urge residents to double check signatures on their ballots and remind voters that post-marked forms will not be counted. All ballots must be in drop boxes or in county offices by 8 p.m. on May 15th.

By Sharon Ko

MEDFORD, Ore. -- A Medford woman who allegedly befriended another woman and is accused of stealing her credit cards and jewelry is now behind bars.

Medford Police say 33-year-old Jami Mims befriended an elderly woman and got inside her home. They say Mims convinced the woman to drive her around the city; that's when police believe her accomplice, 37-year-old Eric Ziegler, went inside the home to steal jewelry and credit cards.

Police say the next day, another victim had her wallet stolen and a surveillance tape revealed Mims using the cards. The first victim says she's glad police finally caught her. Police arrested Mims at a Fred Meyer store in Grants Pass and are still looking for Ziegler.

By Steven Sandberg

ASHLAND, Ore. -- A Southern Oregon city wants to put the idea of emergency preparedness into the hands of its citizens. For some time, the city of Ashland has been finding ways to keep its services available, to help its citizens during an emergency. Now, they want to teach them to help themselves.

Keeping people safe and prepared has been evolving in Ashland. First, it was spearheading a county-wide emergency alert system for computers and mobile devices.

"The amount of calls they can go out within a minute or two is just phenomenal," says Ashland Fire Chief John Karns. "So, it is the best means to safely execute an evacuation."

Then, it was preparing Ashland city workers with survival kits, to keep them functioning in the event of a disaster.

"The boots on the ground guys that have to go out there and deal, and work in traffic and work with heavy equipment and maintain city services in the event of an emergency," says Ashland Public Works Greg Hunter.

Now, it's helping people ready themselves, teaching them to become self reliant during an emergency or disaster.

"It needs to be positive, it needs to be regional, it needs to be simple," states Ashland Mayor John Stromberg.

Mayor Stromberg is launching the Southern Oregon prepared initiative: a series of public service announcements teaching people the easiest ways to stock up on food, locate crucial services, and survive if the local infrastructure is brought down in an emergency.

"What you really want to have happen is someone gets the message and says, 'Oh, I can do that,'" Stromberg says.

The initiative would also team with local businesses and organizations, who would sell or provide the items people need. The plan is to expand it outside of Ashland, and get all of Jackson County ready to go.

"It's not going to mean anything if just Ashland people get prepared in their homes. It needs the region. The region is the natural area," says the Ashland mayor.

Ashland has seen its share of disasters in the past few years. The Siskiyou Fire in 2009 and the Oak Knoll Fire in 2010 compounded the fact that emergency crews, and the average citizen need to be prepared.

"Instant information in an emergency, that's not ever going to happen, but we like to be able to get it out as quick as possible," says Karns.

The plan still has a long way to go. Stromberg still needs to finalize the organizations that will work with him, and decide how his public messages will look; but he says it's a plan that will keep people safe down the road.

"People are more secure and better community members when they're prepared, when they know that if something goes wrong, they can take care of themselves and their family," says Stromberg.

Mayor Stromberg says the project is still moving forward. He says if everything falls into place, he hopes to have the initiative up and running by later this year.

By Steven Sandberg

EAGLE POINT, Ore. -- Classes are set to resume next Monday in the Eagle Point School District with replacement teachers in shortened sessions. Some parents are expressing concerns about sending their children to school with those substitutes. So now the district is reminding families of an alternative.

District officials say students can still be signed up to take online classes. The web courses provide reading and math instruction for elementary school students, and core classes for middle and high school students.

The district says all classes meet state and national standards, and students will speak on the phone with an online teacher throughout the week. District officials said they have offered these web courses for a few years, but say the current teacher strike makes it another option for concerned parents.

Teachers on the strike lines Wednesday argued back that the online courses cannot fully replace a classroom experience. They say students will be missing the interaction with other students and teachers, and will miss out on elective courses.

Families that are interested in enrolling their students in online classes need to contact the principal at their current school.