SPECIAL REPORT: For hours, an experienced marksman terrified Owyhee Junction for hours, firing hundreds of rounds. The shooting prompted one of the largest police responses in eastern Oregon in recent history.
Special Reports
COLD CASE: The murder of Judy Carlson in 1980 in Malheur County remains unsolved
MURDER MYSTERY: More than 40 years ago, a young woman was found dead in a gravel pit near Vale. A retiring detective at the Malheur County Sheriff’s Office dug into the cold case, hoping to finally bring the killer to justice.
Adrian man with troubled financial past seeks millions from public for Vale project
SPECIAL REPORT: Columbia Sportswear, said to support a major Vale project, has never heard of it, an investigation by the Malheur Enterprise established. The man promoting revitalization in Vale has a troubled financial history, records show.
Auditors find Smith-run agency operates without approved budget, violating law
The public agency in charge of transforming a former military base into an industrial complex operates wiithout a legally-required approved budget, auditors have found. The Columbia Development Authority in Boardman is managed by Greg Smith – a Republican legislator who sits on the Legislature’s budget committee.
Smith-led business center falls far short of goals, gets shuttered
Newly-released public records show that the Small Business Development Center operated out of Eastern Oregon University was producing few of the new jobs expected. The university was ordered by a district attorney to release documents related to a center managed by Greg Smith, a state legislator.
Eastern Oregon University ends Greg Smith contract, mum about the circumstances
For 16 years, Greg Smith’s company held a contract to counsel business owners in northeast Oregon, sponsored by Eastern Oregon University. The university terminated the contract recently but officials won’t explain their actions. Smith is a Republican state representative from Heppner.
Smith loses big pay increase, faces salary repayment in controversy over his conduct
AROUND OREGON: A public board Friday ordered that pay raises for Greg Smith and his staff at the Columbia Development Authority be revoked. The move may cost Smith more than $30,000 in pay to return. The action followed an investigation by the Malheur Enterprise.
Greg Smith exaggerates his duty to engineer major pay raise from struggling public agency
SPECIAL REPORT: The Columbia Development Authority, tasked with helping turn a former Army base in eastern Oregon into industrial land, was struggling with its finances earlier this year. That didn’t stop Greg Smith, executive director and a state legislator, from seeking to double his salary and then getting a 55% increase.
COMMENTARY: Help the Enterprise investigate EOU’s money ties to Greg Smith
COMMENTARY: Big cost bills land at the Enterprise for its continuing investigation of Greg Smith. This time, Eastern Oregon University charges $75 an hour to “review” public documents about an apparently secret fund.
BROKEN RECORDS: Citizens face growing obstacles to obtaining government records
InvestigateWest asked for government records from 15 Northwest cities, and was met by significant time lags and costs.