News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Corporal Wayne Morgan of the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office intervened and saved a 52-year-old Sisters man who was attempting to kill himself on Monday, May 14.
According to sheriff's office reports, the man's wife found a suicide note indicating that her husband was going up Three Creeks Road to end his life. The man was distraught over financial problems, according to sheriff's office reports.
His wife called for help.
Morgan and Deputy Randy Graves, who patrols local forest areas, did not locate the man on the main road leading to Three Creek Lake. They split up began to search in the labyrinth of forest roads that branch off of Three Creeks Road.
Corporal Morgan turned onto the 900 spur off Forest Road 1514, following a set of tire tracks, even though he was not sure they were fresh.
The narrow, rocky road wound deep into the forest.
"Several times, I actually thought about turning around," Morgan said.
The corporal pressed on and came upon the man's truck parked at a makeshift campsite along the road. The engine was running. A vacuum cleaner hose ran from the exhaust pipe into the vehicle.
Morgan expected to find the man dead, but as he pulled up he saw the man move in the truck. Morgan approached the vehicle and yanked the hose out of the exhaust pipe.
At that moment, Deputy Jeff Winters, who was interviewing the man's wife, radioed Morgan that the man was armed with a .22 rifle. Morgan saw the muzzle of the rifle through the truck window and he backed off to await backup.
The man roused himself and hit the gas, taking off up the forest road. Morgan followed, while Deputy Graves maneuvered his four-wheel-drive rig into a blocking position on the road ahead and took a position on an overlooking ridge line.
The man stopped as soon as he saw his way blocked.
An hour-long stand-off ensued. Corporal Morgan several times talked the man out of his truck, only to see him leap back in, slam the door and put the gun to his head with his finger on the trigger.
Once, the man drove toward the roadblock, but stopped short of ramming the police vehicle.
"He ended up getting out of the truck with the rifle," Morgan reported. "At that point things got real exciting."
However, Morgan emphasized, the man never made any threatening move toward him or toward Graves, in the rocks above.
Corporal Morgan finally persuaded the man to put the rifle away and walk off into the woods. The man put the rifle back in the truck and walked away.
By this time, Deputy Winters had arrived on the scene and several deputies approached the man and took him into custody without incident.
Morgan transported the man to St. Charles Medical Center, for observation.
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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