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2 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Aging Happens: 'Don't you remember what I just told you?' ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: Taking the long view ... SOU recognized as LGBTQ-friendly ... Aging Happens: 'Don't you remember what I just told you?' ... Herb Rothschild Jr.: Taking the long view ... SOU recognized as LGBTQ-friendly ... LAW ENFORCEMENT Tickets issued to downtown animal keeper Occasional goat tender accused of sheep-related violations Comment By Alexander Mesadieu For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By Alexander Mesadieu For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 7:20 PM By Alexander Mesadieu For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 7:20 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Urban goats take to Ashland's yards and sidewalks » Social News You may have seen Aaron Fletcher walking through Ashland. He’s usually sandal clad, with either sheep or goats at his side, and he hangs a cardboard sign on his back that reads either “homelessshepherd.com,” or one of the names of the other websites that he’s created. Fletcher is known throughout Ashland for escorting his farm animals around town, but after a recent trial he may have to change his lifestyle or continue facing fines.  The Ashland Police Department have recently begun ticketing Fletcher for violations of the city Keeping of Animals ordinance relating to keeping farm animals in town. This happens more than a year since Fletcher first began shepherding farm animals in the city.  Fletcher got a ticket for allegedly breaking Ashland’s Keeping of Animals ordinance with his sheep on Jun. 6. On that day, Officer Matthew Carpenter saw that Fletcher had been in the same location with his sheep for around an hour and ticketed him. Fletcher was later found guilty.  Fletcher and his sheep (he's also kept goats) has been on the Ashland Police’s radar for a while.  “(Police officers received) a lot of complaints from people because they would see Mr. Fletcher downtown with the sheep," Ashland Police Chief Tighe O’Meara explained, "and that’s a very unusual sight. We got complaints about the sheep, their excrement being disposed of improperly. We got complaints about Mr. Fletcher hanging out in, or at the front entrance to Lithia Park with the sheep.”  “(Officer Carpenter) would pay attention to where Mr. Fletcher was and eventually saw Mr. Fletcher staying put with the sheep in one part, not just going through downtown, but hanging downtown with the sheep. He would see him disposing of the sheep's feces inappropriately, in an illegal manner. And so he enforced a law that is on the books about keeping of animals appropriately.” Fletcher did not expect to be found guilty under Keeping of Animals. Fletcher said, “I went to trial thinking that the judge was going to be smart enough to see that I wasn’t breaking any law. The word 'sheep' doesn't even exist in the Keeping of Animals ordinance.” The municipal court declined to comment and the city attorney could not be reached. On Aug. 2, Carpenter ticketed Fletcher again for Keeping of Animals. Fletcher also received a "Scattering Rubbish" ticket for disposing of his sheep’s feces improperly. On Tuesday Aug. 18, Fletcher pleaded no contest to Scattering Rubbish and not guilty to the Keeping of Animals-related charge.  Fletcher will go on trial again for Keeping of Animals on Sep. 10. If Fletcher is found guilty, he faces up to a $160 fine on top of the $240 fine he received for Scattering Rubbish. Alexander Mesadieu is a staff writer for The Siskiyou, the Southern Oregon University student online newspaper. By Alexander Mesadieu For the Tidings DailyTidings.com By Alexander Mesadieu For the Tidings Posted Aug. 27, 2015 at 7:20 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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