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40 °F 5 Day Forecast Tuesday, December 9, 2003 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | eSouthernOregon | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend November 30, 2003 John and Barbara Schofield walk their dogs Cody, left, and Nicky along on Schieffelin Gulch Road south of Rogue River. The Schofields and other neighbors have endured more than a decade of drug and crime problems from a single property on their road. Mail Tribune / Jim Craven The meth lab next door Neighbors are fed up with a seemingly perpetual drug lab on rural Schieffelin Gulch Road south of Rogue River By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune Most people who live along Schieffelin Gulch Road moved to the forested hills near Rogue River for the natural beauty, quiet and sense of community that country living can offer. Several escaped the hustle of California. Others sought solace from the drugs and gangs of an East Coast city. All found themselves next door to a rural Oregon scourge — methamphetamine. The Jackson County Narcotics Enforcement Team on Nov. 6 seized a meth lab in the midst of making the drug at 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road. Authorities have found four labs at that address since owner Elvin Myers bought the property in May 1990. In July 2001 officials declared the house and property unfit for use because of contamination from the drug-making process. Around the county, 18 properties — from storage units to apartments to rural homes — have been declared unfit for use because of drug-lab contamination. Myers, of San Bernardino, owns another property on the list, 8783 W. Evans Creek Road. Advertisement Neighbors along Schieffelin Gulch Road have had enough. They’re tired of worrying about traffic, vicious dogs, chemical contamination, fire danger, potential for dropping property values and felons under the influence of drugs wandering their neighborhood. Many, however, fear retaliation if they speak out. "They’ve made my life miserable," one angry young mother said of her drug-making neighbors, essentially squatters. "We live out here in the country where it’s beautiful and I can’t even let my kids play outside." The woman, who doesn’t want to be identified, said she and her husband wanted to live in the country, in part to escape the crack-fueled violence of an East Coast city. In 1997 they bought a forested parcel on Schieffelin Gulch Road. "It never occurred to us to ask about meth houses," she said. They soon learned more than they ever wanted to know about living near a meth house. They heard late-night gunshots, fireworks and car repairs that involved plenty of engine revving. They walked their own woods cautiously, afraid of finding a drug lab, lab waste or a drug user on their property. They installed a home security system and never go on vacation without getting a house sitter. They’re worried that drug-making chemicals could contaminate their well, but they’re not sure the family budget has $300 to pay for testing. And if the test showed contamination, they’re at a loss as to what they might do. Concerns echo up and down the gulch. Several residents say that when neighbors gather for road-maintenance or fire-safety meetings, they always end up talking about 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road. Traffic and fire danger are among the most common worries. Neighbors fear a meth lab might explode and spark a forest fire that would sweep up the gulch, destroying homes and woods. Before authorities seized the most recent lab, traffic was constant, said Richard Ebipane, who lives near the base of the gulch with his wife, Karla. They retired to the country from San Diego, drawn to Schieffelin Gulch’s pioneer heritage and the way most folks waved when they drove by. "So many nice, wonderful people, then this bad element," he said. "They drive too fast." Before the most recent bust at 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road, as many as 10 cars a day sped up and down along the narrow gravel track, which is dotted with home-made signs reminding drivers not to exceed 15 mph. Another resident who didn’t want to give her name said her son and dog were walking to the mailbox this fall when several large pit bull-mix dogs came barreling down 910’s driveway and attacked her dog. Her son kicked the attacking dogs away, and they rushed their pooch to the vet for stitches. On a later trip to the mailbox, the attackers struck again. Now, she’s sorting through mounting vet bills and her once-playful pup has become skittish. "When I throw a ball, he looks around first, then chases it," she said. Down the road, a home was targeted in June by burglars and vandals — a crime investigators linked to 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road. The homeowners, who don’t want to be named, were away caring for an elderly parent. A deputy’s report on the break-in said two suspects from Medford were with friends going to 910 Schieffelin Gulch and looking for a place to party. They spotted the empty house down the road and partied there, damaging the home’s interior and vehicles parked in the garage. They stole electronics and guns. The case was forwarded to the district attorney, but charges haven’t been filed yet, according to court records. The drug-related worries are nothing new, said Barbara Schofield. She and her husband, John, moved from California and fell in love with the sense of community around Rogue River. They’ve owned a home at the lower end of the road for 18 years. "This has been going on that whole time," she said with frustration. Police acknowledge a long-standing problem. "I don’t know of any other property in Jackson County with this kind of history," JACNET Commander Lt. Dewey Patten said. He recalls a bust of a big marijuana-growing operation in a shop at 910 Schieffelin Gulch in June 1989. A year later was the seizure of a massive, sophisticated meth lab from the same shop. In 2001, JACNET busted two meth labs on the property: In March 2001 they found a working lab in a bus at the address, and in June 2001 they found lab equipment and chemicals in the property’s home. Patten admits that officials should have pushed harder to keep people out after the property was listed as contaminated in 2001. Officers can issue trespassing citations to people using a property listed as unfit for use. They haven’t in the past at 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road, but he says they will now. "We have taken action and people keep coming back," sheriff’s Capt. Joe Puckett said. "That house has been a focus in that area." Sheriff’s department records show deputies have gone to 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road nearly 30 times since the beginning of 2001. They’ve handled thefts, assaults, noise complaints, animal problems and suspicious circumstances, as well as serving warrants. While a dozen calls a year at a troublesome apartment complex isn’t unusual, having so many calls at a single home in a rural area where houses are tucked in the forest is rare, Puckett said. "In that quiet area, that’s a lot of cases," he said. "It is a strain on folks in the neighborhood." Neighbors agree. "Most of us moved in from other places for a better way of life, not realizing what was up the road," Barbara Schofield said. "It’s been a source of anger and worry for all of us." The owner of the problem property said neighbors have a right to complain, but he’s not planning to do anything about the problem. In a phone call from his home near San Bernardino, Calif., Myers, a self-described 80-year-old multimillionaire who "may die tomorrow or live another 100 years," said he simply isn’t ready to clean up his Oregon properties. He refused to provide reasons over the phone. Myers claims the extended family who lives at his Schieffelin Gulch home moved in without his permission, as did previous residents. He estimates a cleanup would cost several thousand dollars, but says he won’t do it unless ordered by a court. "It would take a lawsuit. Then I will come up and start my own lawsuits," he said, promising a flurry of countersuits. County officials are exploring laws that could force a cleanup. The county’s building code provides for condemnation of dangerous buildings, but the county has no money to demolish buildings it condemns, Jackson County building official Bob Gilmore said. Owners are responsible for fixing, locking up or destroying condemned buildings. Nuisance laws also include civil procedures that officials or neighbors can use to shut down drug houses and force their cleanup. The state’s drug-lab cleanup laws set out a cleanup process, but don’t include penalties for those who don’t comply, said Tom Mitchell, coordinator of the state’s drug lab cleanup program. Patten said his team is looking into federal property-seizure laws designed to shut down crack houses. Fifteen neighbors met in mid-November to express their concerns and seek answers from Sheriff Mike Winters. Winters vowed not to let the problems continue. He promised to get lawbreakers off the contaminated property and keep them off. "We will pursue this from different angles," he said. "It takes a long time to put this into a package. We’ll keep up the pressure. "This time everything is going to go the way it’s supposed to." Neighbors are cautiously optimistic. They said they feel hopeful now that officials are listening to them and looking for a solution. However, little has changed so far, as the residents of 910 Schieffelin Gulch Road still come and go from the property regularly. One person was arrested for trespassing at the house last week. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4459, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! 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