Man arrested for swinging sword, inhaling drugs at hot springs
BLUE RIVER – At about 11 a.m. on April 20, area deputies and state police troopers were alerted to a report of a disorderly subject swinging a sword around and inhaling nitrous oxide at Terwilliger Hot Springs – also known as Cougar Hot Springs.
Andrew Hamilton Dimmick, 33, of Crawfordsville, left prior to their arrival, but was then observed driving back toward the hot springs. Dimmick also had several warrants for his arrest.
When a Lane County Sheriff’s deputy tried to make a traffic stop, Dimmick eluded the deputy up gravel Forest Service roads to the south. When the road was blocked with downed trees, Dimmick fled on foot. A Sheriff’s K9 and two Eugene Police K9s responded and began searching the area along with a drone. After several hours of searching in difficult terrain, they were unable to locate Dimmick.
Late the next evening on April 21, someone called in a sighting of Dimmick at Terwilliger Hot Springs again. He was reportedly still armed with a sword and was asking for a ride to town. Law enforcement were unable to locate him.
The next morning, on April 22, residents spotted Dimmick in the 91800 block of Mill Creek Road and kept an eye on him until county deputies and state troopers arrived.
Dimmick attempted to hide in a port-a-potty, but surrendered after several minutes. He was arrested without further incident and transported to the Lane County Jail, where he was lodged on a Lane County Circuit Court warrant for Kidnap in the Second Degree, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, and Reckless Endangering. He was also charged for Elude by Vehicle and Elude by Foot from the earlier vehicle pursuit.
Stolen gun recovered after speeding, drug charges lodged
On the evening of April 12, a Lane County Sheriff’s patrol sergeant observed someone traveling at over 90 miles an hour on I-5 near I-105 and conducted a traffic stop. The driver, Marshall David Baskette, 43, showed signs of impairment and admitted to recent drug use, police said, and evidence of narcotics use was observed in the vehicle.
Baskette refused to cooperate with a DUI investigation, and a loaded pistol was found in arms reach of the driver’s seat, in addition to multiple knives on his person. A scan of the firearm came back as “stolen” out of Coos County.
K9 Bear alerted to one of the drugs he is trained to detect inside the vehicle. Deputies applied for a search warrant for Baskette’s blood for DUI, as well as the vehicle for narcotics. The warrant was granted. Inside the vehicle, deputies located three partially-used fentanyl pills, 4.7 grams of powdered fentanyl, $509 in cash, and fake identification.
Baskette was cited for speed and lodged at the Lane County Jail on charges of DUI, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, and Identity Theft. No additional information has been released.
Domestic violence call results in standoff
SPRINGFIELD — Just before 2 p.m. on April 4, Springfield Police Department Officers responded to a domestic violence call at a business in the 2000 block of Main Street. Officers attempted to contact the suspect via his cell phone and loud hails outside of the business. Due to the lack of response and information that the suspect was armed, SPD deployed drones and SWAT assets to the area in addition to support from the Eugene Police Department. The suspect eventually surrendered himself outside of the business and was arrested without further incident. The suspect is lodged at Lane County Jail under charges of Menacing, Unlawful Use of a Weapon, and APA Assault IV.
