EUGENE — The Oregon Country Fair (OCF) remains one of the most significant events held in rural Lane County, attracting approximately 10,000-15,000 people per day during the second weekend of July. Each year, the Lane County Sheriff’s Office partners with the City of Veneta and OCF staff to help ensure a safe, fun event. This includes additional overtime for deputies to patrol in the city, deputies at each entrance to the fair, and grant-funded overtime for traffic enforcement.
“This year was very calm for law enforcement,” noted Sergeant Tim Wallace, the Public Information Officer for the Lane County Sheriff’s Office. “People are driving safer, and most importantly, not driving while impaired.”
While not a final tally, data for the fair shows that deputies issued warnings for 21 violations and citations for 57 violations. The citations issued included 20 speeding violations, 9 seatbelt violations, 7 for Driving Without Insurance, 7 for Driving While Suspended – violation, and 7 for Driving While Suspended
At least three overdoses were reported in camps outside of OCF; however, none were fatal. Also of note this year, there were only three arrests related to fair events:
On July 5, OCF staff discovered Elijah David Russo, 31, of Elmira, filming adults and juveniles in a shower area with a hidden cell phone. He was escorted off the property by deputies. After investigating, deputies arrested Russo for Encouraging Child Sex Abuse in the 1st Degree and Invasion of Personal Privacy in the 1st Degree.
On July 12, just after midnight, deputies responded to a dispute in Zumwalt County Park, Veneta. After contacting several victims and witnesses, deputies arrested Katie Lynne Kartak, 39, of Gold Bar, Washington, for Assault in the 4th Degree – Felony. During booking at the Lane County Jail, Kartak attempted to injure herself and then injured a deputy who intervened. As a result, she was also charged with Assault on a Public Safety Officer.
On July 13, at approximately 8 p.m., deputies located a vehicle that had reportedly been driving erratically on Suttle Road in Elmira. The driver, Alic Ben Martinez, 31, of Eugene, had a confirmed Eugene Municipal Court warrant for Failure to Appear on a charge of DUI and was arrested.
