Two fence-jumping surfers from Cottage Grove are the first people to be cited by Lincoln County Sheriff’s deputies for disregarding a COVID-19 park closure in order to reach the beach.
Deputies received calls about 1:30 p.m. Monday from residents in the Otter Rock area that two men had ignored a closed park sign, jumped a chain-link fence and then passed over their surfboards to go to the beach.
Two hours later a deputy observed two young men climbing back over the fence who matched the earlier description from neighbors. Patrol Sgt. Rick Ballentine said deputies have been regularly patrolling the Otter Rock access area because of increased reports of trespassing on public and private property.
Federal, state and county access points along the beach have been closed since late March because of Oregon and Lincoln County orders related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Deputies cited Max Gause, 20, and Konnor Owens, 19, both of Cottage Grove, for second-degree criminal trespass.
The sheriff’s office has taken an “education first” attitude toward people parking at or using closed access points, Ballentine said. Monday’s citations were the first citations issued to people refusing to obey closure signs.
“These guys just took it way past everybody else,” Ballentine said. “Everybody else we were able to talk to.”
“Where education has had some positive impact on most, this incident was an example of individuals openly disregarding a closed and barricaded area as well as warnings from a nearby resident,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.