October 13, 2026

Good morning Douglas County! Here are today's updates live from the Roseburg Receiver Communications Center.

Fire Weather Forecast for southern Oregon and northern California National Weather Service Medford, OR | 544 AM PDT Tue Oct 13 2026

Dry weather with a warming trend is expected Tuesday through Friday with continued east flow producing periods of moderate to poor ridgetop recoveries. Temperatures will be unusually warm Thursday and Friday. Slight cooling is possible this weekend with a good chance of rain next week.

Douglas Forest Protective Association

US Forest Service - Umpqua National Forest

Today's Scheduled Prescribed Burns

• None scheduled at this time

LOOKINGGLASS, Ore. - A Lookingglass man is facing a second-degree murder charge after deputies found another man dead with multiple gunshot wounds at a property on Lookingglass Road Sunday, according to the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office.

The investigation began shortly after 3:45 p.m. October 11, when 57-year-old Matthew William Bronsert called 911 requesting assistance at a residence in the 7000 block of Lookingglass Road. Authorities said Bronsert lived in an outbuilding on the property.

Deputies who responded worked to persuade Bronsert to come outside and speak with them. He emerged from the residence at 5:53 p.m. and allegedly attempted to assault a deputy before being taken into custody.

According to the sheriff’s office, deputies noticed blood on Bronsert’s clothing and conducted a welfare check on another man at the property. Inside the main residence, they found an adult man dead with multiple gunshot wounds.

The victim’s name is being withheld until his next of kin have been notified.

Investigators said Bronsert later admitted during questioning that he had shot the victim. He was lodged in the Douglas County Jail on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon.

The Douglas County Major Crimes Team is leading the investigation. Authorities said there is no ongoing threat to the public.

The team includes investigators from the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, Roseburg Police Department, and Oregon State Police, working in consultation with the Douglas County District Attorney’s Office. Lookingglass Rural Fire District, Umpqua Valley Ambulance, and the Sutherlin and Winston police departments also assisted.

The investigation remains active, and authorities said no additional details are expected to be released at this time. Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at 541-440-4458 and reference case number 26-3196.

ROSEBURG, Ore. - Questions about privacy, cybersecurity, and police use of Roseburg’s Flock cameras led to a lengthy City Council discussion Monday night, but a proposal to temporarily suspend the camera contracts while councilors gathered more information received no second.

Councilor Zack Weiss made the motion after Police Chief Gary Klopfenstein’s presentation and public testimony. He proposed having the council consider temporarily suspending the contracts until more information was available. No other councilor seconded it, so the motion died without a vote.

The council later voted 6-2 to approve Councilor Ellen Porter’s motion to revisit Flock at the next meeting, request additional information from Klopfenstein, and continue the discussion. The next regular meeting is scheduled for October 26.

The cameras remain in use. Neither motion called for renewing the contract, and the council did not approve a suspension or cancellation.

Police Outline the System’s Role

Klopfenstein told councilors that Flock gives a short-staffed department investigative leads in cases involving stolen vehicles, burglaries, shootings, and missing or endangered people.

Roseburg has 15 fixed automatic license plate recognition cameras along routes entering and leaving the city. The chief said they are not installed in neighborhoods. They photograph the rear of passing vehicles and record license plates, vehicle characteristics, the location, and the date and time.

He described two ways officers use the system. License plates are automatically checked against records that can generate alerts involving stolen vehicles, missing people, AMBER Alerts, and other specified categories. Officers can also search recorded vehicle information during criminal investigations or missing-person cases.

Alerts from the regional camera network go to Douglas County dispatch, which can send officers to look for a vehicle. Klopfenstein emphasized that an alert is an investigative lead. Officers still have to evaluate the information and establish legal grounds for a stop or other enforcement action.

The chief cited a December 2025 ATM theft as one example. He said camera information helped investigators identify a suspect vehicle, trace it to a rental agency near Portland International Airport, and obtain additional records through subpoenas that helped identify suspects from Houston, Texas.

An earlier ATM theft had stalled without sufficient leads, he said.

Klopfenstein also described two burglaries at J&J Market in which officers found the same vehicle passing cameras near Southgate around the time of both incidents. That information led investigators to the vehicle’s owner and ultimately to a driver who confessed, according to the chief.

Other examples included a Highland Street shooting investigation, a Hometown Drug burglary, and the recovery of a stolen utility trailer. He also discussed missing-person and kidnapping investigations, including a 14-year-old girl located in Washington and an elderly kidnapping victim found in Roseburg.

His argument for retaining the cameras centered on their ability to give investigators another lead when other avenues have been exhausted.

Questions About Access, Storage, and Oversight

Much of the council’s questioning focused on what happens to the information after a camera records it.

Klopfenstein said access is limited to authorized police department personnel and community resource officers, with multifactor authentication required. Searches must be connected to a criminal investigation or missing-person case and require a police report number or dispatch incident number.

The system records who conducted a search, when it occurred, what was searched, and the stated reason. The chief said he conducts monthly audits, that the department has had no misuse of the system, and that misuse could result in discipline up to termination.

He described Oregon Senate Bill 1516 as setting requirements for use, retention, sharing, and auditing. The agenda packet states that the law generally limits retention to 30 days, with exceptions for information related to an ongoing criminal investigation or court proceeding.

Porter asked whether information deleted from the main system could remain in a backup. Weiss raised a similar question about cloud storage and how the city could confirm that no additional copies were retained.

Klopfenstein said the department’s understanding of deletion was based on Flock’s representations and applicable requirements.

Weiss also questioned the chief’s comparison between Flock’s security and the security of police computers. He asked whether that comparison accounted for differences between locally stored information and data held by a cloud provider.

Klopfenstein pointed to criminal justice security requirements as the basis for his comparison, while acknowledging that he did not know all the details of the cloud infrastructure.

The discussion also covered whether software updates could expand the cameras’ capabilities. Weiss questioned whether equipment purchased for one purpose could later detect or record other information through changes to its software.

Porter asked whether Roseburg’s cameras could photograph people or record video. Klopfenstein said the system focuses on vehicles and license plates. He said Flock had offered video-capable cameras, but he declined to add them.

Porter suggested the city could consider putting some limits into an ordinance so those protections would extend beyond decisions made by an individual police chief.

Data Sharing and Privacy Remain Points of Disagreement

Klopfenstein said Roseburg currently shares its camera information with 22 Oregon agencies and does not provide routine access to federal agencies, out-of-state agencies, or private entities.

Assistance outside that network requires specific administrative approval and documentation, he said. He also said the system cannot be used for immigration or reproductive-care searches.

Porter wanted more information about which agencies might leave the network when their contracts expire. She questioned whether a list of current sharing partners gives the council a clear picture of the system’s future regional usefulness.

The chief said he knew which agencies currently shared with Roseburg but did not know every agency’s contract plans. He said Winston was considering leaving for budget reasons, although its cameras remained functioning, and that Douglas County’s cameras were also functioning.

At Porter’s request, Klopfenstein agreed to try to obtain more information from Flock about agencies planning to discontinue the service.

Weiss challenged whether the presentation gave councilors enough information about concerns beyond the cameras’ usefulness to police. He argued that the council needed to examine potential consequences alongside examples of successful investigations.

Klopfenstein said residents he had spoken with generally supported the cameras as a public safety tool. Weiss responded that the objections he had heard extended beyond the Fourth Amendment concerns addressed in the presentation.

The chief cited a Ninth Circuit decision concerning the lack of a reasonable expectation of privacy in a publicly visible license plate. Several public speakers questioned whether that addresses the broader issue of collecting vehicle movements and making them searchable over time.

Police described the cameras as recording information an officer could observe on a public road. Opponents argued that compiling those observations into a database creates a different level of surveillance, including records of people who were not suspected of a crime when their vehicles were photographed.

Residents Urge Removal or Stronger Safeguards

Several public commenters urged the city to end its use of Flock. Their concerns included the collection of innocent drivers’ movements, misuse of access, inaccurate alerts, cybersecurity, and the city’s ability to oversee a private company handling the information.

Speakers cited incidents and reporting from other jurisdictions to question whether Roseburg’s restrictions adequately protect residents. Some argued that local rules would not fully address risks elsewhere in the system.

One commenter read correspondence attributed to U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden concerning privacy protections, access to Oregon data, and cybersecurity. Porter requested a copy for council review.

She also asked another speaker to submit written technical information so it could be distributed to councilors.

Andrew Green, speaking remotely, supported using the technology with stronger safeguards. He discussed restrictions on historical searches, short retention periods, independent audits, public reporting, and consequences for misuse.

The meeting did not settle the competing legal and technical claims raised by police, councilors, and public speakers.

Council Agrees to Continue the Discussion

After Weiss’s temporary suspension proposal received no second, Porter asked that Flock return to the agenda. Following a brief procedural exchange, she formally moved to bring it back at the next meeting and request additional information from the chief.

Councilor Shelley Briggs Loosley urged councilors to provide specific questions, noting that Klopfenstein is handling two jobs. Mayor Larry Rich stressed that information presented to the council needs to be checked for accuracy.

Weiss agreed, saying that expectation should also apply to technical claims in the department’s presentation. Porter suggested inviting a Flock representative to answer questions about the equipment, software updates, and optional features.

Her motion passed 6-2.

According to the agenda packet, Roseburg’s current two-year contract costs $75,000 and expires February 20, 2028. Klopfenstein told councilors that Flock had advised him the city would remain responsible for contractual payments even if it stopped using the cameras.

The council will revisit the issue with additional information. Weiss’s proposed temporary pause did not advance to a vote.

ROSEBURG, Ore. - The Roseburg City Council will consider whether to restructure or dissolve its Homeless Commission after councilors questioned how responsibilities have moved between the two bodies and whether that process is helping the city make progress.

Councilor Zack Weiss raised the issue near the end of Monday’s meeting, saying requests involving plans, properties, and meetings repeatedly return to the council. He described responsibility as being passed back and forth and argued that councilors should take a more direct role.

Weiss moved to have the council consider restructuring or dissolving the commission. Mayor Larry Rich clarified that the motion would schedule discussion at a future meeting, rather than dissolve the commission immediately.

The motion received a second and passed, placing the commission’s future on the agenda for discussion at a later meeting.

The commission remains in place, and the council did not approve a replacement structure or set a dissolution date.

Councilors Question the Division of Responsibility

Weiss said his experience over the past two years had left him questioning whether the current arrangement was productive. He argued that if the council ultimately must make the decisions and carry out the work, it should accept that responsibility rather than continue sending requests between the two bodies.

Councilor Ellen Porter said the discussion reflected frustrations the council had encountered before. She expressed concern that lessons from earlier efforts could be lost as newly elected councilors take office.

Porter said the council has looked to the commission to gather information and help move work forward, only to have issues return to council. She urged councilors to retain responsibility and suggested additional work sessions to develop policies and potential campground rules.

She also criticized the pace of the city’s response to homelessness, describing years of limited progress.

Rich offered a different account of the commission’s work. He reminded councilors that responsibility for identifying a campsite had already shifted to the council after commission members encountered difficulties taking on that role.

He also said the commission had developed a policy proposal that councilors declined to pursue without fully discussing its options. From the commission’s perspective, he said, that left members needing clearer direction about what the council wanted them to do.

Rich urged councilors not to place responsibility for those decisions solely on the commission.

Earlier Campground Work Becomes Part of the Debate

The discussion included differing recollections of previous assignments involving campground policies.

Rich initially referred to time, place, and manner regulations. After Porter questioned that reference, he corrected himself and said he was discussing the earlier proposal involving private campgrounds.

Porter distinguished that proposal from rules for a potential urban campground. She said the commission had declined to work on urban campground policies that some councilors wanted in place before considering a site.

Rich maintained that the council’s rejection of the earlier proposal helped explain why commission members were seeking more specific direction.

Despite those differences, Weiss, Porter, and Rich agreed that the council bears responsibility for decisions about a potential campsite and the city’s next steps.

Weiss said the council should stop passing responsibility back and forth and begin determining how it will proceed. Porter supported keeping that work at the council level, with further sessions to develop policies.

Monday’s vote puts the commission’s future before the council for another discussion. It does not establish whether councilors will change its duties, replace it with a different arrangement, or dissolve it. No date for that discussion was specified.

YONCALLA, Ore. - Authorities have identified Carol Lorrain Most, 56, as the woman who died Sunday, October 11, in a house fire on Birch Street.

The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said Most’s remains were found inside the residence after firefighters brought the blaze under control. Her family has been notified, and the Douglas County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene.

A second person who was in the home escaped. The American Red Cross and ADAPT Mobile Crisis Team provided assistance to the surviving occupant.

The fire was reported shortly after 10 a.m. in the 100 block of Birch Street. The home was fully engulfed when the call came in, prompting a response from deputies and several emergency agencies.

During firefighting efforts, responders learned that Most was unaccounted for and feared she was still inside. Crews knocked down the fire shortly after 2:20 p.m., and her remains were located later.

The Oregon State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating where the fire began and what caused it.

A project to build fuel breaks along Lane Mountain, the Little River drainage, and Cavitt Creek will receive $1.29 million from the Oregon Department of Forestry as part of a broader effort to reduce wildfire risk.

The Little River Landscape Resiliency Project in Douglas County is one of three projects sharing $10 million in state funding announced Oct. 12. Together, the projects cover more than 6,400 acres in Douglas, Grant, Jackson, and Josephine counties.

ODF said the Douglas County work will improve access for firefighters and help reduce wildfire intensity in high-risk areas. Fuel breaks create areas with less vegetation available to burn, giving crews more options when responding to a fire.

The awards support Oregon’s 20-year landscape resiliency strategy, which coordinates work across public, private, and Tribal lands. Depending on local conditions, that work can include thinning crowded forests, removing brush, using prescribed fire, or planting trees better suited to the site.

“Every responsibly managed acre helps reduce wildfire risk around communities and improves the long-term health of Oregon’s forests and rangelands,” said Josh Barnard, ODF’s Forest Resources Division chief.

The largest award, $4.85 million, will fund the Hotshot Rx Connect project in Jackson and Josephine counties. Crews will thin forest stands and conduct prescribed burns across nearly 2,700 acres, with the goal of reducing hazardous fuels, improving forest health, and keeping access routes available for wildfire response.

In Grant County, the John Day Landscape Resiliency Project will receive $3.46 million for work across 3,400 acres. Plans include forest thinning, removing junipers that compete with other trees for water, and developing longer-term wildfire risk reduction plans. A recent 57-acre prescribed burn near Monument provides an example of the collaborative work underway in that area.

ODF also pointed to treatments near Black Butte Ranch as an example of how forest management can help during a wildfire. Before the Akawa Butte Fire reached the area this summer, partners had thinned ponderosa pine stands and cleared roadside brush through the Central Oregon Shared Stewardship Project.

Jenna Nelson, ODF’s state initiatives grant coordinator, said those treatments gave firefighters safer places to work along roads and allowed crews to begin backburning without first clearing additional vegetation. She said treated areas burned less intensely, leaving more trees alive and improving the forest’s chances of recovery.

Along with the physical work, the new funding will support planning among state and federal agencies, local partners, and landowners to identify priority areas for future projects.

Landowners and organizations interested in participating in future landscape resiliency projects can contact their local ODF office. Information about earlier projects is available through ODF’s Landscape Resiliency Program website.

Limited Time Events

• Wellness Walk | Every Saturday Through September | 9am at the Thrive Umpqua office in Roseburg (556 SE Jackson)
• 2026 Umpqua Plein Air Exhibit: an exhibit celebrating the Umpqua Valley @​ Umpqua Valley Arts | August 22 - October 23 | 10 am - 6 pm | Link
• Fall Festival & Pumpkin Patch @ The Farmstand by Lehne Farms | September 26 - October 31 | Every Saturday of October | Link
• I Spy Fall in Roseburg - Week 2 | October 8 - October 14th | Link
• Fall Festival & Pumpkin Patch @ The Farmstand by Lehne Farms | September 26 - October 31st | 9 am - 5 pm every Saturday | Link
• Time Warped @​ The Rose Theatre at Roseburg High School | October 8 - 18th | 7 pm | Link
• I Spy Fall in Roseburg - Week 3 | October 15 - October 21 | Link

Monday, October 12th

• DJ Trivia Night @ Workman's Bar & Smokehouse | 7 pm
• Open Mic Night @ Little Brothers Pub | 6 - 8 pm
• Celebrate Recovery | Westside Christian Church | Dinner at 5:30, Large group at 6:30.
• Monday Night Auxiliary Bingo | Winston VFW | 4:30 pm | must have papers by 5:30, $17 for all games.
• Candidates in Focus | Douglas County Fairgrounds | Registration at www.roseburgchamber.com. Live stream in the Roseburg Receiver Facebook group.

Tuesday, October 13th

• Bingo @ Roseburg Elks Lodge #326 | 6:30 pm
• DJ Bingo @ Workman's Bar and Smokehouse | 6 pm
• DJ Trivia @ Urban NY Pizza & Grill | 7 pm
• Free Line Dancing Lessons - Elements Lounge @ Seven Feathers Casino Resort | Every week on Tuesday | 7 - 9 pm | Link
• Open Mic Night @ Kodiak Bar & Grill | Every week on Tuesday @ 6 - 8 pm
• Tuesdays! Free Line Dancing Lessons at Elements Lounge in Seven Feathers Casino Resort | 7 - 9 pm | Link
• Celebrate Recovery | Winston Assembly of God | Dinner at 5:30, Large group at 6:30.
• Homeschool Day | Riddle City Library | 2 pm

Wednesday, October 14th

• DJ Trivia @ Backside Brewing Co. | 6 - 7:30 pm
• Karaoke/Open Mic Night @ Idle Hour Tavern | 9 pm - 12:30 am
• Open Mic at Brix | Every Wednesday | 6 - 8 pm
• Trivia Night @​ Lookingglass Brewery | 6 - 9 pm
• Trivia Night @​ Little Brothers Pub | 6 pm
• Bingo @ Roseburg Senior Center | (Every Wed and Fri) - Doors Open at 5 pm, starts at 6:30 pm. Food available. Ages 7+.
• Celebrate Recovery | Redeemers (Old movie theater) | Dinner at 5:30, Large group at 6:30.
• Wednesday Night Karaoke with Mr. Michael | Winston VFW | 5 - 9 pm| 21+
• Group Meet - Knitting of Any Kind | Studio Arts Connection (1350 NE Stephens, Roseburg) | 1 - 3:30 pm | Knitting, crochet, hand quilting felting spinning, etc
• Canyonville Farmer's Market | Wednesdays from 9:30 am - 1:30 pm at Seven Feathers Casino Parking Lot | May - October
• Sycophant Waltz Into Samhain Tour: Regal Nonchalant, State Alchemist @ The Rosebud Theatre | 6 - 10 pm | Link

Thursday, October 15th

• DJ Trivia @ North Forty Beer Company | 7 - 8:30 pm
• Karaoke Night @ Workman's Bar and Smokehouse | 9 pm - 12 am
• Karaoke Night at Kodiak | Every Thursday and Saturday | 8 pm
• DJ Bingo @ Brix Bar & Grill | 7 - 9 pm
• Thirsty Thursday Cornhole Night @ Lookingglass Brewery | Every week on Thursday | 6 - 8 pm | Link
• Al-Anon Meeting in Oakland (Weekly) | Oakland Ice House - 212 Lucust St | 2 - 3 PM
• Preschool Story time | Riddle City Library | 2 pm

Friday, October 16th

• Friday Pizzas! @ Reustle-Prayer Rock Vineyards | 12 - 4 pm
• Karaoke Night @ Winchester Pub & Grill | 8 - 11 pm
• Kick Up the Dust - Line Dancing Lessons @ Workman's Bar & Smokehouse | 7 - 8 pm
• Bingo @ Roseburg Senior Center | (Every Wed and Fri) - Doors Open at 5 pm, starts at 6:30 pm. Food available. Ages 7+.
• Karaoke Night at Kodiak | Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday | 8 pm
• Friday Night Live Music | Winston VFW
• Group Meet - Open Painting Watercolor and Small Acrylic | Studio Arts Connection (1350 NE Stephens, Roseburg) | 1 - 3:30 PM
• The Ghosts of Roseburg Past: Historic Walking Tours | October 16, 17, 23, 35, & 30th | 7 pm | Link
• Oakland Ghost Tours | October 16 & 17 | 7 pm | Link
• Live Music: Patterns Fly @​ The Rosebud Theatre | 6 pm

Saturday, October 17th

• Umpqua Valley Farmers Market | 9 am - 1 pm | SE Jackson St | Link
• Roseburg Saturday Farmers Market | 2525 W Harvard Ave | 9 am - 2:30 pm | Link
• Karaoke Night @​ Brix Bar & Grill | (Every Saturday) @ 7 - 10 pm
• Karaoke Night @ Lookingglass Brewery | 6 - 8 pm | Link
• Karaoke Night at Kodiak | Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday | 8 pm
• Saturday Night Karaoke with DJ Dan | Winston VFW | 5 - 9 pm | 21+
• The Ghosts of Roseburg Past: Historic Walking Tours | October 16, 17, 23, 35, & 30th | 7 pm | Link
• Boos & Brews @ Wildlife Safari | 7 - 10 pm | Link
• Live Music: Rockwork Orange @ Lookingglass Brewery | 6 - 8 pm | Link
• Thrive Umpqua Park Pop-Up Series | 12 - 2 pm | Link
• Oakland Ghost Tours | October 16 & 17 | 7 pm | Link
• Zombie 5k Run/Walk | Stewart Park in Roseburg | 9am
• Live Music: Matt Pond PA, Bathtub Cig @​ The Rosebud Theatre | 6 pm
• Live Music: Austin Gilbert @​ Workman's Bar & Smokehouse | 9 pm
• Live Music: Dylan James Clark @​ Two Shy Brewing | 6:30 - 8:30 pm

Sunday, October 18th

• Harvest Party @ Bar Run Golf & RV Resort | 11 am | Link
• Live Music: Lightweight Champion, Widespread Haze @​ The Rosebud Theatre | 5 pm
• Jackpot Bingo @​ Lookingglass Brewery | 11 am - 1 pm

• We now have 24,582 Facebook group members!! Thank you all so much for being here!
• There is now an opportunity to advertise your local business with The Roseburg Receiver! If your company is interested, please email info@theroseburgreceiver.com. Your ad will be featured in The Roseburg Scoop emails, videos, website, and much more.

The Roseburg Receiver is powered by the community. If you have local news, helpful information, an incident update, or an upcoming event to share, please email us at info@theroseburgreceiver.com so others can stay informed.

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• Protect privacy: For public safety or incident-related posts, please do not share personal or identifying information (names, addresses, license plates, etc.). Event posts, community announcements, and press releases may include names when appropriate.
• Safety first: Never post while driving

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That is the scoop for this Tuesday morning. Have a great day!

- The Roseburg Receiver Team