Answer me this Homegrown mermaid Not-too-serious questions for Collette Remsen may be coming to our local candidates a pool near you — See LO, Inside — See NEIGHBORS, B1 THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2012 • ONLINE AT LAKEOSWEGOREVIEW.COM • VOLUME 99, NO. 43 • 75 CENTS Attorneys Pacers celebrate homecoming Meiser no debate state role longer a white in lake supremacist, access case attorney says Procedural issue Suspect faces six counts holds up federal of aggravated murder in lawsuit LO home-invasion case By KARA HANSEN MURPHEY The Review By KARA HANSEN MURPHEY The Review Attorneys defending the city against a federal lawsuit Erik John Meiser, accused in the brutal that could open up public ac- murder of a retired Lake Oswego man Sept. cess to Oswego Lake urged a 17, no longer fancies himself a white su- judge to dismiss the case in premacist or neo-Nazi, his attorneys said court this week. Friday, when he was ar- REVIEW PHOTO: VERN UYETAKE About 15 people attended the raigned in Clackamas County Lakeridge High School celebrated homecoming last week and Pacer spirit was sky high. The marching band put in extra hearing before U.S. District Circuit Court. practices to prepare for the parade and the halftime entertainment. Pictured marching down A Avenue are, from left, Danny Judge Ancer L. Haggerty in a Meiser, 37, who appeared on a Shapiro, Nick Abbot in front, Caleb Warden and Greg Conan. For more pictures of the Pacer homecoming activities turn to downtown Portland courtroom. live video feed from Clackamas The hearing was the latest page A17 in today’s Education section. County Jail, is accused of killing development in a case pitting Frederick “Fritz” Hayes, 57, a the city government against recently retired high-tech engi- Todd Prager, a Lake Oswego neer and longtime Lake Oswego planning commissioner and ar- resident. borist, and Mark Kramer, a He faces six counts of aggra- MEISER Portland attorney. The two, vated murder, two counts of both enthusiasts of recreation fi rst-degree robbery and one count each of fi rst- on the water, fi led the lawsuit Big push set for Stafford and second-degree burglary. He is being held in May, contending their con- without bail. stitutional rights were violated His attorneys said they weren’t prepared to when the city restricted access enter a plea on his behalf last week. to Oswego Lake from its parks. “We’re very concerned about his mental con- They have questioned how pathway completion dition,” said Jenny Cooke, who is representing the lake can be private when Meiser with Robert Huggins. Oregon has sovereign rights to She added that she is worried the communi- land underlying bodies of wa- Columbia Land Trust ty’s perception of Meiser’s background could ter. Regardless of ownership of threaten his right to a fair trial. She counted the lakebed, a 2005 attorney plans celebration Oct. 11 more than 230 mentions of his case on the Inter- general opinion said the public at Oswego Hills Winery net that referred to him as a self-proclaimed is allowed to use lakes and riv- white supremacist or noted a tattoo spelling ers so long as the water is deep By CLIFF NEWELL “NAZI” across the knuckles of his left hand. and wide enough to boat in. The Review But Meiser is now married to a Jewish wom- But the Lake Oswego Corpo- an, and they’re raising their children in the Jew- ration, or Lake Corp., has long The completion of the new Staf- ish faith, Cooke said. During the hearing, she managed the lake, working to ford Basin Trail between Luscher asked Meiser to show the backs of his hands to maintain water quality and en- Farm and West Linn is so close the courtroom. sure users are safe on the wa- that it is time to celebrate. “The tattoos have been inked over,” Cooke ter on behalf of lakefront prop- But it is also time to make a fi nal said afterward. “They’ve been inked over since erty owners. Lake homeowners push for a project that has been a re- 2003.” pay hefty dues so the corpora- markable example of public spirit at She declined to say where the wife and chil- tion can keep the water clear of work. dren live. invasive species and algae Columbia Land Trust, which A federal court document fi led during a na- blooms. Several were present merged with Three Rivers Land Con- tionwide manhunt revealed a few new details at the hearing Monday. servancy of Lake Oswego, will hold a about the alleged killer. Attorneys Paul Conable and party on Oct. 11 at Oswego Hills Win- Meiser has family ties in California, Colorado, Steven Olson of Tonkon Torp, ery from 5 to 7 p.m. Nevada, Minnesota and Utah, according to an representing the city, suggest- “It has been a challenge to raise REVIEW PHOTO: VERN UYETAKE affi davit fi led by the FBI. Investigators discov- ed the case would be diffi cult to the last amount. We’re in the age Debbie Craig, left, walks along the new pathway with Janye Cronlund and her ered that Meiser had a wife, Kiva, and two chil- resolve without a debate over where government can’t step in and daughter, Rose O’Neill. Craig was on the board of Three Rivers Land Conservancy of dren in Oak Park, Calif., when speaking with an who owns the lake or the do things like it used to do,” said Lake Oswego. Cronlund was the executive director of Three Rivers when the path aunt in Minnesota. Apparently he had been call- lakebed. That could lead to Glenn Lamb, executive director of was fi rst planned 12 years ago. ing his aunt almost daily, including on Sept. 20, questions about navigability, Columbia Land Trust. “The pathway when authorities announced they had obtained the natural lake’s historical wouldn’t have happened without a between Columbia Land Trust, the the lake,” Minor said. a warrant for his arrest. size compared to its larger, grassroots citizens effort. This a clas- city of Lake Oswego, the city of West When Minor starts something, he She described telling her nephew she was dam-controlled size and more. sic example of individuals stepping Linn and Clackamas County — plus fi nishes it. “afraid for him,” worrying he’d end up shot and The state isn’t named in the forward and meeting a need and fi g- people like contractor Jay Minor, “I’m a contractor who likes to see killed. She told investigators that Meiser was lawsuit, even though address- uring out how to make it happen. who is praised by Lamb for devoting things built,” he said. “I like to perse- not estranged from his wife, who attempted to ing issues of ownership could We’ve gotten donations, sold bricks so much of his time and expertise vere until the end. The progress so call a police tip line on Sept. 21, according to lead to the imposition of obliga- and received several multi-year over the past 10 years. Minor has far has been exciting, but there’s court records. tions on state agencies, Con- pledges.” lived in the Stafford area for 20 years, been a lot of frustration.” Meiser was arrested at gunpoint Sept. 22 out- able said. The effort has been a great suc- and he has long seen the need for a Although it is not yet complete, the side of a Super 8 motel in Corvallis. “By asking us to answer as a cess, raising $500,000. But $125,000 pathway that would be convenient for Stafford Basin Trail is being put to He has a criminal history stretching back predicate to this determina- still needs to be raised to complete hikers and bikers and also help good use. years and crossing 10 states, according to the tion,” he said, “the damage is the project, and event organizers be- youngsters enjoy the greenspace “A lot of people are already walk- Clackamas County Sheriff’s Offi ce, which led already done.” lieve a celebration is the best way to around Luscher Farm. ing and running on it,” said Debbie the investigation. get the word out. “I had to drive my teenage daugh- See ACCESS / Page A5 The pathway has been a joint effort ter into Lake Oswego to jog around See TRAIL / Page A5 See SUSPECT / Page A5 Stewards side with city against Metro appeal ■ Challenge By KARA HANSEN MURPHEY 2009 in opposition to the way the city identi- make reasonable use of their land,” he said. Despite the warning, councilors Mike Ke- The Review fi es properties for inclusion in its sensitive The city council has been working for a hoe, Jeff Gudman, Mary Olson and Bill Tier- involves lands program, which aims to protect natural couple of years to tweak the sensitive lands ney supported the change, while councilors scaled-back Citizens for Stewardship of Lake Oswe- resources by setting limits on development program, in place since the late 1990s. Sally Moncrieff and Donna Jordan and Mayor rules on go Lands has fi led a motion to intervene and land use near waterways and groups of In addition to scaling back some of the Jack Hoffman were opposed. in the appeal of the city’s decision to re- trees. tighter restrictions in 2010, the city council “It’s the citizens and their property values certain move special protections from a handful In a public announcement about joining agreed to consider changes that would re- and rights that we need to consider above sensitive of tree groves.