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County gets Smith’s medical bills

  • RaeLynn Ricarte
  • Updated

Wasco County Commissioner Scott Hege was “astounded” to learn that almost $250,000 in medical bills for a deceased murder suspect’s brain surgery might have to be paid by local taxpayers. “When I heard that, my jaw hit the floor and I thought, ‘Are you kidding me?’” he said.

Murder suspect Smith dies in jail
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Murder suspect Smith dies in jail

  • RaeLynn Ricarte
  • Updated

Murder suspect Roark David Smith, 53, was found dead in his single-occupancy cell about 5 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 15, by a corrections officer. Wasco County District Attorney Eric Nisley said emergency medical personnel were dispatched to the Northern Oregon Regional Correctional Facilities but Smith was already dead upon their arrival. He said a preliminary investigation has not determined a cause of death but no indication was found of foul play or suicide.