Oregon Media Insiders

Submitted by OMIwatcher on Wed, 04/23/2008 - 1:55am.

This morning (Tues, 4/22) KINK finally broke its silence about Les Sarnoff's extended absence. After approximately 3 weeks of saying Les was on vacation or saying nothing at all, Dave Scott and Sheila Hamilton did quite the little on-air dance around the subject. They talked about Les taking some time off to address a personal matter, mentioning that it was not health related, and that he had been at the beach with his wife last week trying to figure out some things related to the direction of his life. (All of this is highly paraphrased because I was barely awake.)

It was obvious that poor Dave & Sheila were not very comfortable talking about the situation and they wrapped it up by saying they were excited to hear what direction Les was going to take in life when he returned to the station. So now I guess we just wait to see what's to come and whether Les will actually ever return to the airwaves at KINK.

For anyone who doesn't already know the particulars of the situation, here are a couple of news stories that spell out the details (the KPTV story mentions the defense's position which the Big O doesn't bother to cover).

http://www.oregonlive.com/metrosouth/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/metro_sou...

Trial of KINK radio host ends in hung jury
Sleep aid - Les Sarnoff was accused of Ambien-impaired driving in August
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
JESSICA BRUDER
The Oregonian

OREGON CITY -- At the end of a two-day trial, Clackamas County jurors remained divided Tuesday in the case of Les Sarnoff, a KINK-FM morning show host accused of driving last August under the influence of Ambien, a prescription sleep aid.

Oregon law enforcement authorities said they saw 32 cases of Ambien-impaired driving in 2007.

"It's a huge deal," said Deputy Jason Ritter, a Clackamas County drug recognition expert who helped handle Sarnoff's case. "People are thinking, 'OK, if I take it now, by the time I get home it'll start affecting me, and I'll be able to get to sleep right away.' "

Because of the hung jury, Sarnoff's case will be tried again June 12 in Clackamas County Circuit Court.

According to police, a concerned driver dialed 9-1-1 shortly before 10 p.m. Aug. 30 to report that Sarnoff, 59, of Gresham was swerving on and off the road, narrowly missing a building and an oncoming car before he pulled his Volvo to the side of Southeast 242nd Avenue near Damascus.

The tipster assumed Sarnoff was drunk, but there were no traces of alcohol on the radio host's breath. Instead, Sarnoff told police he'd taken Ambien before trying to drive home from a downtown Portland radio appearance, said Clackamas County sheriff's Deputy Justin Brummett.

"He told me he'd taken it so when he got home he could go right to sleep, because he had to wake up early to go to the radio station," Brummett said.

Sarnoff was so impaired, the deputy said, that he couldn't stand up long enough for a field sobriety test.

State police classify Ambien as a central nervous system depressant, with effects similar to those of alcohol, said Sgt. Timothy Plummer, Oregon's drug evaluation classification coordinator.

Ambien can cause slow reflexes, slurred speech, an unsteady gate, loss of fine motor skills and a decreased ability to process information, Plummer said.

"I don't think the consumer takes to heart the warning label on those prescription medications saying you shouldn't really drive or operate heavy machinery until you know what this does to you," Plummer said.

http://www.kptv.com/news/15829193/detail.html

Jury Hung In Disc Jockey DUII Case

POSTED: 4:05 pm PDT April 8, 2008
UPDATED: 8:23 am PDT April 9, 2008
OREGON CITY, Ore. -- A six-person jury couldn't agree Tuesday afternoon whether a local disc jockey, was impaired by a prescription drug when he was stopped by an officer last October.

Les Sarnoff, of KINK radio, went to the Clackamas County Court Tuesday for final arguments in a case of DUII. The case was regarding whether his driving impacted by the prescription sleeping pill Ambien.

After deliberating for three hours, the foreman told the judge they were a hung jury, and they were dismissed.

The 58-year-old Sarnoff has been a fixture on morning drive radio in Portland for more than 20 years. He admitted to the arresting officer and the jury that he had taken the drug but had expected to be home before it took effect.

"The defendant took a gamble that night. He gambled whether he could get home before the Ambien kicked in, and the defendant lost that bet. I’m asking you to find him guilty of DUII," Deputy District Attorney Kimberly Graves said.

In his closing argument, Sarnoff’s attorney said his client was trying to open a bag of chips as he was driving from downtown to his Gresham home.

"The big factor of this is potato chips," defense lawyer Bill Uhle said. "All of a sudden, (the bag) really opens and it’s all over the inside of the car, which is startling when you’re operating a motor vehicle and could cause you to drive off to the side."

The lawyer said Sarnoff had driven almost all the way home without the Ambien noticeably impeding his driving.

But the prosecutor said the driver who called police witnessed dangerous behavior.

"He’s witnessing the car in front of him that runs off the road into the gravel, and then gets into the oncoming traffic," Graves said.

Sarnoff was previously convicted for DUII in Multnomah County in 2004.

The Clackamas County district attorney may choose to seek a new trial, offer a plea to a lesser charge, or drop the case, but that decision has yet to be announced.