Church arson — Police say a fire that damaged a church in Medford was caused by arson. Witnesses told police they saw two males near the Zion Lutheran Church early Friday morning, and one of them threw something that ignited the big cross in front. Firefighters found the cross and surrounding bushes fully engulfed in flames. The flames spread to an attic, but fire crews say the building is not a total loss. Arson was also blamed for a fire before dawn Friday at a vacant house being remodeled.

Pay-per-signature fine — An administrative law judge has affirmed a $65,000 penalty against the chief petitioner of a ballot measure who was accused of breaking Oregon law by paying signature gatherers based on the number of names they collected. A voter-approved measure in 2002 makes it illegal to pay petition circulators for each name they collect. Supporters of that measure said the payment system encourages workers to fake signatures. The secretary of state’s office levied the fine a year ago against Robert Wolfe, the chief petitioner for a pot-legalization effort that never made the ballot.

Hate mail plea — An Oregon man who sent threatening messages to college professors has pleaded guilty to a federal charge. The Register-Guard newspaper reports 29-year-old Zachary Moitoza entered the plea this week and will be sentenced in October. The Eugene man studied at the University of Oregon from 2005 until 2007 and earned a degree. Last year, he sent hate email to a UO professor in which he also claimed to have an assault rifle. According to court records, an email message read: “I could easily pick you off from hundreds of meters away. I’m coming for you.”

River disappearance — A Clackamas County sheriff’s spokesman says the Clackamas River search for a young woman rafter has become a recovery effort. KATU-TV reports the woman was rafting Friday when she got off her raft to swim and disappeared in the river. Search crews from the sheriff’s office and nearby fire agencies responded with divers and boats. Deputies say the woman was not wearing a life jacket. She was not immediately identified.

— From wire reports