Campsite slaying — A Southern Oregon woman has been indicted on a charge of murder in the slaying of a man whose body was found at a remote campsite. Jacquelyn Kelly Novack, 38, of Murphy, was indicted Friday on charges of murder, tampering with evidence and being a felon in possession of a firearm. She was arrested two weeks ago in Eugene on a probation violation, and the same day authorities discovered the body at a campsite near Sunny Valley. The man’s name has not been released, but court records say he was killed with a gun on Nov. 1. State police say the investigation began three weeks ago when they got a report of a missing person who was believed to be dead.

Medford strike savings — The Medford School District says it saved $725,000 while teachers were on strike for 11 workdays in February. District Chief Financial Officer Brad Earl says the district paid more than $2 million to keep schools open during the strike, but still came out ahead on the budget. Earl reported the figures at Monday night’s school board meeting. The money will be transferred from the district’s general fund to a special revenue fund where it can be used for student-related purchases and facility maintenance projects. The newspaper says student-related purchases include $40,000 in new ovens for South Medford High School’s culinary classroom and $250,000 for 500 Chromebooks for students to use, primarily for online testing. Another $382,000 will go for curriculum software.

Dying bees — The Oregon Department of Agriculture says the thousands of honey bees found dead along Highway 99 in Sherwood may have been hit by cars. Department spokesman Bruce Pokarney says an investigator went to the site Monday and found about 30 commercial hives on a nearby lot with a vacant house. Pokarney says the only dead bees found were along the highway, not around the hives, leading the investigator to think a swarm may have been hit by passing cars. The investigator also sent some of the dead bees to Oregon State University, where an expert will check them for pesticides, disease and parasites.

Gold dredging — Gold miners are not happy with proposed water quality rules related to elevated mercury levels in the Rogue River. Miners at a hearing Monday in Medford said they are being blamed for a problem that is not their fault. Miners added that the suction dredges they use to filter gold from gravel on river bottoms also pick up mercury and remove it. A toxin, mercury is found in nearly all fish, but tests on resident northern pike minnow in the Rogue found levels 10 times higher than state standards. The source is not certain, but could be the soils or old mines. The state is on track to list 216 miles of the Rogue as mercury-impaired, leading to more stringent and expensive permitting for miners.

60 rescued cats — The Oregon Humane Society says nearly 60 cats and kittens that had been living in a Newberg apartment have been rescued and taken to the society’s shelter in Portland. Oregon Humane Society Executive Director Sharon Harmon said Tuesday that the owner gave up the cats after being overwhelmed by their care and feeding needs. Harmon says “life just got immeasurably better” for the 13 kittens and 46 adult cats. They will be examined by a medical team and receive any necessary care.