Pendleton Candidate Haunted by Fight at Wiener Dog Races

James Tibbets is a Pendleton entrepreneur who works 16 hours a day building a computer repair business. He wants to be on the city council but his criminal past may get in the way.

Tibbets applied to serve in place of a city council member who stepped down for career reasons. The mayor will choose the replacement from among applicants and the appointee will serve one year.

Something going against Mr. Tibbets's chances is a 2010 arrest for "head-butting a man and using a hateful slur "during the downtown wiener dog races."

Tibbets says he's a changed man and regrets affiliating with a Pendleton gang during that period of his life. He served his time and is a respectable businessman with technical expertise the city would benefit from.