COP STATS <<Portland police have responded to fewer calls and made fewer arrests in the past five years but have used force in a higher percentage of the arrests, new data shows. The more frequent use of force likely stems from police focusing on more serious crimes, in part because of reduced staffing, said city-hired …
Category Archives: News and Analysis
4/16/2023 News Roundup
POLICE UNION <<Brian Hunzeker, the one-time president of the Portland Police Association who resigned over a false leak concerning then-Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, was placed on leave Saturday by the Clark County Sheriff’s Office, two days after resigning from PPB. Hunzeker was fired by Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler over the false leak that linked Hardesty …
4/15/2023 News Roundup
SCHOOL RACISM <<New data is revealing some concerning results regarding disciplinary action within Portland Public Schools. School leaders said the research shows students of color are disproportionately impacted and they’re also seeing an uptick in hate speech. The discussion at the Prophet Center centered around how to create an environment of belonging to transform culture …
4/14/2023 News Roundup
STATE COPS <<Governor Tina Kotek has directed Oregon State Police to assist the Portland Police Bureau to push back against increasingly frequent instances of street racing and street takeovers in the city.>> <<Street takeovers and street racing have become an increasingly frequent and visible problem in Portland in recent years, drawing concerns about the disruptive …
4/13/2023 News Roundup
ARMED CAMPUS COPS <<There’s mixed reaction from the community after Portland State University’s announced that they’re rearming campus police. The decision to disarm campus officers came after years of protest that really picked up after the death of Jason Washington at the hands of PSU police.>> <<Jason’s death had re-energized protests calling to disarm PSU …
4/8/2023 News Roundup
GUN SQUAD <<The Portland Police Bureau says two people have been taken into custody in connection to a February shooting in SE Portland. Officers responded Feb. 7 to the 8100 Block of Southeast Knight Street on reports of shots fired. While officers didn’t find any victims, the 911 caller reported believing someone may have been …
4/7/2023 News Roundup
SHOOTING <<A Lane County deputy shot and killed a man during a disturbance in Eugene Thursday night. Just before midnight, deputies were called to the report of a combative and intoxicated man at a home on Fisher Road, according to the Lane County Sheriff’s Office. The man was holding what appeared to be a handgun …
4/6/2023 News Roundup
THE FASH << A Battle Ground man who took selfie-style photos with his son during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021 pleaded guilty to a single count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds. Jeff Grace, 64, appeared by Zoom for Monday’s plea hearing before Judge Randolph Moss in the U.S. …
4/1/2023 News Roundup
HOMELESSNESS <<Many of Portland’s least fortunate live in tents pitched on sidewalks or in aging campers parked in small convoys behind grocery stores. High housing costs and financial adversity are the primary root causes behind the burgeoning population on the streets; only about one in three people who are homeless in Portland report having a …
3/31/2023 News Roundup
SWATTING <<U.S. authorities on Thursday said they arrested a Washington state man who made more than 20 “swatting” calls around the country and in Canada, prompting real emergency responses to his fake reports of bombs, shootings or other threats. Ashton Connor Garcia, 20, of Bremerton, used voice-over-internet technology to conceal his identity as he placed …