News Roundup May 26 - June 2, 2024

Public defender crisis continues, ambulance crisis continues, City Council funds riot control equipment

At a glance:

• The public defender shortage continues to lead to the release of alleged criminals into the community. KPTV

• City Council approved $1 million for PPB riot control shields, munitions, and training. Oregonian

• A woman bled out while waiting 30 minutes for an ambulance after an accident at Benson High School; she later died in hospital. Her death is a tragic reminder of the grim consequences of Multnomah County's failure to provide timely ambulance service. Despite some improvement, the staffing crisis is at least a year from being resolved.

Reports released this week:

• BOEC 2023 Year in Review (not sure if this is a new report or just newly listed on the web)

• BOEC has a new public data dashboard

• City Council is accepting Downtown Portland Clean & Safe's Annual Report for FY22-23 this week. It has a lot of interesting info about downtown vibrancy and ESD funded private security activity.

Consider subscribing to Rose City Reform for in-depth election coverage.

Upcoming events

This week:

• June 5, 2024 (Wednesday) 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM: Portland Committee on Community-Engaged Policing (PCCEP) Settlement and Policy Subcommittee Meeting (website)

• June 6, 2024 (Thursday) 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM: FITCOG in-person public meeting (website)

Future:

• June 20, 2024 (Thursday) 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM: FITCOG in-person community conversation on public safety (website)

Opportunities and calls for volunteer service

• PCCEP, CRC, and PRB are recruiting for new members. See the city's volunteer job board for details

• Several revised PPB directives are up for review in each of the stages. See PPB's website for details

Policing and crime

Highly covered incidents:

• 2024-05-30: KPTV - Court docs reveal timeline of alleged Portland serial killer’s murdering spree

• 2024-05-29: KPTV - Man known as ‘TriMet Barber’ guilty of recording women in restrooms

Crime and the impact of crime:

• 2024-06-02: KOIN - Man flags down police, arrested for allegedly stabbing another man near Hawthorne Bridge

• 2024-06-01: KATU - Woman escapes kidnapping by jumping from moving car

• 2024-05-31: KGW - Portland man attacked by dog in bias crime speaks out

• 2024-05-30: KPTV - Man gets probation for smashing windows on Portland police precinct with rock

• 2024-05-30: KPTV - Man found seriously injured after stabbing on bike path in SE Portland

• 2024-05-29: KPTV - Man charged with menacing, attempted assault of TriMet employee

Gun violence:

• 2024-06-02: KGW - Multiple gunshots fired in Southeast Portland Friday night

• 2024-06-01: KOIN 6 - Houses, cars, hit by gunshots in Southeast Portland

• 2024-06-01: KPTV - ‘She lights up the room’: Family remembers daughter shot and killed in SE Portland

• 2024-05-31: KOIN - Woman dead in Hazelwood shooting identified, suspect in custody

• 2024-05-31: KPTV - Man who shot Radio Cab driver in Portland sentenced

• 2024-05-31: KPTV - Man killed in SE Portland shooting identified

• 2024-05-29: KPTV - Convicted felon arrested again after firing into crowd in North Portland

• 2024-05-28: KPTV - Police investigate shooting near Roosevelt HS in North Portland

• 2024-05-28: KPTV - Teen girl wounded after shooting in SE Portland apartment complex

Police and policing:

• Crowd control equipment:

  • 2024-05-31: Oregonian - Portland police get $1M for training, munitions, to prepare for protests

  • 2024-05-30: Mercury - City Will Spend an Estimated $1.1 Million on Munitions, Shields, and Training For Police

  • 2024-05-27: StreetRoots - PPB asks City Council to authorize emergency less-lethal munitions purchase, despite existing stockpile

• DPSST training improvements:

  • 2024-05-29: KATU - Pilot program at Oregon's police training agency helps end months-long training backlog

• Police missions to combat drug dealing:

  • 2024-05-27: KGW - Portland Police Bureau rolls out new weekend bike patrol targeting drug dealers

• Internal affairs:

  • 2024-05-30: Oregonian - Black Portland police sergeant removed from gun violence team files racial discrimination suit against city

• Officer-Involved Shooting:

  • 2024-05-29: KPTV - Man shot by officer serving search warrant in NE Portland identified

Police-produced media:

• 2024-06-02: YouTube - Going after night time fentanyl dealers in Downtown Portland.

• 2024-05-31: YouTube - Great day to arrest fentanyl dealers in the South Park Blocks.

PPB News Releases:

• 2024-06-01: PPB - Kidnapping Victim Escapes, Suspect Facing Felony Charges

• 2024-05-31: PPB - Man Killed in Hazelwood Neighborhood Shooting Identified

• 2024-05-31: PPB - UPDATE: Woman Killed in Hazelwood Neighborhood Shooting Identified

• 2024-05-30: PPB - Suspect Injured in Shots Fired Incident Identified

• 2024-05-29: PPB - On Scene Fatal Crash Investigation Concludes, Northeast Columbia Boulevard Reopened to Traffic

• 2024-05-28: PPB - Missing Man Found Safe

Other stories:

• 2024-05-29: Oregonian - 2 Portland State students who blocked garage exit file notice to sue school, city

Politics and policy

Portland government transition:

• 2024-05-30: KGW - In government transition, Portland looks to address stubborn issues buried in its bureaus

Criminal justice system:

• 2024-06-01: KPTV - Oregon defendants without a lawyer must be released from jail, US appeals court says

• 2024-05-31: KGW - Oregon defendants without defense attorney must be released from jail, US appeals court says

• 2024-05-30: Willamette Week - Death of Mentally Ill Inmate Raises Questions About Conditions at Douglas County Jail and Oregon State Hospital

City:

• 2024-05-31: Willamette Week - Portland’s Payroll Manager Placed on Leave After City Failed to Remit $7 Million in Payroll Taxes

• 2024-05-31: KGW - City of Portland, Multnomah County address letters demanding residents pay homeless, preschool taxes — even though they already paid

• 2024-05-29: Oregonian - Portland fails to deal with overcharges for boarding up broken windows and doors, ombudsman says

• 2024-05-29: Willamette Week - City Council Tells Prosper Portland to Simplify

• 2024-05-29: Willamette Week - We Asked Candidates for City Council if They’d Relinquish Business Ownership if Elected

• 2024-05-28: Willamette Week - The Secret Winners and Losers of May Primaries in Portland

County:

• Ambulance crisis:

  • 2024-06-02: KGW - Construction worker fatally injured in accident at Benson High School

  • 2024-05-31: KGW - After record-poor month for ambulance response times, Multnomah County still in talks to find solutions

• 2024-05-26: KATU - YVYV: Nathan Vasquez elected as the next Multnomah County District Attorney

State:

• 2024-06-02: KOIN - Former Fred Meyer CEO Ken Thrasher on continued bottle bill scrutiny

• 2024-06-01: OPB - Oregon Air National Guard base set to receive new jets and a massive overhaul

• 2024-05-27: Willamette Week - Oregon State Hospital to Beef Up Security

Transportation:

• 2024-05-31: Bike Portland - ODOT is hiring a new Bicycle and Pedestrian Program Manager

• 2024-05-31: Bike Portland - Loading platforms a big upgrade for SW Broadway

• 2024-05-30: OPB - New bike garden coming to Vancouver

• 2024-05-30: Bike Portland - ODOT wins $11 million federal grant for final segment of Historic Highway project

• 2024-05-30: Bike Portland - Biketown for All program scales back to stem costs after exponential growth

• 2024-05-29: KOIN - Woman dead after car crashes into utility pole on Columbia Boulevard

Nonprofits:

• 2024-05-31: OPB - Jewish orgs pull support from Oregon Food Bank over Gaza war statement

Education:

• 2024-05-30: KGW - As Oregon birth rates fall, concern rises about the future of schools

• 2024-05-29: OPB - Next few days will ‘make or break’ some Oregon colleges’ enrollment amid FAFSA problems

• 2024-05-29: Oregonian - At public forum, 3 candidates to lead Portland Public Schools make their case

Economy and business:

• 2024-05-30: KPTV - OHSU, Legacy Health sign merger agreement

• 2024-05-29: Willamette Week - Qiana Williams, Polarizing Figure at OHSU, Is Out as Head of Human Resources

Labor:

• 2024-05-30: KGW - Thousands of nurses at 6 Providence hospitals in Oregon vote to strike

• 2024-05-29: Willamette Week - A Firefighter Terminated for Misbehavior Gets His Job Back

Addiction:

• 2024-05-31: KGW - How Portland looks to come back from its drug crisis

• 2024-05-29: Willamette Week - The Arrival of a New Addiction Treatment Clinic in Portland Alarmed Locals

Housing:

• 2024-05-31: KGW - How one apartment building in Portland seeks to tackle climate change, affordable housing

Other news

Growth and resilience:

• 2024-06-02: Oregonian - After catastrophic fire, Portland community works to restore Albina’s historic Elks Lodge

• 2024-05-31: Oregonian - This neon-lit Portland ‘speakeasy-dive’ was just named one of America’s best new bars