letters to the editor

Why not disengage? [letter] / Bill Nootenboom, Oregonian, 9 April 2010
~About Sgt. Kyle Nice’s road rage incident.

Police program a good start [letter] / David Cox, Oregonian, 9 April 2010
~Scroll down a bit to see this letter, which is about Dan Saltzman, Amanda Fritz, and Rosie Sizer’s recent proposal to change policy and procedure for incidents in which police interact with mentally ill people.

Mental Health Reform[letter] / Barbara Donner, Oregonian, 9 April 2010
~Scroll down to the end to see this letter, also about the new plan for cops and mentally ill people.

Other Media on Previous Posts

On the City’s “Recommended Action Items Regarding the Intersection of the Police & The Mental Health System in Portland”: The Portland Observer, Jake Thomas, 9 April 2010; KBOO,  A Deeper Look, 8 April 2010; Mental Health Association of Portland website, 8 April 2010; OPB, April Baer, 9 April 2010; The Skanner, 7 April 2010 & 8 April 2010, Brian Stimson; Blogtown, Matt Davis, 9 April 2010

Articles from the Mercury regarding the Black Bloc: Chasse Protest At NW13th & Everett and Saltzman vs. Cornett / Matt Davis, 8 April 2010; the $175,000 Discrimination Settlement and Police Bureau overspends budget by $5 million / Matt Davis, 7 April 2010 and from “I…. I was scared” / Sarah Mirk, 8 April 2010

Disparate treatment of Portlanders by police examined / The Portland Observer, Jake Thomas, April 8 2010

And elsewhere in Oregon . . .

In Eugene Proponents seek initiative to restrict Taser use /OPB, 9 April 2010

In Roseburg Former officer gets 3 months in jail “after pleading no contest to a harassment charge stemming from a sexual relationship with a minor.” /OPB, 8 April 2010

grand jury transcripts, more on Sgt. Nice, and other news

Several stories today noted that Multnomah County Circuit Judge Jean Maurer has released the transcripts of the testimony to the grand jury investigating Jack Collins’s death. The transcripts are available on the District Attorney’s website, as well as at some of the news websites.

DA Releases Grand Jury Transcripts in Arboretum Shooting / James Pitkin, Willamette Week News & Culture [blog], 7 April 2010

Judge releases grand jury transcript on arboretum shooting: DA asked that 264 pages of testimony be made public, Portland Tribune, 7 April 2010

Officer in Hoyt Arboretum shooting: ‘It’s the most scared I have been at work’, Oregonian, 7 April 2010

Portland officer who shot transient never heard of man’s death threats or bloody hands and clothes / Maxine Bernstein, Oregonian, 7 April 2010

DA Releases Jury Testimony In Police Shooting: Portland Officer Cleared Of Wrongdoing, Fox12 Oregon, 7 April 2010

Burning Bridges: After two fatal shootings this year, can cops regain the city’s trust? / James Pitkin, Willamette Week, 7 April 2010

And there were several tv news reports last night about Sgt. Nice’s “road rage” incident:

Off-Duty Officer Pulls Gun During Traffic Incident [story and video], Fox12 Oregon, 7 April 2010

Police sergeant gets mixed up in road-rage incident [story and video] / By Anita Kissée, KATU, 6 April 2010

In other Portland-area news:

City, police leaders suggest ways to ease interactions of Portland officers, mentally ill / Michael Russell, Oregonian, 7 April 2010
~This article details a report written by City Council members Dan Saltzman, Amanda Fritz, and Police Chief Rosie Sizer.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams warns of budget woes for this year, next / By Janie Har, Oregonian, 6 April 2010

City Council approves $170,000 police discrimination settlement / Eric Adams, KGW, 7 April 2010

And, from our neighbors to the north:

Jury: Officer believed he was in imminent danger when he killed Clemmons / Jennifer Sullivan, Seattle Times, 7 April 2010
~Reports that Seattle police officer Benjamin L. Kelly was cleared by an inquest jury today in the shooting death of Maurice Clemmons (Clemmons was the subject of a two-day manhunt, after he shot four police officers in a restaurant in Pierce County).

CRC meeting and some more

Lots of very similar articles on the CRC meeting Sunday.

From the AMA website (Portland Observer articles) City’s Cop Hearing: “People don’t trust the police because they don’t know any” and Grievances with police aired at community forum

Matt Davis’ blog seemed to have essentially the same article, as well as this: Reforming the Independent Police Review: “We’ll got to weddings, bar mitzvahs, anything…”

Randy Leonard, Portland auditor, pushing police oversight vote despite Chief Rosie Sizer’s absence / Maxine Bernstien, The Oregonian 15 March 2010

Crowd gathers at PSU calling for police accountability / Valerie Hurst and Susan Harding, Katu.com 15 March 2010

Fritz open to police reform, but not ready to act / Jake Thomas, Portland Observer 15 March 2010

Speakers tell citizen review committee to raise standards for Portland police / Steve Beaven, the Oregonian 14 March 2010

Citizen panel releases its own proposal for improving police oversight / Maxine Bernstein, the Oregonian 15 March 2010