Community makes demands on anniversary of Dow death

Community makes demands on anniversary of Dow death On Wednesday, October 20--exactly one year since Dickie Dow died after sustaining injuries during a beating by the Portland Police Bureau--friends, family members and supporters remembered the incident with a vigil at Portland's City Hall.

About 30 people turned out to the very low-key memorial including Dow's parents, Barb and Ted Vickers, two members of Copwatch, two legal advisors and a number of individuals who have been coming to the monthly vigils in Dow's memory over the past year.

Organizers, using the name "People for Police Accountability," called for four things, all of which we support:
1. Justice for Dickie Dow:
(a) the criminal indictment, police discipline and/or firing of one or more of the officers involved
   in causing Dow's death;
(b) changes in police policies and procedures which will prevent a recurrence of such incidents;
   and
(c) training for ALL officers in Crisis Intervention Team techniques to deal with the
   developmentally disabled or otherwise agitated citizens;
2. The end of police brutality, racism, corruption, and other misconduct;
3. A strong Civilian Review Board with independent investigators, subpoena power,
   and final say in cases of misconduct;
   and
4. The ban of the use of pepper spray by law enforcement until exhaustive research can
   be done proving its safety and effectiveness.

Although riot police had turned out in tremendous numbers and used violence the previous Friday during a demonstration about Mumia Abu-Jamal (see related story), the few police keeping an eye on the Dow vigil were hiding in the bushes across the street at Terry Schrunk Plaza.

The Oregonian covered the vigil in the next day's paper, mentioning that the Police Bureau has reinstated training for CPR, but failing to mention the severe beating Dow was subjected to or the fact that one of his neighbors offered to do CPR and police forbade her. They also did not raise the concern that pepper spray was used on Dow before he died and may be connected to his death, similar to over 25 cases in California and at least one other in Portland.

Despite these oversights, they did manage to report demands #1b and c, 3 and 4 above, though they attempt to defuse the idea of holding the police criminally liable by reporting the grand jury found no wrongdoing. The article also mentions that Dr. Peter Kohler of Oregon Health Sciences University is looking into situations that end in what the Medical Examiner determined was the cause of Dow's death: "sudden death syndrome." We can only hope his recommendations will include: don't beat up civilians, and don't bind their feet and hands if they are in an excited state and have been pepper sprayed.

For more information or to get involved call the Justice for Dickie Dow Committee at 360-576-0364. For the names of the officers who received awards in this case, see "Commendations" in "Rapping Back".

People's Police Report #19 Table of Contents
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