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"Do the Right Thing" 2003 A few years ago we initiated "Spike Lee Do the Right Thing Awards" to officers who stood up for civil rights (see PPR #21). At the November awards ceremony where the police involved in shooting civilians (including José Mejía Poot and Byron Hammick) were given medals, officers who actually appear to have saved lives were also honored. Please note that we do not know all of the circumstances around these incidents, but knowing nobody was harmed deems these officers' actions commendable. We do want to encourage the Bureau to train more officers for the Crisis Intervention Team (CIT), which encourages using words and empathy instead of violence. Here are quick lowdowns on five incidents in which police did not use deadly force on possibly suicidal civilians: Officer Rian Hamby, who has CIT training, tried to talk a woman out of suicide on top of a parking garage. He and Thomas Powell (who received a Copwatch "Do the Right Thing" Award in 2000 for refusing to fire "beanbags" at unarmed protestors) pulled her back. They both received the Police Medal, the same tribute awarded to the police in the Mejía case. They were assisted by Ryan Coffey and Troy Pahlke, who got Life Saving Medals. Officers Dave Bloomstrom and Peter Kurronen also grabbed a suicidal woman, in this case on the Marquam bridge. Bloomstrom was involved in a second incident at the Morrison Bridge where he stopped a suicidal man with help from a citizen. All received Life Saving Medals. Officers Stephanie Lourenco (CIT), Anthony Cavalli, Rico Beniga and Sgt. Matthew Wagenknecht grabbed a man off the Glisan/I-205 overpass railing and received Life Saving Medals. Officers Jason Jones helped Officer Nathan Wollstein, who nearly fell himself while pulling a man from the Fremont Bridge. Jones received a Life Saving Medal. Wollstein was nominated for a Medal of Valor, "the most distinguished award presented to a Bureau member" (Directive 210.90). It is unclear whether Wollstein was given the award. (Source: The Rap Sheet, February 2003.) |
May, 2003
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Portland Copwatch Portland Copwatch is a grassroots, volunteer organization promoting police accountability through citizen action.
People's Police Report
#29 Table of Contents
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