Foxworth on "Temporary" Leave Pending Investigation

Once the allegations came out, some suspicious maneuvering began. The Oregonian immediately called for Foxworth to "go," though the only evidence that had surfaced were lurid emails Foxworth allegedly wrote containing graphic sexual fantasies. TV interviews with the head of Oswalt's union indicated they had an axe to grind because Foxworth wrote in a later email, "I am so pissed at your fucking union..." and mentioned efforts to protect desk clerks while promoting a "win win for the precinct." Perhaps this email was a reference to asking cops on disability to take some desk clerk duties and re-open the precincts 24 hours (see "Budget," below).

Within days, Mayor Potter noted that the whole issue had become a distraction for the Bureau and the City. He's right--nobody was talking about ongoing concerns of police misconduct, the recent Taser death, the steady rate of police shootings despite the claim that giving Tasers to all officers would lower that rate, and other institutional issues of police violence toward citizens we've been raising for years.

The Oregonian backed down after Potter placed Foxworth on administrative leave April 11, noting that he was due a fair investigation. However, the next day acting Chief Rosie Sizer began shuffling the command staff, indicating that Foxworth may never return to his previous post even if he is cleared of wrongdoing.

If the allegations about Foxworth using his position to engage in and cover up an affair with a female subordinate are true, Foxworth's behavior once again raises questions about sexism and male dominance in the Bureau (see PPR #24).

What can we say? Foxworth has been a lot better Chief than Kroeker, but unless major institutional changes are made, no matter who runs the Bureau, many problems of accountability will persist.

Community Survey Shows Perception of Profiling

Police satisfaction ratings have not changed much since the surveys started in 1994. Ratings of police services generally hovered around 3.3 on a scale of 1 to 5, with minor upticks of 0.1 point in such categories as "understanding the concerns of your community" and "working with citizens to solve problems." This year, African Americans and Latinos were "over-sampled" to get their perceptions; African Americans' opinions were generally worse than the average of all citizens. Perhaps most surprisingly, 53% of all those surveyed said police routinely stop people for unfair reasons, with Latinos registering at 58% and African Americans at 71%.

Two ministers from the Albina Ministerial Alliance asked Campbell to state that the survey proves profiling is a real problem. He politely told them he can prove that a number of people answered a question in a certain way, but he can't say what's really going on out in the streets. (He's just the messenger, it's the politicians who need to admit the reality on the streets and do something to change it.)

Interestingly, a question from Campbell's previous survey regarding the police complaint system had been dropped, allegedly due to budgetary issues. Campbell's report, like Foxworth's report on the Jahar Perez shooting, the last PARC report, IPR's annual reports, and a progress report on the 2004 Community Policing Resolution, have not been scheduled to be presented at City Council.

Budget Balloning: Price Hikes at PPB