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Other shootings in Oregon August-December 2013 Shortly after our last issue went to press, Oregon State Police were involved in two back-to-back shootings. Multiple shootings also happened in recent months in Fairview (by the same officer!) and Hillsboro, with more elsewhere. Here's as full a list as we could compile.
--On August 29, Oregon State trooper Matthew Zistel returned fire when US Army veteran John Van Allen II, 34, shot and wounded him during a traffic stop on I-84 near the Dalles. In this instance, we are not using the term "alleged" because dashboard camera video shows Allen firing at the officer. Allen, an African American man who had three young children in the car, drove from the scene and was found dead by other officers, probably due to a gunshot wound inflicted by Zistel (Oregonian, August 31). --On August 30, another Oregon State Trooper shot and killed William Hall III, 34, at a traffic stop near Sisters, after he allegedly (see?) pointed a gun at them, led them on a chase, and pointed the gun again once his vehicle was immobilized (Oregonian, September 5).
--On September 17, Hillsboro Officers David Bonn and Dan Winter shot at Adam Olsen, 33, seven times, never hitting him, during a standoff in which Olsen was believed to be suicidal. Olsen's girlfriend had called 911 because he had cut himself and possibly armed himself with a BB gun. While officers had talked to Olsen for over 20 minutes, he was eventually taken in by a Beaverton officer working for the Washington County SWAT Team, who never fired his weapon. Officers apparently also used Tasers and "beanbag" guns attempting to capture Olsen (Oregonlive, September 30). --On October 25, Hillsboro officers Tina Latendresse and Will Blood shot and killed Victor Torres-Elizondo, 30, when he allegedly shot at the officers while riding in a car with two other passengers and a driver that was pulled over for a missing license plate light. The cops brought in a drug sniffing dog which indicated "something suspicious," though ultimately the three other people were released without charges. Latendresse received minor wounds from "shrapnel" (Oregonian, October 27 and 30).
Update on the January 2013 shooting in Hillsboro, in which off-duty Officer Timothy Cannon got into a gun battle with 10 other officers (PPR #59): Cannon's lawyers filed papers saying that he was not fully responsible for his actions due to "diminished capacity" and "voluntary intoxication" (Oregonian, October 25).
--On November 3, Clackamas County Detective Sgt. Matt Swanson and Deputy Jesse Unck of the SWAT team shot and killed Lawrence Cambra, 88, in Oregon City. Cambra apparently lit his house on fire and drew in Oregon City Reserve Officer Robert Libke, whom Cambra shot in the face, and who died the next day (KGW-TV, November 4).
--On October 16, a plainclothes officer from The Dalles shot and killed Adrian Suarez, 22, a rape suspect who had fired a gun and wounded him, according to the Klickitat County Sheriff's office (Oregonian and Associated Press, October 18). Oddly, this shooting occurred in Wishram, WA so the Oregon officer was apparently out of his jurisdiction.
--On August 22, a Springfield officer shot and wounded Travis Cress, 30, when Cress allegedly threatened to shoot a weapon from inside his home; Cress was left in "serious condition" (Oregonian, August 24).
--On August 20, Klamath Falls Detective Peter York shot and killed Matthew Borner, 52, who was suspected of stealing a car and "pulled a black object out of his pocket." No gun was found, yet news stories on this incident list Borner's criminal history and note a grand jury cleared the Detective of wrongdoing (Oregonian, August 31).
--Fairview Officer Brian Gerkman shot at two different suspects. On November 11, Gerkman "fired multiple rounds" at a car driven by Richard Rummery, 30, when Rummery allegedly accelerated the car toward him. No bullets hit Rummery; he was apprehended when his car spun out of control and crashed into a Multnomah County Deputy's cruiser (Oregonlive, November 12). --On December 3, Officer Gerkman was called to a home and confronted Tyler Brown, a man in apparent mental health crisis, and shot and wounded him (KGW-TV, December 3). The Fairview Chief reported that Brown "lunged" at Gerkman with a kitchen knife. Two Multnomah County Sheriff's Deputies were there as backup.
--On December 5, Salem Detective "Scott" Emmons stopped a pickup truck driven by an unidentified man in Linn County (Salem is in Marion County); Emmons shot and wounded the driver, who allegedly pointed a gun (OR State Police, December 6).
--On December 6, Silverton Officer Jason Bricker shot at Cody Edwards, 25, involved after a car chase; later Edwards, on foot, shot and wounded Marion County Deputy Jim Buchholz, who in turn shot at Edwards. The County Sheriff's office noted that other deputies who arrived also fired their guns, so it was unclear who wounded him. |
January, 2014
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People's Police Report
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