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Portland Police Shoot Three More Times in Worst Year
Since 2001, Delays Naming Cops
First Two Black Men Shot by PPB Since 2019-- One Lives, One Dies

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Here's a fun idea: next time cops pull you over and ask for your ID, say "I'll tell you my name in 15 days."

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Robert Connelly: Unarmed Civilian is Real Hero

According to media reports, Connelly, 49, was wanted on several warrants and officers from the PPB's Focused Intervention Team (FIT) who were trying to arrest him fired weapons as he ran toward an auto repair shop. The Oregonian (August 20) says that bystanders had to "dodge a barrage of bullets flying around them" and that court papers "don't say that Connelly fired at police." As noted in our last issue, the FIT was allegedly created to make the community safer, not riddle it with bullets.

Connelly made his way to the repair shop's office and locked himself in with a customer, who told KGW-TV8 (August 17) that he was able to persuade Connelly to give himself up by talking about God judging his behavior. No weapons, no threats. The PPB did not release the names of the officers who shot at Connelly, at that point (mid-August) continuing to claim the FBI said there were credible threats against officers (also see "Rapping Back,").

The officers involved were Sgt. Charles Elam (#50594), Officer Amy Li (#57307) and Officer Christopher Baten (#60421). PPB noted that Baten resigned on Sept. 30, but failed to include that he was hired by the state DOJ Criminal Justice Division three days later.

Jeremy Rieck: Was Mental Illness an Issue?

The initial report on Jeremy Rieck said he was allegedly "chasing people with a knife near SW 13th Ave and Jefferson St" when an officer arrived and shot him (Oregonian, October 16). He was arrested eight days later upon release from the hospital and charged with "attempted assault and unlawful use of a weapon." In November, the Oregonian cited court documents which changed the knife to a tent stake and revealed Rieck admitted he was high on drugs and wanted to apologize to the driver he'd threatened. There is no mention whether he may be living with mental illness. Since the PPB has been under investigation for excessive force against people in mental health crisis for over a decade, it would be important for them to share that information. In this case, the police did not say anything about the alleged threats when declining to release the involved officer's name. Rieck was shot by Officer Jonah Gellman (#60435), who shot and wounded Andreas Boinay 13 months before this incident (PPR #85).

Antoine Young: Setting Fire to a Car
Also May Be a Sign of Mental Health Crisis

Young was allegedly trying to set a car on fire and confronted police. People called 911 to report that Young was lighting a Mercedes on fire in a parking lot, throwing things and running in and out of traffic. Again, this would appear to indicate he could have been in a mental health crisis, but the PPB has not indicated this to be the case. Young was allegedly armed, perhaps with a rifle (Oregonlive, November 7).

PCW determined Young's race by looking at booking records online. If our records are accurate, he was the first Black person shot by Portland Police in almost four years, meaning they seemed to have slowed down their racially biased shootings after four Black men were shot from 2017-2019. One has to wonder whether this long pause was prompted in part by the George Floyd racial justice uprising, the Bureau's decision to not pull people over on minor traffic infractions, or other factors.

The PPB's refusal to release the name of the officers in this case was the subject of an Oregonian article on November 9, quoting PCW's Dan Handelman saying "When somebody is accused of a murder in the community, they put their name out there. Community members who have to have contact with the police need to know which ones have fired their weapons so they can know whether they can feel safe." The officers who shot Young were Erik Daniels (#37138), Mark Piombo (#46529) and Joshua Howery (#37867). Howery killed Alexander Tadros just over 14 months prior (also PPR #85).

Immanueal Clark-Johnson: Armed Robbery Suspect in Car Driving Recklessly

Clark-Johnson was in a car that was "driving in a reckless manner," according to the PPB's news release. Officers approached the vehicle in a parking lot at SE 29th and Steele and "an officer involved shooting happened." Interestingly, one of the Detectives working this case is Sean Macomber, who PPR readers may remember as the officer who melted a Taser by using it on the dying body of James Jahar Perez in 2004 (PPR #33). Again, the Bureau did not release information on the shooter officer or officers, saying they intend to wait until the grand jury proceedings had ended, which could have been many months. The officer who shot was Christopher Sathoff (#58857).

Overall, the percentage of Black people shot/shot at/killed by PPB was previously about 24% since PCW started keeping records in 1992, and that number is now down to 17%. While an improvement, that's still way too high in a city that is 6% Black.

Erin Juge: Car Theft Allegations Lead to Sheriff Shooting and Car Crash

Deputy McPherson was engaged in a tussle with a man (identified as Tristan Borges) on suspicion of stealing a car; Borges was in handcuffs and tried to get near Erin Juge, who was nearby in a different allegedly stolen car (Oregonian, October 26). The story goes that Juge pointed a gun at the deputy, who then fired. Borges got into the car Juge was driving, reached over to push down the gas pedal because of her injury, and crashed it a few blocks later at NE Grand and Weidler.

This was the second shooting involving Multnomah County Deputies this year and at least the fourth since Mike Reese was elected Sheriff in 2016; the Sheriff's office otherwise has been involved in very few deadly force incidents since PCW began in 1992. Reese was promoted to Chief the day Keaton Otis was shot in 2010, two blocks from where Juge's car crashed (PPR #51).

January, 2023
Also in PPR #88

Portland Copwatch
PO Box 42456
Portland, OR 97242
(503) 236-3065/ Incident Report Line (503) 321-5120
e-mail: copwatch@portlandcopwatch.org

Portland Copwatch is a grassroots, volunteer organization promoting police accountability through citizen action.

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