Oregon Criminal Defense Lawyer

A study by the Force Science Institute, involving officers from 22 agencies in both Oregon and Washington sought to examine how officers react under stressful conditions and how they remember a scene after the fact. The findings are notable and show that officer “mistakes” are often not deliberate or due to inattention, but caused in part by how fast a scenario happens and the adrenaline involved. [read more...]

A Portland man was walking home from dinner with friends one night when he saw a flashlight shined in his direction and the words, “Get Him!” shouted. Blinded by the light and unsure of who was behind it, he ran. As the footsteps caught up to him, he was tased, forced into the ground and restrained. [read more...]

This week U.S. Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez announced the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division would be opening a broader inquiry into the Portland Police Department. The investigation is to determine whether or not there is a pattern of civil rights abuses within the city by the local police. The announcement comes after the urging by many high powered local officials. [read more...]

Last year there were six police shootings—four of them resulted in civilian deaths. So far in 2011, there have been two police shootings. In the final weeks of 2010 and the first days in January, there was a record set for the most officer involved shootings in a short amount of time (5 in 40 days). Not a record to be proud of, for sure. [read more...]

Portland City Auditor LaVonne Griffin-Valade ordered a review of the city police’s taser use and the finding suggest officers should practice more restraint. According to OregonLive.com, policy should be changed to reflect such restraint and the necessity of officers to use a minimum number of cycles when the tasers are employed. [read more...]