Copwatch group launches new Web site
Speakers at a Tuesday press
conference spoke about
community involvement
in monitoring police activity
Caron Alarab
Safety/Crime/Transportation Reporter
About 20 local citizens, Eugene
Copwatch volunteers and members
of the media gathered on the steps of
the Eugene Police Department at
City Hail during a Copwatch press
conference Tuesday morning.
Dedicated to monitoring law en
forcement activity as a grassroots
movement since 1996, the organiza
tion scheduled the event, which last
ed less than an hour, in response to
a recent rash of police brutality
charges and suits filed in Oregon.
Speakers briefly spoke in support of
the numerous aspects and the im
portance of Gopwatch to encourage
better awareness of questionable po
lice activity and to promote the or
ganization’s new Web site.
“This Web site is the tool that peo
ple can begin to use for reporting,”
volunteer and introductory speaker
Tim Lewis said.
Gopwatch was represented by a
handful of volunteers who calmly
voiced their opinions and state
ments to news cameras and micro
phones. Supporting individuals
stood behind them while shading
their eyes from the rising sun with
flyers listing the Web site address
— www.eugenecopwatch.org —
and the reporting phone number —
343-8548.
Former Human Rights Commis
sioner Melissa Mona mentioned the
inadequacies of current advocacy
programs available to the public.
Speaker Charles Overbeck speci
fied many of the newer features now
available on the site, including a
“how-to” page on different ways to
witness and document incidents.
Speaker Randy Clicker addressed
issues of videotaping events in teams
and expressed a need to expand the
local process of reporting.
Whiteaker Community Council
member Majeska Seese-Green hand
ed out information about the area’s
most recent community meeting,
which focused on how to prevent in
cidents like the Oct. 17 police raid,
during which 59 officers from at
least six agencies carried out a drug
search and found nothing.
“(Our decision) represents con
demnation of unwarranted use of po
lice tactics and weapons that togeth
er endanger the very lives of
everyone in the residential neigh
borhood,” she said. “We want this
never to happen again.”
During the following question
and-answer period, speakers dis
persed to talk with reporters and
camera crews individually. In one
comment made to a reporter, Lewis
said “the media should be more
aware of misinformation and disin
formation” in regards to police in
vestigations and public records.
EPD spokeswoman Pam Olshanski,
accompanied by other EPD officials,
observed the event from a few yards
away. She said Gopwatch demonstra
tions — much like peace rallies —
have typically remained peaceful,
with the turnout of the last local
demonstration being a good example.
“Eugene is very well known for its
activism,” Olshanski said.
The conference quieted down at
about 11 a.m. as local supporters
headed home, camera crews packed
up to leave and Lewis thanked
everyone for coming.
“We believe everyone should be a
Copwatcher,” Lewis added.
Contact the reporter
at caronalarab@dailyemerald.com.
News briefs
Career Fair gives
environmental options
The third annual Humanity and
Environmental Career Fair will
take place today in the EMU
Ballroom.
The fair, which runs from 10
a.m. to 3 p.m., will have 40 differ
ent organizations in attend^pce.
The groups, ranging from Ameri
corps to City of Eugene Youth
Recreational to FOOD for Lane
County, will be looking for students
to fill full-time, part-time and sum
mer jobs as well as internships and
volunteer opportunities.
Mei Yong, the marketing and
communication specialist at the
Career Center, is the coordinator of
today’s fair.
“It’s an excellent fair for students
who want to go into this field,” Yong
said. She also said the fair would be a
good chance for students who are in
terested in humanity and environ
mental issues, but didn’t have much
experience, because of the many
volunteer opportunities that will be
available.
“There are a large number of stu
dents ... who are socially and envi
ronmentally conscious, and our reg
ular career fair does not offer the
jobs and positions they would like,”
Yong said.
Even with the economy in a
slump, there are still many opportu
nities available to students, especial
ly with all the various organizations
that will be present, she added.
—Ali Shanghnessy
PFC receives
budget increase
The ASUO Programs Finance
Committee recalled its own budget
at a meeting Monday night, and fi
nalized numbers Tuesday. The
committee presents its budget of
more than $4.83 million to Student
Senate tonight.
PFC members supported increas
ing stipends for the 2003-04 PFC po
sitions because committee members
work October through March, but
stop receiving stipends after February.
“This year we seem to have a little
bit more room in our budget than in
past years or future years may
have,” PFG Chairwoman Kate Shull
said. “It seemed appropriate to con
tinue that entire committee term
through March.”
The committee decided to allocate
#10,691 to PFC for 2003-04, a 32.51
percent increase.
—Jennifer Bear
Brutality
continued from page 1
“I admitted to having possession of alco
hol,” Williams said. “He asked me for an ID
(and I) gave it to him. And while he was
writing me up, I was asking him, you know,
if he could cut me some slack: ‘I’m going to
be 21 in a week and a half, and I can’t af
ford a $250 fine.’
“At that point, he said, ‘No, it’s too late.’
Then I told him I hoped he thought he was
serving and protecting the community ...
which I think got under his skin.”
According to Williams and Olshanski,
Williams was then allowed to leave. Williams
said he walked on the sidewalk for a few
blocks when a police car pulled beside him.
Olshanski said Williams continued to talk
back to officers after receiving the MIP cita
tion and was walking in the middle of the
street. At least one car had to swerve to miss
Williams, Olshanski said, and the student al
legedly flipped off and cursed at the driver of
the vehicle. After witnessing those events,
Olshanski added, officers felt compelled to
again speak with Williams. Olshanski said
that as officers approached Williams, the Uni
versity student proceeded to run.
When told of the contents of the police re
port, Williams said, “Oh my god, oh my god,”
reiterating an earlier statement questioning
the authenticity of what the police would say
happened.
“The power they have scares me as far as
the police reports and what they can write
and claim as fact,” said Williams, a business
major in his third year at the University.
“That’s the only thing that would allow them
to get away with something like this.”
Both Williams and Olshanski said officers
told the student he was under arrest.
Williams — who said he was convicted in
2001 of disorderly conduct as part of a plea
bargain — said the force used when arresting
him was “absolutely not” necessary.
“(The officer) probably knew that if he
used excessive force from the very beginning
to get me down that I would probably resist
because I’m sure he saw that I had these pre
vious charges,” Williams said.
Olshanski maintained the need for force.
“I can’t speak to this specifically, but when
an officer is being assaulted, all actions nec
essary will be taken,” she said.
The three officers who stopped and re
strained Williams also put out a “code three
cover” call, asking for any and all nearby sup
port because they feared for their safety, Ol
shanski added.
Some time between 1:30 a.m. and 2 a.m.,
Lane Community College student John Du
ley said he was woken by noise coming from
outside his house.
“At the beginning, (Williams) was like, ’I’m
not resisting anything,”’ said Duley, who lives
at East 13th Avenue and Mill Street. “Then I
heard screaming.”
Duley said he saw a female officer repeat
edly strike Williams with a nightstick while
two officers struggled with Williams. The in
cident lasted about 20 minutes, and about 10
officers came to the scene, Duley said.
Duley said Williams was struggling and
added that he thought the struggling was a
result of the officers’ attempts to restrain
Williams.
“In my opinion, from my view, it didn’t
look like the police needed to go to these
measures to restrain this guy,” Duley said.
Williams fought when he was told he was
under arrest, Olshanski said, and he kicked
one officer in the arm numerous times while
struggling. “Focused blows” were issued by
the three responding officers to restrain
Williams, Olshanski added.
“All he had to do was stop resisting, and he
clearly understood the direction being given
to him,” Olshanski said.
Williams’ sister, Erin, said she received
multiple phone calls from her brother after
he was taken into custody. She didn’t see him
until Sunday afternoon, however, when she
took multiple photos of her brother’s injuries.
“His face was swollen, he had a gouge on
his right side ... his whole jaw looked
swollen,” said Erin Williams, a University
senior.
Joshua Williams, who said he visited the
University Health Center about his injuries,
added that he can’t sit up for more than five
minutes without being in pain.
“I’m lucky that I didn’t come out with a
broken bone, a broken jaw, because I got
kicked in the face and suffered a concus
sion,” he said.
Olshanski also said Joshua Williams is for
tunate his injuries are limited, given that he
put himself at risk by being so combative
with officers.
Erin Williams said that despite her broth
er’s previous and similar trouble with the law,
he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
She added that she believes her brother’s ac
count of the incident.
“He’s not the type of guy that would go out
there and make something like this up,”
she said.
Olshanski said Joshua Williams was cited
for MIP, interfering with police, disorderly
conduct, resisting arrest and assault of a pub
lic safety officer.
He will be arraigned in Lane County Cir
Jeremy Forrest Emerald
Joshua Williams says he was beaten by the police
afterthe EPD issued him an MIP.
cuit Court today for the latter of the three
charges and will be in Eugene Municipal
Court on March 10 for the MIP citation. He
could be charged for the interfering with po
lice citation at a later time.
Joshua Williams said he will plead not
guilty to all charges.
Contact the news editor
at bradschmidt@dailyemerald.com.
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