Street Roots • May 1-7, 2015
News
Page 5
TRI MET, from page 4
there.”
Greenlick says TriMet may want to keep the
Public defenders in Multnomah County and
status quo because district attorneys like to
legislators in support of the bill argue the
have serious charges “at their fingertips” so
penalty an IPT carries is too harsh and that the
they can plea bargain to less serious charges.
charge is disproportionately issued to people
“They argue that they’d never try to put
experiencing homelessness and people of color.
someone in jail for a year (for an IPT). Well
The Oregon Criminal Justice Commission found
then, if you’re not going to put someone in jail
that 54 percent of those charged with IPT
for a year, why do you have it there to hang over
between 2010 and April 2014 were white, and
their head?”
27 percent were African
Of the 364 IPTs that
American - TriMet’s
came through the
estimates on the
Metropolitan Public
l a a ve rw te la tia g SO percent
percentage of African-
Defenders’ office, 29
American riders during
a ll "In te rfe rin g w ith pub
percent resulted in a
the same period of time
lic tra n s it" cases that came
misdemeanor conviction.
fluctuated, but never rose
More than half were
throngh
the
p
ub
lic
defenders'
above single digits.
dismissed or acquitted,
office were Issued under the
IPTs were issued 840
subset of the law that HB 2 8 2 6 but not before tax dollars
times in the Portland
paid for the arrest,
metro area in 2014.
aimed to re n te w ~ entering
prosecution, defense, and
Rothman came to the
and rem aining ©a transit prop in some cases, jail stay. In
early April meeting at
erty unlaw fully,
Multnomah County th e
TriMet headquarters
average jail sentence for
armed with data she says
an IPT conviction was 15
an office intern
days at a cost of $2,520
painstakingly compiled
per inmate.
by going through all 364 IPT cases that came
“We want to retain as much of the ability for
through the Metropolitan Public Defenders’
us to be able to do things as possible,” says
office in 2014.
Deas. “The session always kind of lights a fire
The data show only 2 percent of defendants
to make things happen - things can happen in
were issued an IPT for intentionally disrupting
the Legislature - so I think this is one of those
the flow of transit Five percent were issued
where we say, OK, we better look at this and if
IPTs for disorderly conduct and 3 percent for
We don’t come up with a reasonable action plan
physical contact involving a transit employee or
before the next session, then there will be ‘
transit police officer. An overwhelming 90
action.”
percent of all IPTs that came through the Public
According to Deas, IPT is useful when
Defenders’ office were issued under the subset
dealing with riders who have been “excluded 20
of the law that HB 2826 aimed to remove -
tim es and kejep cpufinuhig•
"Wt^Kfig ^nd’rerriaming on transit property
Across the Rocks
by Rachel D
A solitary traveler walks along the beach at dusk
.A friend of mine told me about a locals-only campsite called “Devil’s Blood.
Across the rocks, past the houses, into the
woods, behind a huge tree stump.
My refuge.
An A-frame, left behind vodka, brush covering.
Its still cold, wet and hard
but at least I can get some r e s t
I am thankful to wake up to such a view.
Now its time to pack up, such an undertaking.
This is the life I have chosen,
but is it really worth it?
Back across the rocks, where treachery abounds.
It’s hard to know where you are going
When you have to look down.
Climb up to where the path is easier.
My friend advised me,
Where the rocks are smaller.
Does that say something about life?
There is more movement underfoot,
but the movement is less important
Speckled grey becomes solid dark
as the rain creates danger.
Now I am to the sand.
What was once drudgery is now a welcome relief.
To the road, bike, bus.
The road gets easier, the road gets harder,
The road is ever-changing.
The most comfortable place I’ve slept in weeks was on that bus.
says if ffiey get a lesser charge, like criminal
unlawfully.
Deas, TriMet’s Government Affairs Manager,
says the bill has reused questions about how
IPTs are issued, but TriMet is not convinced
there’s a problem.
“I think that after having our meeting, we
determined that there’s a lot of anecdotal
information, and.there’s some data, but there
isn’t really any complete data,” says Deas. “We
have no interest in giving people tickets unless
we need to, and we don’t want to be giving
people the wrong tickets, but we also don’t want
to be hamstringing our transit police and our
district attorneys that work with us to keep our
system moving, so there’s kind of a balance
trespassing, they get processed and released
the same day and get back on public transit that
evening.
The Amalgamated Transit Union also
opposed the bill. According to union president |
Bruce Hansen, “We tried to find a way to
support the bill,” but he says the union didn’t
like the language. He says once a rider is
excluded, he or she can pose a threat to transit
employees.
While transit police can continue to issue
IPTs for a broad range of offenses for now, the
issue is unlikely to go away.
“It’s fairly dead for this session, but it’s not
forgotten,” says Greenlick.
Better
health
The Power of a Smile
by Mike D.
The power of a gun can kill
And the power of a fire can burn
The power of the wind can chill
And the power of the mind; can learn
The power of anger can rage
Inside until it tears you apart
But the power of a smile
Especially yours can heal a broken, frozen heart
Are you a
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here for
you
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dental health care for over 230,000 children,
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experiencing
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