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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (March 25, 1982)
Pape 2 Portland Observer, March 25. 1982 Race factor in pre-trial release The Equal Justice Committee o f (he M etropolitan Human Relations Commission has completed a study o f p re -tria l release statistics o f the C ity o f P ortland and M ultnom ah County. The a lte rn a tiv e com ponents o f pre-trial release include: issuance o f a citation instead o f booking, recog nizance release from ja il, or bail re lease. Since 1979 the P o rtla n d Police Bureau and the Multnomah County S h e riff’ s O ffice have allowed police officers to issue citations instead o f custody whenever appropriate (ex cept in cases o f domestic violence). When an officer arrests a suspect, the person is to be advised that he is under arrest fo r the offense. I f he cooperates the officer can issue a ci tation instead o f taking the suspect into custody. The suspect than ap pears in court. The choice to give a c ita tio n is made by the o ffic e r, i f he believes the accused w ill appear in co u rt. The decision is c o ntinge nt on: 1) w hether the offense requires cus tody (A or B felony or domestic vio lence); 2) whether there is need for fu rth e r questioning about the o f fense; 3) whether the accused needs to be removed from the scene to re store order or prevent further crim inal conduct; 4) whether the accused has community ties or possible poor health. I f the suspect is uncooperative or abusive, appears not to understand the need to appear in court, or re fuses the citation, he is booked into the Courthouse ja il. I f the officer decides to place the person in custody he is fingerprint ed, photographed and placed in a ja il cell. Since 1973 the M ultnom ah C o r rections Department has had the au th o rity to release persons p rio r to tria l on “ recognizance” — th e ir promise to appear in court. A uthor ity fo r recognizance decisions has been given to "recog officers.” Each person booked is entitled to see a recog office r. The o ffice r de term ines i f the person is charged with a non-violent misdemeanor or class C felony, whether he has a rec ord o f failure to appear, whether he needs to be detained u n til calmed, w hether his claim s o f fa m ily and community ties are valid. The decision to release is based on the discretion o f the recog officer. Findings o f the M H R C study o f P ortland Police Bureau arrests in clude: •C itation o f persons in lieu o f ar rest has risen dramatically, to 48 per cent in July-September 1981. • Blacks were consistently booked more o fte n and cited less than whites. •C ita tio n s were issued to Native Am ericans in the same p ro p o rtio n as to whites. •H ispanics were issued citations in greater proportion than whites. • B ookings were fa r greater fo r males than fo r females in all racial groups. •The ratio o f citations was greater for white males than for Black, Na tive American and Hispanic males. •The ratio o f citations was greater fo r w h ite females than fo r Black and Native American females. •T he d is p a rity between w hites and Blacks is true o f all ages. Although fewer minorities are ar cent, others, 5 per cent. Detention prior to trial was great est fo r H ispanics, 28 per cent, followed by Blacks, 24 per cent; Na tive Am ericans, 24 per cent; other m inorities, 22 per cent; whites, 20 per cent. This dem onstrates that b a il re quirements still discriminate against minorities and the poor. M H R C recom m endations in clude: •The Police Bureau should review its criteria fo r citation to determine if it discriminates against Blacks. •The Police Bureau should man date supervisory review o f custody reports; officers should be required to state reasons fo r not issuing a ci tation. rested by the S h e riff’ s O ffic e , the same trends exist. •C u ltu ra l awareness tra in in g should be ongoing and mandatory. •M u ltn o m a h C o u n ty S h e r iff’ s Office should conduct a study o f ci tation-in-lieu o f custody, by race. D e te n tio n Recog releases were basically the same for all races—ranging from 68 per cent fo r Native Americans to 65 per cent for Blacks. Bail release was greatest fo r w hites, 13 per cent, fo llo w e d by Blacks, 10 per cent, Native A m e ri cans, 8 per cent, H ispanics, 5 per • Research should be done by in volved agencies to determine what bail or recog criteria is most useful in helping m in o ritie s achieve an equal p re tra il release ra tio w ith whites. •A public in fo rm a tio n e ffo rt re garding citation-in-lieu o f custody, to aid the public to use this process. Jail reward for corruption story? by Harris Levon McRae O liver Nunnie G ill has a very in teresting story concerning the Port land Police Bureau and some o f its Secret Investigation Division (SID) officers. “ I know people who are under cover n arcotic agents who deal drugs, tra n s p o rt drugs and plant drugs on innocent people,” M r Gill said. G ill claim s that S1D o ffic e rs planted drugs in his house that led to his being convicted fo r crim inal activity in drugs. “ SID agents were used to entrap me and have me imprisoned in order to suppress my knowledge o f law enforcement o fficers’ involvement in narcotics sales and organized crime throughout the state o f Ore gon. In 1975 SID agents came to my house and said, ‘ Nunnie, this is your last chance— i f you want to be a dope dealer and drive a new C adil lac, y o u ’ ll have to w ork w ith us. W e 'll give you a ll the dope you need, and you can keep h a lf the money. D on’ t try to be m ilita n t or p o litic a l, because we have agents and inform ants all over.’ 1 refused the o ffe r and was taken d o w n tow n,” G ill said. He was subsequently released on parole, “ feeling all the time pressure fro m the parole officers as well as police officers. My home has been staked out by a police car fo r the last 15 months.” Last year during an undercover “ s tin g " o p e ra tio n set up by the Multnomah County Sheriff’s office, G ill was charged with selling a lost wallet and its contents (a few credit cards and blank checks) to under cover police officers. “ I received a phone call fro m some people I knew, stating i f I would transport them to their part ners’ house, they would give me $25 fo r tra n s p o rta tio n . The house turned out to be a police ‘ s tin g ’ operation. I was led to believe that the tw o o f them were so indebted th a t i f I w ould ju s t hand th e ir friends (police officers) a package they w ould up my favor o f taking them there from $25 to $50. I took the package inside, didn’ t like what 1 was firs t to ld and le ft the house immediately. 1 told the riders to get out o f my car and go in and handle their own matters. One person did w hile 1 waited in the car w ith the other passenger. I was indicted for theft and convicted even though one o f the passengers (paid inform ants) told the truth. The paid inform ant employed in on me was never men tioned at the grand jury hearing.” According to Robert A. G offredi, who represented G ill on the theft charges, there was no evidence or no accusation at any time that G ill in fact stole the wallet. "D u rin g the course o f the trial, it was a d m itted by the state’ s w it nesses that an inform ant was in fact involved who in troduced and ac companied G ill to the place where the s h e riffs purchased the stolen p ro p e rty. Extensive p re -tria l m o tions were made requiring the pro duction o f the informants. The sher i f f ’ s officers testified that they could not locate the inform ant. During the tria l, it was the defendant’s conten tion that it was in fact the inform ant that supplied the stolen property, in duced M r. G ill to be there and take part in the transaction, and, in fact G ill did not know the property was stolen u n til h a lf-w a y th ro u g h the tra n sa ctio n , at w hich tim e he be came suspicious, refused to have anything else to do w ith the transac tion and left. The ju ry was out ap proxim ately fo u r hours before re turning the verdict o f g u ilty ,” M r. G offredi said. M r. G ill was sentenced by the Honorable Allen Davis o f the M u lt nomah County Circuit Court. Judge Davis has a reputation fo r being a very strict judge and is often very stern in sentencing. H ow ever in G i l l ’ s case, the C o u rt suspended sentence and fixed a period o f pro b a tio n to te rm inate upon the te r mination o f M r. G ill’ s parole. A couple o f weeks ago G ill was picked up and put in ja il fo r parole violation. He feels that it would be almost impossible to submit to the level o f supervision that the Correc tions D ivisio n has set up fo r him , and he told his parole officer, Paul Frank, so. " M r . G ill is classified as a Type I case under the current system; this requires at least weekly contacts be tween the client and the parole/pro- b a tio n o ffic e r. M r. G ill’ s fo rm e r parole and probation officer, James Mason, referred G ill to Treatm ent Alternatives to Street Crimes (also known as TASC), a drug treatment program. G ill kept one appointment w ith TASC and he was set up on a U nder questioning by Jordan, S till said he knew there were prob lems during the 1977-1981 period, saw danger signals but did not know about the crim inal activities taking place w ithin the Bureau. Although the same people are in charge, he th in ks there is a better com m and structure, strengthened discipline and pride. Still admitted that there have been $159 m illion in suits filed for public misconduct, a $500,000 increase in insurance premiums and $100,(MX) increase in legal staff. Many o f the suits against the police are done by attorneys interested in contingency fees, he added He admitted that all the m isconduct has not ended — “ Those things are going to happen sometimes." Stan Peters, president o f the po lice u n io n , said the com m ision w ould underm ine the Bureau He adm itted that he had once said he would accept a limited form o f com m ittee, one that did not have the power to investigate or discipline He threatened to file petitions to place the matter on the ballot if the ordinance is passed The M ayor joined him in this. Sid Lezak, fo rm e r federal a t torney, admonished the C ouncil to find ways o f settling their disputes He was disturbed by the e ffo rt o f the Mayor and Chief Still to make it appear to the police that the ordin ance was designed as a p u n itive measure against them . He also faulted Mayor Ivancie for not being w illin g to ta lk to the task force members to iron out differences and reach a compromise. Reverend John G a rlin g to n said the issue is cre d ib ility and the Bu reau has a seriously tarnished credi bility. He said the issue is perceived as a m inority issue because many o f the complaints come from Blacks. It is not an issue o f law and order, but o f justice. A series o f witnesses, including B ill W yatt o f the A ssociation fo r Portland Progress, said C hief S till should be given an o p p o rtu n ity to bring change before such a commis sion is created. Jordan repeatedly challenged op ponents to explain why a commis sion would hamper police work and accused Ivancie o f providing misin form ation to his supporters C hris Hudson o f the League o f Women Voters said their two-year study showed a need for bettei po lice -co m m u n ity re la tio n s and for citizen input in the Bureau. Commissioners Strachan, Schwab and Lindberg support the ordinance introduced by Jordan Commission er Schwab said she w ill seek legal advice on the ordinance that cm powers the C o u n c il to a p p o in t a 110 cam era................................................................................................ A lw a y s S o m e th in g N e w A t A Bargain Price Open 7 days a weak, 9:30 am-6 pm 424 S.E. Grand • 239-9098 If vou want to stay on top, you have , to stay in touch. .' VtoiBi 4^ I i 1 Ram has the signal that keeps you in constant touch. Providing direct dial, tone alert, tone voice, and mobile telephone service. *7¿e ‘S e c a c i 'Pe&ptef 713 S.W. 12«h V v . Portland. OR 97205 2 2 6 -1 5 0 7 Help Find the Lost Savers If you know the whereabouts of the follow ing persons, please call the OLIVER N. GILL random urinalysis surveillance sys tem , w hich w o u ld require G ill to phone TASC daily to see if he would be required to submit a urine sample fo r that day. That program was to be for at least six random urinalysis samples. G ill failed to appear three d iffe re n t times. When G ill was in formed that he would have to report weekly, he became verbally abusive, stated he would not report weekly, and stated the system was “ mes- sin’ ” with him. G ill says that the only reason that he is being subjected to a drug pro gram is because o f the pressure that afore m entioned S ID o ffice rs are applying to Mason and Frank. He is currently in the Oregon State Peni tentiary awaiting his parole hearing. Mayor resists police committee (Continued from page 1 col. 6) S till conjectured that the public would be less likely to bring miscon duct to notice if they w ill be second guessed and publically exploited by the com m ission. A lso, it w ould erode the public image o f the police, the M ayor and the Chief. He fears an oversight commission would d i lute the management a u th o rity o f the police adm inistration. He con siders such a commission to be ex tremely injurious. Mayor Ivancie said the City has to decide whether " to fight crime or to m o n ito r crime fig h tin g .” The city has risen to fourth in the nation in crime rate. " I t is not a new crisis—it started ten years ago when the mood changed from retribution to rehabil ita tio n .” He said the crim in a l justice sys tem in Oregon has broken down and Portland has the reputation o f being soft on criminals. From 1977 to 1981 (when Charles Jordan was Police Com m issioner) was a period o f mismanagement and police misconduct, he said. He had told S till to "clean house.” provide protection and do it right. He thinks S till has made the Bureau more re sponsible, orderly, and efficient. A com m ission w ould be “ the most single devastating bar to policy that could be proposed.” “ Do we support the Chief or not.” he asked other material (60* w ide)............................................. 11.10 per yd. Lighting fixtures............................................................................ ... to 110 Kitchen utensils...........................................................................3 fo r >1.00 Pick-proof door locks.............................................................................. Place mats (set of six).......................................................................... >2.00 CHIEF RON STILL com m ittee to in v e itig a tc any c ity bureau. This might be her answer to Ivancie’ s objections. The second round w ill be held at C ity H all, Thursday, March 25th, at 2:00 pm. N AAC P FEDERAL CREDIT Ralph Cooper Burnis Brown Deodise A. Nixon Michael A. Reynolds John Benjamin R.J. Tacker Wallace Grant Russie Mae Write Celia Mae Overton Pete Henry Ricketts Milton Walton Ida Mae Tillman Alma McLaurin James E. Blanchard Frances Blair John Ellis Willie B. Vernon James Combs Jo Ann Seldon James E. Smyth Deborah Jean Saunders Julianne, Rebecca Johnson Jeanette Amerson James Cunningham Curtis McDonald Ethel B Reams Jerry Rodgers Madie Harden Daniel H . Holby Warren McGee LeRoy Mayes Lemuel Robinson Mandie M. Johnson Lucille 9. Thomas Bobby Washington Printess H. Morgan Ruthann Fountains Michael Mitchell Bell Mary Allen Keith Brain Hampton Willie R Anderson Albertina Bell Mary P. Grice Lydell Fuller Oscar C. McCray Leslie A. Westlund James Washington Jr. Haywood J. Broussard Lenctra Cooke Lenotra Brown Annie L. Jackson Oneita Wright Kenneth E. Gant Betty L. Odom Karen Powell Clytic Armstrong Michael Holmes Sandra Boxley Louis Hupp Mary Gilmore Rosie M. Taylor Lois Thornton Percy Hampton Alfred 0 . Wingfield Floreatine Kelly Värettä Thomas Carolyn Easterly UNION, 281-7744 2202 N. Flint Ave 4225 N.E. 14th Ave. 1606 So. Arlington (L.A., Calif) 6909 S.E. 42nd Ave. 1803 S.E. Washington St 3730 N.E 13th Ave. 2713 N.E. 9th Ave. 3108 S.E. 28th Ave. 1733 N. Benton 4016 N.E. 10th Ave 4537 N.E. 8th Ave. 125 N Going 1111 N.E. Holland 5703 N.E. 14th St 3633 N. Vancouver 317 N.E. Monroe 4832 N.E. Cleveland 6205 N.E. 10th Ave. 4074 N.E. 7th Ave. 4532 N.E 82nd Ave. 6227 N.E. 32nd PI 2606 N.E. 9th Ave. 36 N.E. Stanton 3130 N. Williams Ave 3723 N.E. 13th Ave. 604 N . Beech j 3026 N.E 12th 523 N.E. Bryant i n _ 4903 N.E. 10th Ave 6218 N.E. 35th PI. z _ . ____ ____ ' <SL ■sv- 3036 N.E. 13th Ave. 4623 N. Haight 4047 N.E. 14th Ave. 5133 N.E. 22nd Ave. 1216 N.E. Sumner 2938 N.E. Union Ave, 1226 N.E. Thompson 5716 N.E. 12th Ave. 5046 N.E. 23rd Ave. 625 N.E. Portland Blvd. 316 N.E. 60th Ave. 6575 N.E. Grand Ave. 4616 S.E Madison 4066 N. Massachusetts 3308 N. Commercial W21 N. Missouri 1406 N.E. Brazee 3013 S.E. Waverleigh Blvd. 2503 Hancroch, Expressway No. 73, Colorado Springs, Colo. 80910 1435 N.E. Mason 3836 N.E. 17th 3929 N.E. 16th 4618 N. Williams Ave. 5904N.E.23rd 4326 N.E. 6th Ave. 3723 N.E. Garfield apt. 47 1396 W 12th Nc. 2, Eugene, OR 9740 2427 N.E. Flanders 3806 N. Vancouver 9034 N. Central 4807 S.E. Bordman, Milwaukie, OR 5216 N.E. Mallory 3806 N.E. Garfield 6116 N.E. Cleveland
