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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (July 22, 1998)
JU L Y 22,1998 Page B8 glie ^Jortlanh @baeruer The African American Program C o n i in i ed F rom F ront return rate to prison was nearly one in four, which was dispropor tionately high in comparison with other segments o f the population under supervision. The new' program ran as a pilot project until recently, and utilized a holistic, culturally-based approach that reached out to inmates still in prison, but within about four months o f release to parole in Multnomah County. Corrections counselors from AdultCommunity Justice established group counseling sessions w ithin the institutions, with the cooperation of state officials. Voluntary inmate par ticipation helped ensure only those willing to make a commitment to change would be accepted into the program, which dealt with issues of race, employment, education, voca tional training, financial and family stability and how to find the support to break the cycleof recidivism. Upon release, participants were immedi ately linked with parole officers who are members of the program, and the momentum begun in prison was strengthened and carried forward in the community, as a team effort. Today, what has become the Afri can American Program has shown that lifestyle and perception changes can be made, that will allow these men to deal w ith issues that once kept them trapped within a system. When C ontinued F rom M etro August 31, 1996 Location: 3950 NF. Garfield one stumbles, the rest reach out and offer support during regular group meetings led by ACJ staff. The program's goals o f reducing recidi vism, increasing educational levels, securing meaningful employment and encouraging family involvement have shown great promise. The achieve ment award ceremony marked the first group o f these men to be offi cially recognized as having success fully reached the “unsupervised” parole status, meaning their behav ior and level o f accomplishments earned them the right to no longer have to report to a parole officer on a regular basis. For many, it was the first time in their lives they could say this. At the recent graduation, men re ceiving their certificates openly shared their appreciation and remark able experiences in having partici pated in the African American Pro gram. Many vowed to remain in volved to support others, and some spoke o f reaching out to youth who are starting out on the road they once traveled. When interviewed after the cer emony, Carl Goodman stated that he was touched by their statements o f gratitude for what the program had done for them. “Everything we had envisioned has come about. 1 was humbled by it. I got touched today," he remarked. Victim: Johnson, A laijom ale, Black 17 years old The victim was sitting on the front steps with his girlfriend. They hear noises in the bushes and shots are fired. The victim is shot multiple times. Case Open Case Detectives: Craig Yost and Terry Wagner November 15, 1996 Location: 1460 NE Prescott Victim: Banks, Willie male. Black 19 years old The victim and his girlfriend stop at a convenience store. The suspect begins talking to the victim ’s girlfriend. An argument takes place and the victim is shot. Case Open Case Detectives: Dave Rubey and Shirley McLaughlin October 17, 1996 Location: SE 3rd and Ash Victim: Cobenais, Clayton male, Indian 29 years old The victim was verbally accosted by the suspect. The victim then shoves the suspect. He is shot as he follows the suspect down the street. Case Open Case Detectives: Dave Schlegel and Steve Christensen December 5, 1996 Location: SW Alder and Fifth Victim: Ramirez-Avila, Alvaro male, Hispanic 24 years old The victim was involved in a drug deal when he was shot by the suspect. Case Open Case Detectives: Mike Hefley and Tom Nelson May 6, 1996 Location: North Buchanan and Olympia Victim: Beedle, Roger male. White 30 years old Officers responded to a report o f a fight in the street. Upon arrival, they discovered the victim with multiple stab wounds. Case Open Case Detectives: Craig Yost and Terry W agner March 3, 1996 Location: 7300 block o f North Montana Victim: Underwood. James male. White 49 years old The victim, a transient, was found lying behind a hedge. He had sustained numerous stab wounds. Case Open Case Detectives: Terry W agner and Craig Yost M ay 11, 1996 Location: 7325 N. St. Louis Victim: Krueger. Angela female. White 20 years old The victim is found bludgeoned to death in the Washougal River after disappearing from her residence in Portland. Case Open Case Detective: Jon Rhodes Christopher Sutton was horn Septem ber 26, !980anddiedonJuly2l,1998. He attended Vernon Elementary School, Binnsmead Middle School, and gradu ated from Benson Poly-Technic High School in June o f this year where he par ticipated in both basketball and football. He was planning to attend Alabama State University in the fall. A Dream Expired To Soon “ 17” Written by Sean Sutton July 21. 1998 For funeral details, please call the Portland Police Bureau's Crisis Response Team at (503) 823-5700. I Location: North W ebster and Albina Victim: Lim, Wendy female. W hite 34 The victim is shot multiple times as she is involved in a drug deal. Case Open Case Detectives: Kerry Taylor and Kent Perry June 14,1997 Location: NE 23rd and Alberta Victim: Myrick, Jamal m ale, Black 16 years old The victim is found lying in the street suffering from a gunshot wound. Case Open Case Detectives: Kris Ferrell and Dave Rubey June 9,1997 Location: 12900 SE Division Victim: Castineira-Delarosa, Ivan male, Hispanic 22 years old The suspect knocks at the victim ’s door. The victim does not answer the door and is then shot as he looks out the window. Case Open Case Detectives: Derek Anderson and Kerry Taylor August 9, 1997 Location: SE Milwaukie and Powell Victim: Brewer, Joshua male. W hite 18 years old The victim is shot in a store parking lo, after a conformation between the occupants o f two vehicles. Case Open Case Detectives: Kris Ferrell and W ayne Svilar July 17 and 18. 1997 Location: NE. 7th and Flanders Victim: Luttrell, Lois female. W hite 38 years old The victim was found in a business parking lot with multiple stab wounds. Case Open Case Detectives: Dave Rubey and Kris Ferrell December-January 1998 Location: Irving Park NE 7th and Fremont Victim: Scott, Reggie male, Black 20 years old The victim was found in Irving Park on New Y ear’s morning. He was initially thought to have died from an overdose. At the autopsy, however, it was determined that he had sustained a gun shot wound to the head. There are no suspects at this time. Case Detectives. Bob Heimbach and Mark Bigeagle December-January 1998 Location: 4700 block NE 14th Avenue Victim: Stone, Ragshann male. Black 19 years old The victim was found shot to death on a parking strip. He had sustained a gun shot wound to the head. This is possibly gang related although the victim was reportedly no longer involved in gangs. Case Detectives: Tom Nelson and Bob Heimbach You Can Now Find Us On The Web!! The Way to Happiness A Proven Method to help Prevent Crime. h ttp :// www. portland observer.net The Way to Happiness booklet is used all over the world in schools, businesses and community organizations to help create a saner world. white-owned cosmetic giants used her format for ‘vertical’ develop ment. In the ‘St. Louis m odel,’ relo cated in many a major city across the country, there was the College ofCosmetology, a beauty salon with 20 ‘stalls,’ mineral baths, lunch room, a superb restaurant, ice cream parlor, the Amytis Theatre (only hlack movie projectionist in the mid- w est-m y m other dated him for awhile). All o f this was based in a real estate complex C.J. W alker owned. There were many apartments tor rent and several public meeting halls and banquet rooms. In several key cities like New York, Chicago and Atlanta, cosmet ics manufacturing plants were part o f the com plex. M adam e C.J. W alker was generous w ith her wealth-education and charity, her stylish New York mansion was the scene o f many gathering o f black intelligentsia and entertainers. The performance o f her heirs and those with whom she came to share control o f her empire is no, a pretty story. But, fortunately, her accom plishments have served as strong, positive motivators for many black women (and men). Herstory is found in a number o f Black History Books and Encyclopedias. Try Reflections Book Store and the Public Library. Conclusion next: Those little kids in our ‘village’ grow into teenagers; “Joe Louis M arches,” and from ‘middle class’ to ‘high-rise slum s' and horizontal ghetto. 1 May 28, 1997 May 6, 1996 F amily M atters : T he W ay I t W as III decorum and social interaction was to be maintained in both places. ‘Truance’ was not an acceptable be havior and consequently, no roam ing neighborhood terrorists or bur glars allowed. The social structure o f the “ex tended fam ily’ was not supported by any o f today’s panaceas or icons; there was no Prosaic, no Dr. Spock, and no schoolyard massacres. How much, indeed, is owed to those tens o f thousands o f black or white fe males who gave up so much o f a ‘norm al’ life in honoring a self- im posed societal responsibility? (“ Proudly and joyfully we might add.” ) That educational mode is long gone as it should be, but it should have been replaced with a carefully- crafted societal structure which could do the same job. Our moral and education wastelands mark those w om en's absence. I can personally relate to one of the most notable accomplishments o f an eminently successful African American business woman-’’Madam C.J. W alker" who in the 1920’s be gan a nationwide cosmetic, beauty salon and real estate empire (W ell, I was a child and I patronized her ice cream parlor in my neighborhood— how “personal” can you get?) Without the aid o f television and many other o f today’s marketing tools, this talented woman use the “Negro Press,” the public lecture, the church, the schools, the auto and the train to ‘connect’ with the black women of America. M anyoftoday's Location: Woodlawn Park 7200 block NE 11th Victim: Yeggins, Michael male. Black 22 years old The victim had been sitting in the park with his girlfriend. They are confronted by 2 suspects who asked what his name is. One o f the suspects fired multiple shots, killing the victim. Location: Forest Park hiking trail Victim: Overlund, Maggie female. White 19 years old The victim was shot multiple times and was discovered on a trail in Forest Park. Case Open Case Detectives: Derek Anderson and Kerry Taylor July 11, 1996 A dream expired to soon In a world too unbearable to consume. Loved and cherished by all peers So many memories through the years All your talents and jokes we shared You'll never know how much we cared 1 love you brother, remember Chris I never thought it would come to this Enjoy heaven, happy and clean We’ll always remember your number “seventeen" Not only your number but also your age A devastation to all, God turned the page We love you. Chris God Please Bless Him! P roe , M c K inley B i rt A reader suggests that it is about time that i highlighted the important roleofthe African American woman on this early inner city stage. Take you seats and let the house lights dim. We could begin with the ‘prepa- ration-for-life’ provided by those gifted and dedicated elementary school teachers.. Those were not ’high school’ curriculums, grammar exercises or vocabularies which were described the past two weeks. Rather, this level o f ability to use and understand the English language was considered a prerequisite for an acceptable educational performance in high school. Never mind that this was a typical urban ghetto in the pre-civil rights era and that oppor tunities for African Americans-edu- cated or not-were severely limited; ‘degree o f improvement is debated. These committed ’grade school’ teachers, black or white, came un der the prescribed education mantra o f the time: a degree from a ‘recog nized’ teacher college, ‘be o f the female sex ,' and unmarried. I am familiar with the process because both my mother and her sister gradu ated from “Stow eT eacherC ollege” o f St. Louis, Mo. My mother lost her job when she married my father and divorced three years later, re turned to her father’s house with her child. In those days, the schoolhouse was an extension o f the homes in the “village,” and it was understood that the exact same level o f conduct. - UNSOLVED MURDERS In Loving Memory o f Christopher Sutton i by - DOWNTREND IN CRIME STATISTICS “The crime statistics from major crime in this area have been considerably down for each o f the first four months of the year. I know that the distribution o f over 16,000 The Way to Happiness books has had a lot to do with this.” Mike Hoy, Director, Pico Union Improvement Association, LA California 80% DECREASE IN VIOLENCE ON SCHOOL CAMPUS 4 “In addition to making a kinder, gentler school, The Way to Happiness program has made it safer. We have decreased the violence by 70% -80% over the school year. We have decreased disrespectful attitudes towards teachers, decreased vulgar Language and gestures. You name it, it’s better. » V.B. Principal, Lockland, Tennessee RECIDIVISM (REPEAT CONVICTIONS) REDUCED FROM 70% TO 10% “We noticed immediately that the children who were exposed to The Way to Happiness had a much lower recidivism than those who were not exposed to the booklet. About 90% o f those who were given the booklet did not come back to the court again. The recidivism rate, in other words, dropped from 70% to 10%. The result were so spectacular that we incorporated the use of the booklet as a standard element in our program. The Way to Happiness has proved so effective in rehabilitating delinquent teenagers, we feel that the booklet really should be made available to them before they get into trouble.” Danny O. Black, C hief Probation Officer, Greenville, Alabama To order The Way to Happiness booklets or for information on programs call ABLE Oregon at (503)203-1301 Tht Way to Happiness is a trademark owned by L. Ron Hubbard Library and is used with its permission A B L E is a trademark and service mark owned by Asaociation for Better Living and Education and is used with its permission. I
