Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, February 05, 2003, Page 2, Image 2

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    Page A2
P n r t la n ö
(O b e c rn c r
celebrates Black History Month
February os. 2003
P olice
GUARDSMEN CHARGED IN OREGON HATE CRIME
(AP) — Three National ers in a “m ission" to clean selfat the scene of the most
Guardsm en beat up or ha­ up the community, and one recent attack, Medford po­
rassed m inorities and oth­ o f the suspects killed him- lice said Friday.
The National Guard said
the three men had recently
returned from peacekeep­
ing duty in the Middle East.
"TH IS DAY, tVCHVDA V.”
Two guardsmen were ar­
rested at a Medford motel
where they allegedly beat
the Indian owner, whom
they had mistaken for an
Arab. The owner suffered
cuts and bruises.
In earlier attacks, a home­
less white man was beaten
Celebrate National Black
with a club and called a dis­
HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
grace to his race, and black
teenagers were menaced by
AwarenessDay
Friday, February 7, 2003
rr
March to Mobilize in the Fight
Against HIV/AIDS
3:30 p.m. at the Urban League Senior Center
5325 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
at Killingsworth
All Community Members Are Invited
Free HIV Testing
Confidential and Anonymous
3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Multnomah County Health Department
Northeast Health Center
5329 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
at Emerson
Sponsored by the African American
HIV/AIDS Network
HABITAT FOR
HUMANITY
H a b iC a r P ro g ra m
THE CAR, TRUCK
OR BOAT YOU DONATE
CAN HELP US BUILD
AN OREGON FAMILY’S
HOME.
Habitat for Humanity builds simple,
decent homes for families in need.
Your vehicle donation will generate
construction funds we’ll use right
here in Oregon. Call now to arrange
fast, free pickup. Your kind,
tax-deductible donation is greatly
appreciated.
I"
mime
1 866 247 6262
It ’s o ften e a s ie r
to p ick o ut th e
v e h ic le . . .
th a n th e fin an cin g !
For an a n s w e r you can tru s t,
Ie t y ° ur c re d it union help!
-
-•
Serving all who live, work, w orship or attend school in the
W IL L A M E T T E
Federal Credit Union
2151 N.W. Front Avenue
Portland, Oregon 97209
(503) 299 4539
(888) 900 8559
www willamettefcu.com
Portland communities o f Arbor I odge, Boise. Bridgeton, Buckman north o f S I
Hawthorne, Cathedral Park.China low n, Concordia west o l'N .I 33*J Avenue.
Concordia University. Downtown Portland, hast Colum bia. Goose Hollow,
Humboldt, Irvington west o f N.I 17th Avenue. Kerns. K ing west o l N .I 24th
Avenue, la u re l hurst west o f N I 32nd Avenue. Northwest Portland. Northwesl
Industrial Portland, Old low n. Overlook, Pearl D istrict, Piedmont. Portland
Com m unity College-Cascade Campus. Portland Stale University, Portsmouth. Sabin
west o f N I 24th Avenue. St Johns. Sullivan's Guleh west o l'N .I:. 20th Avenue.
Sunnyside west o f N t 20th Avenue, University o f Portland, U niversity Park.
Vernon, and Woodlawn.
white men who showed a
gun and shouted, “ White
pride!"
Guardsman Chad Ritchie,
21, was found dead o f a
self-inflicted gunshot wound
after running from the motel
early Thursday, police Lt.
Mike Moran said. Andrew
Lee P a tte rso n , 23, and
Aaron St. James, 25, were
waiting in acar when police
arrived, Moran said. They
were charged with assault.
“This is a bias-related
c r im e ,” M o ran sa id .
“ Patterson drove and he
knew Ritchie would assault
the owner because o f his
ethnic origin.”
P o lic e b e lie v e th a t
Patterson and Ritchie had
CRIME STOPPEBS
(503) 823-HEIP 111 S.W. 2nd Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204
Man Wanted for Multiple Thefts
Suspect allegedly
embezzled
$60,000 from his
father’s business
T h e C la c k a m a s C o u n ty
S h e r if f s O ffice, in cooperation
with C rim e Stoppers, is asking for
yo u r help in locating and ap p re­
hending M ichael Alvin Schm ale.
The 26-year-old is charged with
aggravated theft, forgery, c o m ­
puter crim e and identity theft.
Police said he em bezzled m oney
and failed to pay both incom e
taxes and business debts at his
fa th e r's business. The total loss
Michael Alvin Schmale
Look up before you go up
Anxious as you might be to get up on the
ladder to clean those gutters or prune a
tree, please take a good long look up and
around. Making contact with an overhead
power line can be deadly, especially when
working with metal objects such as gutters,
TV antennas, pool skimmers, irrigation
pipes or ladders. Please stay 10 feet or more
away. Before you get carried away with the
task at hand, we caution you to stop, think
and know when to apply the 'better safe
than sorry' rule. Your safety matters to us.
For a copy of our safety booklet,
Electricity 101, call 1-800-791-6093.
# PACIFIC PO W E R
Making it happen.
w as placed at o v e r $60,000.
In addition, M ultnom ah C ounty
holds a w arrant for S ch m ale’s a r­
rest on a charge o f driv in g under
the influence o f intoxicants.
S chm ale is six feet tall and
w eighs 165 pounds w ith brow n
hair and green eyes. A uthorities
say he likes to frequent bars and
play video poker. He m ay be driv ­
ing a red 1989 Ford 4X 4 pickup
w ith O regon p lates Q C S 924.
C rim e Stoppers isofferingacash
reward o f up to $ 1,000 for in form a­
tion, reported to C rim e S toppers,
w hich leads to an arrest in this
case, oran y unsolved felony crim e.
Y ou need riot give y our nam e. Call
C rim e Stoppers at 503-823-HELP.
Suspects in Southeast Beating Wanted
P o rtlan d P olice, in c o o p e ra ­ tim e th e m an w ith M a e ta s ran
tion w ith C rim e S to p p e rs, are from the area. He a ssu m ed M aetas
a sk in g fo r y o u r h e lp in id en tify had d o n e the sa m e, b u t w h en he
fo u r in d iv id u a ls in v o lv e d in an did not se e M a e ta s, he re tu rn e d
a ssa u lt th at left a m an in c ritica l to th e sc e n e w h e re h e fo u n d
c o n d itio n .
M a e ta s ly in g c ritic a lly in ju re d in
O n S a tu rd ay , Jan. 18 at a bout a pool o f b lo o d , p o lic e said.
2:45 a . n t . n e a r the T ex a co sta ­
T h e w a n ted m en a re d e sc rib e d
tio n at S o u th e a st 8 4 lh a n d F o s­ as w h ite m ale s w ith R u ssia n a c ­
ter, the v ictim , Jo se p h C lau d e c en ts. T h e d riv e r w as a p p ro x i­
M a e stas, 44, and a n o th e r m an m ately 2 0 to 25 y ears o f ag e, 5 feet
had a v erbal e x ch a n g e w ith four 5 in c h e s to 5 feet 7 in c h e s tall,
in d iv id u a ls in a car.
w ith a sk in n y b u ild , lig h t b ro w n
T h e fo u r su s p e c ts sta rte d to h a ir a n d c le a n -sh a v e n .
g e t out o f th e v e h ic le, at w h ic h
T h e v e h ic le th ey w e re d riv in g
is d e sc rib e d as a m e d iu m -re d
19 9 0 s fo u r-d o o r im p o rted sedan
w ith a d a rk g ra y o r b lac k in te ­
rior. T h e v e h ic le is re p o rte d ly in
“ g o o d sh a p e ” a n d has lic e n se
p la te s th a t a re w h ite w ith b lu e
n u m b ers.
C rim e S toppers is offering a
cash rew ard o f up to $ 1,000 for
inform ation, reported to C rim e
Stoppers, that leads to an arrest in
this case, or any unsolved felony
crim e, and you need pot give your
nam e. Call C rim e S toppersat 503-
823-HELP.
i rime Stoppers is offering a cash reward o f up to $ l,000fo r information, reported to Crime Stoppers,
that leads to on arrest in this ease, or any unsolvedfelony crime, any you need not give your name. Call
Crime Stoppers at 503-823-HELP.
Bullet Just Misses Sleeping Girl
(A P )
A stray bullet ripped
through an 8-year-old g irl’s paja­
m as, but the sleeping child w earing
them w as not hit.
The bullet cam e from a gun fired
early T hursday in the Salem a p art­
ment above Brenda Rojas' bedroom ,
police said.
Sgt. M ike Scanlon said the g u n ’s
discharge m ight have been acci­
dental. Police w ere looking fo r the
occupants o f the u pstairs apart­
ment
The bul let traveled dow n through
the cei ling at an angle; then through
acolorful W innie the Pooh blanket,
R o ja's pajam as, a set o f Pooh sheets
and the g irl's m attress. It left an-
a
safety matters
gone out before to attack
hom eless people. M oran
said Patterson described the
forays to investigators as
“missions” intended to clean
up the community.
P a tte rs o n a ls o w as
c h a rg e d w ith k id n a p ­
ping and assault in the Jan.
15 attack on the hom eless
man.
o th er hole in the outside wall o f the
apartm ent.
Roja slept through the gunshot.
She w oke up w hen her m other and
gran d m o th er charged into her bed­
room to check on her.
O fficers arriving after the shoot­
ing saw people from the upstairs
ap artm ent leaving, police said.
N eighbors said the u pstairs unit
has been a source o f com plaints o f
loud parties lasting into the early
hours and people com ing and g o ­
ing at all tim es.
Inmates Released
(A P ) — T he first w ave o f in­
m ates w ere released from the dow n­
tow n ju stic e cen ter W ednesday as
state agencies across O regon b e ­
gan im plem enting spending cuts
fol low ing voters’ rejection o f a tem ­
porary incom e tax hike.
“ I t’s a party atm osphere at the
jail today,” lam ented M ultnom ah
C ounty S h e riff B ernie G iusto as he
a nnounced the release o f 31 in­
m ates — am ong 1 14 scheduled to
be freed by Thursday.
Som e o f the freed inm ates had
been in jail p ending trial. O thers
w ere serving tim e for crim es rang­
ing from assault to drug m anufac­
turing to sex abuse.
G iusto, the sheriff, said he m ay
be forced to release up to 500 in­
m ates before the end o f his budget
year in June because o f a $ I m illion
shortfall.
The inm ate release is one o f the
first cost-saving m easures to follow
the fai lure measure 28’s proposed tax
hike, put on the ballot to stave o ff
$ 3 10 m illion in spending cuts.