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Calls for Healing Follow Michigan Riots
¿STOPPERS
Help Sought in Murder
Portland Police Bureau Homi
cide Investigators, in cooperation
with Crime Stoppers, are asking
for your help in solving a murder.
On Tuesday, June 10, at about
4:20 a.m., a security guard found
the body o f 43-year-old Christine
"Chris” lone Lawson on the side
walk o f Northwest Second Av
enue b etw een B u rn sid e and
Couch. An autopsy determined
she died from strangulation.
Authorities said Lawson lived
a transient lifestyle and frequented
the downtown area.
At the time o f her death, she
was wearing a black leather waist-
length jacket, purple sweater and
Christine lone Lawson
blue jeans. She may have also
been carrying a black purse, black
wallet and miscellaneous identifi
cation that were not found at the
crime scene.
Crime Stoppers is offering u cash rewurd o f up to SI.000 for
information, reported to Crime Stoppers, that leads to un arrestili
this ease, or any unsolved felony crime, and you need not give your
name. Call Crime Stoppers at 503-823-4357.
Loved Ones Help
Transition to Freedom
The Multnomah County Depart
ment o f Community Justice and
Citizens United for Rehabilitation
o f Errants are sponsoring a series
oforientations for fami ly and friends
o f inmates who will be released
within six months to post-prison
supervision in Multnomah County.
The sessions cover conditions
for release and supervision, success
ful transition and how friends and
family can help someone recently
released from prison. They are de
signed to help friends and family
members understand the goals and
requirements o f post-prison super
vision so that their loved ones will
have a better chance o f succeeding
after they are released.
“We know that having positive
social relationships can help re
duce the risk that an offender will
commit new crimes, said Joanne
Fuller, director for the Department
ofCommunity Justice "The Friends
and Family group gives inmates a
firm footing back home and the
chance to get support as they start
their lives over."
The orientations will be held on
Thursdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on
June 26, July 24, Aug. 28, Sept. 25,
Oct. 23, Nov. 13, and Dec. 11 at 5 0 1
S.E. Hawthorne Blvd. For more in
formation, call 503-988-3081. exten
sion 22103.
Tim Buels (left), Patrice Allen, Patrick Drake, Kirk Ward, and Brian McKinney talk about the mood o f the community in Benton
Harbor, Mich., Thursday, after two nights o f rioting. The death o f a black motorcyclist during a police chase ignited the violence in
this city that for years has struggled with poverty, high unemployment and racial tensions. (AP photo)
stance. Those w ho are torching
the buildings, they, too, need
help.”
Jack so n 's visit cam e after the
second relatively peaceful night
in this southw estern M ichigan
city o f 12,000, follow ing two
nights o f riots and high tensions.
(A P) — The Rev. Jesse Jack-
He spoke later at a Benton H ar
son said resid en ts o f B enton bor com m unity center, telling
H arbor, M ich. - even those re about 200 people that they should
sponsible for nighttim e rioting “turn tragedy into trium ph.”
last week - need to com e together
“W e’ll turn this crisis into an
for a period o f healing.
opportunity,” Jackson said.
“ People need healing. They
A pparent arson fires burned
need hope, and they need faith,” five buildings Friday m orning
the civil rights activist said F ri near the site o f the riots that
day m orning after a closed-door erupted earlier this week after a
m eeting with police and com m u m otorcyclist was killed in a crash
nity officials. "F aith has sub w hile fleeing police.
On T hursday, the city began
Fata, police
chase touched
off racial
unrest
dem olishing 40 vacant buildings,
including som e that w ere burned
during the riots, s h e r iff s spokes
man Deputy Chris C orteville said.
Several hundred officers p a
trolled streets for the third night
in a row. Some local officers were
given a break after officials de
cided it w ould be safe and state
tr o o p e r s s ta y e d on d u ty ,
C orteville said.
Benton Harbor, a city o f 12,000
people about 100 miles northeast o f
Chicago, is 92 percent black. Since
the rioting, many residents have
said they distrust police officers,
particularly white officers.
The m otorcyclist w ho died,
T errance Shurn, 28, w as black.
The police officers from n eigh
boring B enton T ow nship w ho
pursued him into B enton H ar
bor, w here he lost control o f his
bike and crashed, are white.
The subsequent rioting in
v o lv e d h u n d re d s o f p eo p le
roam ing a six-to eight-block
area, setting fires and attacking
passers-by, police officers and
firefighters. At least 11 people
w ere hurt, and nine people were
arrested.
On Thursday afternoon, Gov.
Jennifer G ranholm had what she
called pow erful, frank meetings
w ith com m unity leaders, and
also m et separately w ith police
and S h u m ’s fam ily.
She called for reconciliation
and healing. “The state must
w rap its arm s around this com
m unity,” she said.
Burlingame Grocer Guilty of Arson
(AP) — A grocery store owner
has been convicted on one count
o f arson and faces seven years in
prison for torching his southwest
Portland business almost two years
ago.
The jury deadlocked on a sec
ond arson charge against Thomas
Calkins, owner o f Burl ingame Gro
cery.
A fuzzy store surveillance tape
was recorded shortly before the fire
broke out. Prosecutors said the vid
eotape showed Calkins in the store.
But defense lawyers maintained the
identity o f the person was less than
certain.
Prosecutors contend C alkins
was facing financial problems and
intentionally set the blaze to collect
a $ l million insurance policy.
Fires Destroy Montavilla Businesses
( A P)— Investigators are search
ing through the debris o f two com
mercial fires in the Montavilla neigh
borhood o f east Portland that hap
pened one day apart from each
other, within blocks from each other
— and at about the same time o f day earlier, a four-alarm fire gut
day.
ted a toy and gift shop about six
A three-alarm fire gutted a fur blocks away.
niture store, an adult video store
Both fires occurred about 5 a.m.
and a night club housed on 79th and both had engulfed the build
and G lisan streets June 18. The ings when firefighters arrived.
Teacher Charged with Sexual Misconduct
(AP)— A Skyview High tech
nology teacher in Vancouver is
accused o f having a sexual rela
tionship with a !6-orl7-year-old
female student.
One count o f sexual misconduct
with a minor has been filed against
2 4 -y e a r-o ld Jam es H arris o f
Vancouver.
He is scheduled to appear in Clark
County Superior Court July 24th.
Harris was placed on administra
tive leave from the Vancouver
School District in March when the
accusation first surfaced.
Rodney King pleads innocent in PCP case
(AP) — Rodney King, whose influenceofPCP.
videotaped beating by police offic
Police said King raced through a
ers sparked the Los Angeles riots R ialto i ntersection at more than 100
o f 1992, has pleaded innocent to mph on April 13 before losing con
charges stemming from an Apri I car trol, striking a utility pole, careen
crash.
ing into a fence and hitting a house.
King pleaded innocent to one King suffered a fractured pelvis
misdemeanor count each o f reck and cracked ribs.
less driving, driving under the in-
Authorities said tests revealed
fl uence o f PC P and being under the he had PCP in his system.
He was ordered to return to court
July 9 for a pretrial hearing.
Outside court. King acknowl
edged he “may have been speed
ing a bit” but denied being under
the influence o f drugs or alcohol.
He said he lost control o f the car
when he hit potholes on a poorly
maintained street in Rialto, where
he now lives.
Police Review Board Seeks Volunteers
The Independent Police Review pating in orientation and training
D ivision o f the P ortland C ity about policing, advising on com
Auditor's Office is seeking volun plaint handling, working with IPR
teers to serve on theCitizen Review staff to conduct in-depth policy
Committee.
reviews related to the Police Bu
The principal duties will include reau and gathering community con
making objective decisions when cerns about police policies and pro
citizens appeal the results o f police cedures.
misconduct investigations, partici
Applications are available at
www.ci.portland.or.us/auditor/ipr.
Call IPR Deputy Director Michael
Hess with questions at 503-823-
4126.
Officials in the auditor's office
said every attempt would be made
to select qualified persons repre
senting the demographic and eth
nic diversity o f Portland.