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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 8, 2003)
(Elje ^porthxnò ODbseruer MED Week PageA2 OREGON pT ¡¡ P olice p £ K Ò T 1 1 r October 08. 2003 Helpline (Make The Call): 800-923-HfcLP Linca de Ayuda (Spanish): 877-515-7848 Youthline (Teen Helpline): 877-553-TLEN Family Seeks $10 Million in James Death Wants jury to hear their side of story in police shooting The family o f Kendra James, the 2 1 -year-o ld A frican-A m erican woman fatally shot by a Portland police officer at a traffic stop last May, filed a wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday forSlOmillion. According to the fam ily's attor ney Ernest Warren, the civil suit names the city o f Portland, the po lice bureau, formerPoliceChiefMark Kroeker, Officer Scott McCollister, who shot James, and other two offic ers at the scene o f the shooting. McCollister was acquitted o f crim in a l w ro n g d o in g by a M ultnomah County Grand Jury, but was suspended for five-and-a-half months for decisions he made lead ing up to the May 5 shooting. Warren said that his forensics photo bv M ark W ashington /T he P ori land O bserver P o r tla n d D isarm s John Canda (left), director o f th e N o rth ea st Coalition o f N eighborhoods a n d Portland Police O fficer M ichael Leonard w ere on h a n d S a turday to ta k e in g u n s a t th e C easefire Oregon collection s ite on N o rth e a st M artin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. M ore than 3 5 0 u n w anted g u n s were turned in to six collection s ite s S a tu rd a y a t C e a se fire 's 10"’ annual g u n turn-in event. The firearm s will eventually b e m e lte d down. experts will dispute M cCollister’s distance from the car when he shot James, which has been a focal piece o f evidence and the subject o f many reenactments. McCollister claims his body was 80 percent inside thecar when James began to drive away. McCollister said he fired the fatal shot because he feared he would be dragged by the car. The family hopes their side o f the story will finally come out in open court, before a ju ry . They plan to set up a trust fund for Jam es’ young son, Melvin, with money awarded in the lawsuit. The city and police bureau de clined tocomment until they've had time to read through the lawsuit. Measure 11 Fills Prisons (AP) — After three years o f decline, the number o f Measure 11 criminals sent to Oregon prisons has surged 14 percent. State corrections officials said 716 offenders entered Oregon prisons during the 2003 fiscal year, which ended June 30. The statewide total was up from 626 in 2002,656 in 2001, and 657 in 2000. Measure 11 took effect April 1,1995. It required mandatory sentences for 21 serious felonies. The non-negotiable sentences apply to criminals 15andolder. By July 2013, there w illbe 16,481 prisoners in the state, 37 percent higher than July o f this year, corrections officials said. CRIME STOPPERS Police Track Down Armed Robber It’s not whether you win or lose, but how you play thegame • * ► The game is just a game... it’s how you play that makes it fun, or frustrating, or dangerous. It’s true for all types of games - including gambling. Less than three percent of Oregonians may have a gam bling problem - but when they play, it ’s more than a game. The way they play puts them and their fam ilies at financial and emotional risk. If playing isn’t fun anymore, call: Î 1-877-2-ST0P-N0W ■ú H« Licensed treatm ent providers are there to listen, help and make referrals to local treatm ent centers 24 hours a day. Or visit www.oregonlotteryhelp.org for: • Warning Signs • Treatment Centers • How to Get Help • Reaching Out ►► When gambling is more than a game, no one wins. t T he C la c k a m a s C o u n ty S h eriff s Office, in cooperation with Crime Stoppers, is asking for your help in identifying and ap prehending the suspect in a rob bery. On Friday, Aug. 22 at about 3:45 p.m. a man, armed with a small calib er handgun, entered the Ripplebrook Ranger Station con venience store in Estacada and robbed the clerk at gunpoint. The suspect is described as a white male, 18 to 22 years o f age, 6 feet tall and weighing approxi mately 170 pounds with a thin bui Id and course, thick, brown hair. The man had a small piercing type scar on both his left eyebrow and left earlobe and a very noticeable freckle on both his right forehead A p olice s k e tc h sh o w s a robbery su sp e c t. and under his right nose. The suspect vehicle, which was last seen westbound on Highway 224 and possibly driven by a white female, is described as possibly a' white 4-door Toyota Camry with Oregon plates. Crime Stoppers is offering a cash reward o f up to $1.000 fo r information, reported to Crime Stoppers, which leads to an arrest in this case, or any unsolved felony crime, and you need not give your name. Call Crime Stoppers at 503-823-4357. Officers Cleared of Excessive Force Jury rules hog-tying bleeding suspect was justified (AP)— A federaljuryhascleared seven Portland police officers o f excessive force charges, ruling they w erejustified in binding the ankles and wrists o f a man who was bleed ing to death. The parents o f the man, Damon Lowery, had filed a wrongful death suit against the city o f Portland and the officers, saying that hog-tying the 29-year-old had contributed to his death. During a trial that began Sept. 23, testimony showed that Lowery was under the in tl ucnce o f several drugs when officers found him in the back yard o f a house. After attacking a friend, Lowery jum ped through a window and landed on a concrete pad 12 feet below, according to testimony. Police officers said that when they ordered Lowery to show his hands, he cut his neck with a shard o f glass, then became combative. Police tried unsuccessfully to restrain him with pepper spray and bean bags, before handcuffing him, tying his ankles and fastening his ankles to his wrists. T h e c i ty ’s a tto rn e y , M ary Danford said evidence from the m edical exam iner show ed that Lowery died o f the self-inflicted neck wound, and asphyxiation was ruled out. But attorney Erik Heipt sug gested that Lowery didn't bleed to death but died o f asphyxiation after one officer stood on Lowery’sback and head for two minutes after the restraint was employed. Heipt said Lowery already was low on air from loss o f blood, the drugs and the struggle with offic ers. “Two minutes is an eternity,” Heipt said. "For Damon Lowery, it w asalifetim e.” I