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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