Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current, August 04, 2010, Page 17, Image 17

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    ri,. | ì ort|a„ì» OObsf ruer_____________________
August 4,2010___________________________
Police Unity Pledge
c o n t i n u e d f r o m front
appointed Reese.
T urner, a 19-year veteran of the
force, was elected president of
the police union last month. He is
the first African American to hold
the position. His predecessor, Sgt.
Scott Westerman, recently re­
signed after being involved in two
widely-publicized road rage inci­
dents.
Controversy also erupted late
last year, when the police union
held a massive demonstration and
a vote of no confidence on Sizer
and then-Police Commissioner
Dan Saltzman after a controver­
sial police officer was suspended
for shooting a girl at a MAX stop
with a beanbag gun.
Both Reese and Turner said
that they want to work together in
their respective capacities for the
good of police morale and the
public.
"A lot of times when we defend
our members, we defend the poli­
cies and procedures of Portland
Police Bureau also, and we want
everyone to know that we're go­
ing to do our best to not only to
work toward a safer Portland, but
a better work environment for our
officers," said Turner.
Turner and Reese had just fin­
ished up a July 28 patrol of Old
Town before stopping to talk to
reporters. Reese noted that many
people along the ride were well
acquainted with Turner.
"He's been committed to this
area for a long time and you can
tell that people are already miss­
ing him," said Reese, who also
noted that he had worked with
Turner on the Drugs and Vice
D ivision and w hile Reese
was commander at Central Pre­
cinct.
Turner said that his biggest
priority as union president was
wrapping up negotiations over its
labor contract with the city. He
also said that he wanted to keep
the lines of communication open
with the police management and
the community it serves.
"Besides the contract, the big­
gest challenge, again, is not for
our officers to do anything differ­
ently because they do it every­
day. They go out there, they en­
gage the community, they talk to
people, they give them informa­
tion," added Turner.
He also said that he would keep
his ear to the ground to get a
sense of the concerns of officers,
and would be present at neigh­
borhood association meetings lis­
tening to Portlanders.
Reese said that when he first
began his career in law enforce­
ment, much of the work was cen­
tered around violent crime. How­
ever, it's now shifted to dealing
with more social issues, he said.
During the patrol he had just fin­
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ished up with Turner he had to call
in mental health workers to deal
with a mentally ill person sleeping
in a park.
"That is the type of work offic­
ers are having to do now. It's dif­
ficult; it's a tough environment,"
he said.
Turner acknowledged that fund-
ing for mental health services has
been "gutted," and police are of­
ten the first to deal with these
issues. Just the same day, City
Council approved a record $1.6
million settlement with the family
of James Chasse, a schizophrenic
man who died during an encoun­
ter with the police.
The day after the settlement
Turner released a statement de­
fending the officers involved in
the incident, saying that they had
followed their training and were
not at fault.
He was also asked about recent
moves by City Council to bring
greater oversight to the police,
which he has sharply criticized in
the union's new sletter, "Rap
Sheet."
"Well I think there is going to
be change. But I also think we'll be
able to open the lines of commu­
nication. I think they're passion­
ate about what they do, serving
the public, and I think we're pas­
sionate about what we do," said
Turner, who noted that police still
have good judgment and he would
stick up for them.
Page 17
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