Page 2
The
January 28, 2015
Week in Review
Arts Focus Falls Short at King Elementary
A new report finds that an arts education focus has failed to elevate
stagnant test scores at northeast Portland’s King Elementary. The school
remained at the bottom 5 percent of Oregon schools for achievement,
despite the assistance of an arts curriculum offered through a White House
program and actress Sarah Jessica Parker.
Oil Train Kills Man in Vancouver
A Vancouver man was struck and killed by an oil train around 2:40 a.m. on
Monday near Southeast 164th Avenue and Rivershore Drive in Vancouver.
The train was headed from North Dakota to Bellingham, Wash.
Lawsuit Filed Against State in Foster Care Rape
The Department of Human Services is being sued for $950,000 after a
Troutdale man raped his 15-year-old foster child. The lawsuit faults the
department for placing the girl in the home of Jerrett Hetrick, who pleaded
guilty to third-degree rape in October, sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison.
Car Used for ATM Heist Attempt at Walgreen’s
Police are looking for two men who crashed a pickup truck through the front
doors of the Walgreens at Northeast 33rd and Killingsworth early Tuesday
to try and steal an ATM near the entryway. An attempt was made to rob
the same store earlier this January, and in mid-December someone at-
tempted to steal an ATM from a Vancouver Walgreens in a similar fashion.
Federal Help on Homelessness Announced
The state of Oregon has received nearly $27 million to promote community
efforts to end homelessness. Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff
Merkley announced Monday that the federal funding will support over 130
programs across the state that seek to house people who struggle to keep
themselves housed.
Wolf Protections Reviewed in Oregon
Wolf protections in Oregon are officially under review after state wildlife
officials’ annual population count yielded more than four breeding pairs
for the third year in a row. Under the state’s wolf plan, the Oregon Fish and
Wildlife commission can consider removing wolves from the state’s
Endangered Species act once that population bar is met.
503-288-0033
Subscribe
$45.00 for 3 months • $80.00 for 6 mo. • $125.00
for 1 year (please include check with form)
Attn: Subscriptions, The
Portland Observer, PO Box
3137, Portland OR 97208.
N AME :
T ELEPHONE :
A DDRESS :
Official says Wilson won’t be charged
Decision has
not been
confirmed
(AP) — The FBI completed its
investigation into the police shoot-
ing of Michael Brown the un-
armed, black 18-year-old killed in
a confrontation with a police of-
ficer in Ferguson, Missouri, a
justice department official not
authorized to discuss the case by
name, told The Associated Press
last week.
But on Tuesday, the Justice
Department still had not yet an-
nounced whether it will file a
federal civil rights charge against
former Ferguson police officer
Darren Wilson. Other officials
and experts have said such a pros-
ecution would be highly unlikely,
in part because of the extraordi-
narily high legal standard federal
prosecutors would need to meet.
The New York Times reported
last Wednesday that Justice De-
partment lawyers were preparing
a memo recommending against
prosecuting Wilson, and that At-
torney General Eric Holder —
who is expected to leave his posi-
tion within weeks — had not yet
made a decision.
Wilson, who is white, was
cleared in November by a state
grand jury in the Aug. 9 death of
Brown, a shooting that touched
off protests in the streets and
Darren Wilson in a hosptial photo after shooting.
became part of a national conver-
sation about race relations and
police departments that patrol
minority neighborhoods.
Wilson, who shot Brown af-
ter a scuffle in the middle of a
street, told the St. Louis County
grand jury that spent months
reviewing the case that he feared
for his life during the confron-
tation and that Brown struck
him in the face and reached for
his gun. Some witnesses have
said Brown had his hands up
when Wilson shot him.
A separate, broader Justice De-
partment-led investigation into the
practices of the Ferguson police
department remains open. That
investigation, which will examine
potential discriminatory practices
among officers, has the potential
to have more sweeping conse-
quences than any individual crimi-
nal prosecution, experts say.
Benjamin Crump, a lawyer for
Brown's family, said in a state-
ment that the family would not
address speculation from anony-
mous officials and was waiting
for an official Justice Department
announcement.
Police Reform Oversight Panel Named
or email subscriptions@portlandobserver.com
Fritz outlines
public process
Twenty members, plus several
alternates have been selected to
serve on a panel that has been
charged with monitoring the im-
plantation of the city of Portland’s
Settlement Agreement on police
reforms with the U.S. Depart-
ment of Justice.
“I am thrilled with the expertise
and range of experiences repre-
sented by the members on this
important oversight committee,”
Commissioner Amanda Fritz,
who worked with Mayor Hales to
Established 1970
P UBLISHER :
E DITOR :
Mark Washington, Sr.
Michael Leighton
E XECUTIVE D IRECTOR :
Rakeem Washington
O FFICE M ANAGER /C LASSIFIEDS : Lucinda Baldwin
C REATIVE D IRECTOR : P a u l
USPS 959-680
R EPORTER /P HOTOGRAPHER Olivia Olivia
with people who have or are per-
ceived to have mental illness. The
Community Oversight Advisory
Board will be comprised of 15
voting community members and
five advisory members from the
Portland Police Bureau.
The panel will meet regularly to
assess the implementation of the
agreement, and make recommen-
dations regarding changes to
policy and practices to implement
reforms.
The group’s meetings are open
to the public, including a Feb. 2
training session and regular ses-
sion on Feb. 9 at the Midland
Library, 805 S.E. 122nd Ave.
4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland, OR 97211
The Portland Observer welcomes freelance submissions. Manuscripts and photographs should be clearly labeled and will be returned if accompanied
by a self addressed envelope. All created design display ads become the sole property of the newspaper and cannot be used in other publications or
personal usage without the written consent of the general manager, unless the client has purchased the composition of such ad. © 2008 THE PORT-
LAND OBSERVER. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED. The
Portland Observer--Oregon’s Oldest Multicultural Publication--is a member of the National Newspaper Association--Founded in 1885, and The
National Advertising Representative Amalgamated Publishers, Inc, New York, NY, and The West Coast Black Publishers Association
Neufeldt
A DVERTISING M ANAGER : Leonard Latin
support the community selection
process, announced Monday.
“I thank the Human Rights Com-
mission, Portland Commission on
Disability, State Representative
Lew Frederick, and all the com-
munity leaders on the Selection
Committee, for demonstrating
Portlanders’ capacity to get things
done expeditiously and with good
public process. A wonderful Com-
munity Oversight Advisory Board
has been appointed. Now, the hard
work really begins,” Fritz said.
The Settlement Agreement calls
for reform to Portland Police
Bureau policies and training, par-
ticularly related to interactions
news@portlandobserver.com
CALL 503-288-0033 FAX 503-288-0015
ads@portlandobserver.com
subscription@portlandobserver.com
P OSTMASTER : Send address changes to Portland Observer , PO Box 3137 , Portland, OR 97208