Page 2
March 18, 2015
Shields Pulls Bill for Judge Rules for Teen in Arrest
Reason of Ethics
M ichael L eighton
T he P ortland O bserver
An ethical dilemma has pushed
a Portland lawmaker to back down
from legislation that could benefit
him personally.
State Sen. Chip Shields, who
represents north and northeast
Portland, has been known more
for his support of social justice
issues during his 10 years in the
Legislature than on promoting
new regulations on the construc-
tion industry.
But last week, his support for
proposed legislation to require
biodegradable lubricants in pub-
licly funded construction and
maintenance projects evaporated
when the Willamette Week re-
ported Shields’ family ties and
employment with Schaeffer Spe-
cialty Lubricants, a multimillion
dollar company based in St. Louis
that makes the product.
Shields responded by saying
by
he made a mistake to promote the
bill, not based on the environmen-
tal merits of the legislation but in
hindsight for the possible conflict
of interest it posed with him per-
sonally. He asked another north
and northeast Portland lawmaker,
fellow Democrat Lew Frederick,
to drop efforts to carry the bill on
his behalf.
The public revelation that
Shields works as a sales executive
for Schaeffer, where his father,
brother and cousin are all top ex-
ecutives, may also be a surprise to
many of his constituents.
Before starting his political ca-
reer, Shields honed his credentials
in the African American commu-
nity by overseeing Better People,
a social services non-profit that
helped give former inmates a sec-
ond chance at employment. He list-
ed his work as manger of his wife’s
medical clinic, Hands on Medicine,
when he last ran for office in 2012.
A Roosevelt High School stu-
dent has won his case in court
after being arrested by Portland
Police during a disturbance last
summer in the St. Johns commu-
nity of north Portland.
Thai Gurule, held his moth-
er tightly as Judge Diana Stuart
A school disciple program
at Cesar Chavez Elementa-
ry School in north Portland
has been suspended pending
a school district investigation
because of complaints by some
parents.
The program punished stu-
dents who ran into trouble by im-
posing manual labor, including
cleaning up after other students
Week
in
Review
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by bystanders.
The case was watched closely
by Portland’s African-American
community, which involved three
Portland officers wrestling the
young Gurule to the ground before
punching, kicking, and eventually
using a Taser on the high-schooler.
Disciple Program Upsets Parents
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P ublisher :
acquitted the 16-year-old boy of
resisting arrest last week. Instead,
Stuart came down on the officers,
rejecting their claims that the teen-
ager strangled and assaulted them.
She said police were “senseless
and aggressive” on the night of the
arrest which was recorded on video
and picking up trash during lunch
or recess breaks.
Christine Miles, a Portland
Public Schools spokeswoman,
said the program was intended
to be “restorative,” providing the
school an alternative to suspen-
sions and expulsions, which Su-
perintendent Carole Smith has
mandated local schools try to curb
to keep students learning in the
classroom.
Some parents and community
members are concerned that the
discipline imposed by school au-
thorities at Cesar Chavez seems
unfair and carries racist under-
tones, especially since Afri-
can-American and Latino students
have historically been over-repre-
sented in school punishment ac-
tions.
Advocate Remembered
an in downtown Portland Monday
morning when it tried to make
a turn while a man crossed the
street on a walk signal, police
said. The pedestrian lost one of
his legs and was hospitalized in
critical condition.
Former Portland
City Commission-
er and Oregon leg-
islator
Gretchen
Kafoury died Fri-
day at the age of
72. Kafoury was
known for her ad-
vocacy of housing issues. She was
also a professor at Portland State
University until 2008. She died
peacefully of natural causes in her
downtown home, family members
said.
Teen Charged in Shooting
A 16-year-old boy was ar-
raigned Monday afternoon on an
allegation of attempted murder
stemming from a shooting Satur-
day night in front of the Portland
Police Bureau’s East Precinct. A
bullet struck the precinct, but no
one was injured. Police are accus-
UW Fraternity Accused
Another fraternity is making head- ing the boy of having shot at some
lines for its anti black discrimina- rival gang members after a sweet
tion. University of Washington 16 party that night.
fraternity chapter of Sigma Al-
Winds Cause Damages
pha Epsilon faces allegations that
Heavy rains and strong winds
some of its members used racial
combined to create problems in
slurs against black demonstrators.
the Portland area on Sunday. Res-
The Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter
idents reported trees down, along
at the University of Oklahoma was
with some dozens of broken pow-
recently shut down after a video
er lines. Portland General Electric
showed members singing white
reported 45,000 customers with-
supremacist lyrics went viral.
out power on Sunday, without
about 7,000 people still without
PSU Approves Tuition Hike
Portland State University last power Monday morning.
week approved a 4.2 percent tui-
Massive Tire Slashing
tion increase for Oregon students
A northeast Portland transporta-
starting this fall, citing a lack of
tion company was targeted over
state financial support. The in-
the weekend when someone
crease combined with a proposed
slashed 72 tires on 26 different ve-
$4.7 million cut in Portland State’s
hicles, nearly wiping out its entire
spending next academic year is
fleet. SAFE Transportation, off
necessary to balance the budget,
102nd and Northeast Halsey, is a
officials stated.
family-owned company provid-
ing specialized transportation to
Garbage Truck Hits Man
A garbage truck struck a pedestri- school and medical appointments.
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