Page 2 The Skanner January 25, 2017
®
Challenging People to Shape
a Better Future Now
Opinion
It’s Time to Sunset Portland’s 48-Hour Rule
Bobbie Dore Foster
Executive Editor
T
Jerry Foster
Advertising Manager
Christen McCurdy
News Editor
Patricia Irvin
Graphic Designer
Melanie Sevcenko
Reporter
Monica J. Foster
Seattle Office Coordinator
Susan Fried
Photographer
2017
MERIT
AWARD
WINNER
The Skanner Newspaper, es-
tablished in October 1975, is a
weekly publication, published
every Wednesday by IMM Publi-
cations Inc.
415 N. Killingsworth St.
P.O. Box 5455
Portland, OR 97228
his week Mayor Ted
Wheeler will ask Port-
land City Commissioners
to end the hated 48-hour
rule.
For anyone who still doesn’t
know how it works, the rule
means police officers who kill
do not have to explain what
happened until 48 hours lat-
er.
Former Mayor Hales nego-
tiated with the police associ-
ation to end the rule in a new
contract that included a sub-
stantial pay raise for officers.
But after Multnomah Coun-
“
The mayor is
right to do ev-
erything pos-
sible to end the
48-hour rule
ty DA Rod Underhill and the
Oregon Department of Justice
expressed fears that dropping
the rule would make it impos-
sible to prosecute police who
misused their powers, they
are considering reinstating
and possibly extending the
rule beyond 48 hours.
DA Underhill and the
Bernie Foster
Publisher
The Skanner
DOJ based their opinion on
1980s-era case law. But the
Lawyers Guild and others
disagree. Meanwhile, Wheel-
er says a new ordinance that
walls off internal from crim-
inal investigations has a good
chance of succeeding in court.
His plan is to test the new law
immediately.
The mayor is right to do ev-
erything possible to end the
48-hour rule.
We, the citizens of Portland,
give police officers the right
to use deadly force when nec-
essary. That right comes with
a responsibility to be trans-
parent and accountable about
how those decisions are made.
And that means being ready
to answer for their actions —
immediately — not days after
the facts have begun to blur.
We train our police officers,
pay them a decent wage with
a substantial pension, and
provide them with the right
equipment for the job. We try
to foster a police culture that
works with our communities
VIDEO STILL
Bernie Foster
Founder/Publisher
Charleston police officer Michael Slager checks Walter Scott for pulse after the
officer shot him five times in the back.
to keep everyone safe.
What we cannot do is legis-
late the courage and the char-
acter it takes to police our
streets without fear or prej-
udice. That’s up to individual
officers. And if an officer can-
not do that, perhaps he or she
would do better in another
line of work.
We would never allow a
suspect extra time to think
through their story before
making them tell us what hap-
pened. We don’t say they need
time to process the trauma of
having shot someone. That
would be ridiculous and it’s
the same with our public ser-
vants.
The Skanner News applauds
the mayor and we urge the
other commissioners to back
his plan.
It’s time to sunset the 48-
hour rule for good.
We want to hear from you.
What do you think?
Telephone (503) 285-5555
Fax: (503) 285-2900
info@theskanner.com
www.TheSkanner.com
The Skanner is a member of the
National Newspaper Pub lishers
Association and West Coast Black
Pub lishers Association.
All photos submitted become
the property of The Skanner. We
are not re spon sible for lost or
damaged photos either solicited
or unsolicited.
©2017 The Skanner. All rights re served. Reproduction in
whole or in part without permission prohibited.
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Welcoming Immigrants Keeps America Great
P
resident Donald Trump
was elected on his pledge
to make America great
again. Yet, for all of his
rhetoric, he seems to have
forgotten the men and wom-
en, from every corner of the
globe, who have worked so
hard to build the great coun-
try we see today.
President Trump leads a na-
tion of immigrants, yet part of
his plan involves suspending
our country’s refugee pro-
gram and barring immigrants
from six predominantly Mus-
lim countries.
“
It’s a policy
that is not
only unsafe;
it’s unlawful,
uninformed,
and un-Amer-
ican
It’s a policy that is not only
unsafe; it’s unlawful, unin-
formed, and un-American.
Many of the most shameful
periods in our nation’s his-
tory were those in which we
permitted hatred and fear of
the “Other” to shape our pub-
lic policy. Beginning with slav-
ery — which took a civil war
to overcome — to the denial of
entry to Jews fleeing Nazism,
or the internment of Japanese
Rep. André
Carson
D-Ind.
Americans, today these mo-
ments are correctly judged
as shameful departures from
our core values. Right now,
we face one of those moments.
President Trump’s ban is
affecting millions; mothers
with young children, family
members trying to reach their
loved ones who are already
here, and those desperately
fleeing for their lives. These
people look to America as a
land of hope and opportuni-
ty, where they can build new
lives away from the violence
and persecution they face in
their home countries. To turn
them away at our doorstep is
cruel.
This policy degrades our
alliances with countries we
rely on in the war against ISIS
— most of which are majority
Muslim. We cannot ask for
their assistance while simul-
taneously insulting their re-
ligion and questioning their
reliability. This policy, born
out of fear rather than a se-
curity strategy, threatens our
friendships, fuels terrorist
propaganda, and supports
the false narrative that the
West is waging a war against
Islam. It makes us a target for
terrorism rather than keep-
ing us safe.
As a member of the House
Intelligence Committee, I
know better than most the
“
This policy
degrades our
alliances with
countries we
rely on in the
war against
ISIS—most of
which are ma-
jority Muslim
wide array of threats our
country faces every day. We
cannot ignore them. But forc-
ing an entire population to
shoulder the blame is unjust
and does nothing but divide
us further.
This ban is not an effective
way to protect Americans.
Instead, we should be invest-
ing in our intelligence pro-
fessionals, who can analyze
information and develop
calculated responses in re-
al-time. Additionally, we can
further strengthen our im-
migrant vetting processes to
better weed out any legiti-
mate threats without categor-
ically denying a safe haven
for those who need our help
the most. We should be focus-
ing on real tools to keep our
country safe, relying on facts
and analysis instead of unin-
formed biases.
Since our founding, our
country has struggled with
discrimination and inequali-
ty. But experience has shown
us that those pushing fear
and hatred have been proven
wrong time after time. And
with each challenge we have
overcome, it has become in-
creasingly clear that our
country is stronger when we
embrace diversity of all types.
Today, immigrants from all
parts of the world and people
of all faiths have been central
to our economic success, vi-
brant democratic discourse,
and cultural richness. We
must keep America great by
embracing immigrants and
refugees, not turning them
away.
Rep. André Carson rep-
resents the 7th District of Indi-
ana. He is First Vice Chair of
the Congressional Black Cau-
cus and one of two Muslims in
Congress. Rep. Carson sits on
the House Intelligence Com-
mittee and the House Trans-
portation and Infrastructure
Committee. Follow Rep. Carson
on Twitter @RepAndreCarson.
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