Not Policing Themselves – Lawsuits: The Only Real Discipline for Portland Cops?

From the Portland Mercury, September 30 2009

Police Chief Rosie Sizer finally released the findings of an internal review of the 2006 death in custody of James Chasse—a man suffering from schizophrenia—last week, finding barely any wrongdoing by her officers.

The Portland Police Bureau’s internal Use of Force Review Board found that Officer Christopher Humphreys and Sergeant Kyle Nice did not violate any bureau policies by chasing Chasse, tackling him to the ground, and beating him on the sidewalk, in front of witnesses, until he was unconscious.

Perhaps most controversial of all, the chief released a statement saying: “There is no evidence in any report or witness statement that caused members of the Use of Force Review Board to conclude that any officer at the scene knew or should have known that Mr. Chasse had suffered a serious physical injury.”

Court documents and witness transcripts obtained by the Mercury tell a different story. State Medical Examiner Karen Gunson found 48 separate abrasions on Chasse’s body, including 16 possible blows to the head. Several witnesses described Chasse’s screams during his struggle with police, before going unconscious.

“He seemed like a scared animal,” said witness Melissa Jane Gaylord. Electrician Tony Lee Carter “thought [Chasse] was dead” for the period during which Chasse was unconscious on the sidewalk. Bike lawyer Mark Ginsberg, another witness, said: “I did hear Mr. Chasse yelling, ‘mercy, mercy, mercy,’ and that was personally pretty disturbing to me.”

Witnesses were shocked Chasse wasn’t taken to the hospital in an ambulance. Local developer Homer Williams said Chasse looked like a “bag of bones” when police put him in a squad car. Meanwhile Lou Reiter, former deputy police chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, described the officers’ use of force as “unreasonable,” and their failure to disclose to paramedics the force used on Chasse as “unreasonable,” during depositions in a lawsuit being brought by the Chasse family against the police bureau, earlier this year.

The only person at fault in the whole affair was Sergeant Nice, according to the internal review board, for failing to transport Chasse to the hospital after the deployment of a Taser by Sheriff’s Deputy Bret Burton during the struggle. Sizer and Police Commissioner Dan Saltzman will now co-sign a letter ordering Nice suspended for an as-yet-determined period of time. Nice will have the opportunity to appeal the suspension if he chooses.

Saltzman had no comment on the findings on Wednesday, September 23, but told the Mercury: “We certainly regret Mr. Chasse’s death.”

“Nice’s suspension could be 10 minutes long,” says Jason Renaud of the Mental Health Association of Portland. “The question is whether there is some sort of punitive measure that will cause police officers to not do this in the future.

“When police officers do the right thing as per policy and per training, and yet someone ends up dead, there is something wrong,” Renaud continues. “That problem has not been solved yet, and it seems to be that the only way to solve that is by the penalty afforded from a civil trial.”

In other words, it would seem the only way to fairly punish Portland’s cops for excessive force is to take them to court.

Just ask Frank Waterhouse—the cops’ internal review recommended no discipline for the officers who Tasered and shot him with less-lethal ammunition without warning in October 2006. Waterhouse had been filming the officers as they searched for a jaywalker at a Northeast Portland garage where he was working as an apprentice.

Waterhouse, who was cleared of all charges relating to the incident, wasn’t satisfied with the Use of Force Review Board’s findings, and took the officers to court. Two weeks ago he won a settlement of $55,000 after a jury agreed that the officers’ use of force was indeed excessive. Waterhouse had only sought $30,000 in the suit, but the jury awarded him almost twice as much.

Perhaps most surprising of all in the case was the identity of Waterhouse’s star witness: Chief Sizer.

Sizer testified for Waterhouse, against her own Use of Force Review Board’s findings, and against the city, arguing that the officers had ample time to coordinate their efforts so Waterhouse wasn’t hit with two weapons at once, and that they had plenty of time to give warning. Sizer also told the jury Waterhouse was not actively resisting, a requirement for the use of a beanbag round, which is fired from a 12-guage shotgun.

“It blew my mind, really,” Waterhouse says. “I couldn’t believe that somebody from their side actually looked at my case and determined that they went overboard.”

Sizer declined comment on her decision to testify against the internal review board’s findings by press time, but it certainly sets an uncomfortable precedent for police officers working the street.

“These officers felt blindsided by the chief in court,” says Portland Police Association boss Scott Westerman, who adds that mitigating circumstances for the force used on Waterhouse were excluded from the court testimony—they thought Waterhouse was the jaywalker they were looking for, he says.

“The circumstances to which these officers were responding were minimized by the attorney,” he adds.

Waterhouse’s attorney, Benjamin Haile, says Westerman’s remarks are “insulting” to juries because they assume that the public can’t understand the work that police do.

“In my experience, people on juries are very willing to give police officers the benefit of the doubt, very willing to assume they’re doing the best they can,” Haile says. “A trial is a time to get the entire truth out in the open. The officers are not going to be held responsible for their actions unless all of those people agree that what they did was wrong.”

A federal trial related to Chasse’s death is due to begin in March 2010. The Chasse family’s attorney, Tom Steenson, issued a statement last week about the Use of Force Review Board’s findings, but declined further comment under the terms of a court protective order.

From the Oregonian, September 30 2009

A volunteer with the Mental Health Association of Portland this morning urged the city council to press the Portland police chief to release the full internal inquiry into James P. Chasse Jr.’s death.

“Our organization and thousands of people in Portland believe injustice has prevailed, that a fair hearing on what happened to James Chasse has not occurred,” Jason Renaud told the council.

Renaud’s remarks come about two weeks after the third anniversary of Chasse’s death in police custody on Sept. 17, 2006.

Last week, Chief Rosie Sizer announced that she found that a sergeant was the only one who violated policy in connection with the police arrest of Chasse, by failing to send Chasse to a hospital after police used a Taser stun gun on him. The officers who struggled with Chasse as they tried to take him into custody acted according to bureau policy, the chief found.

Chasse, 42, who suffered from schizophrenia, was knocked to the ground by police who said he ran from them when they approached because they saw him possibly urinating in the street. Chasse suffered 26 breaks to 16 ribs, some of which punctured his left lung. He died from blunt force trauma to the chest. He also suffered 46 separate abrasions or contusions on his body, including six to the head and 19 strikes to the torso. If he had been taken to a hospital right away, he likely would have survived, the state medical examiner testified during a deposition. Instead, he was taken to jail after ambulance medics said his vital signs were normal. The jail refused to book him, and police transported him to a hospital. He died on the way.

“What’s occurred is impunity,” Renaud said this morning. “The message delivered is a brutal beating and death of a person with a mental illness, even one with caregivers, friends, family, a home, a clean record, is acceptable within the Portland Police Bureau….It should be unacceptable to you.”

Renaud also called on the council to take the three officers involved off the street; reduce the use of Tasers on people with mental illness; restart the Chief’s Forum, a bi-monthly meeting between the police chief and community representatives that Sizer discontinued; press the state legislature for increased funding for mental health services; and establish ongoing public meetings between police senior staff and people with mental illness.

Police Commissioner Dan Saltzman had a previously scheduled appointment, and was not present during Renaud’s talk. Commissioner Amanda Fritz, who oversees the Office of Human Relations, said she’d work to improve police -community relations.

Mayor Sam Adams responded, telling Renaud, “We thank you for your thoughtful testimony.”

Sgt. Scott Westerman, president of the Portland Police Association, said afterwards that he supports Renaud’s push for more police interaction with mental health advocates, and the release of the internal affairs inquiry, when it’s possible considering the ongoing federal lawsuit against the police by Chasse’s family.

But Westerman said Renaud and others should stop focusing on the three officers who were involved in the Chasse case. “The simple fact is based on our training, and the fact that these officers were found to have acted according to bureau policy, any three officers would have likely had the same outcome.”

From the Portland Mercury, September 30, 2009

The Portland Police Association has hired the same public relations firm as Merritt Paulson did for Major League Soccer, just in time to deal with the fallout from the inquiry into James Chasse Jr‘s death. Greg Peden and Shannon Berg from Gallatin Public Affairs were in council this morning with PPA boss Scott Westerman to listen to Jason Renaud from the Mental Health Association of Portland accuse the city of “impunity” related to Chasse’s death in police custody back in 2006. Gallatin worked with former mayor of Portland, Vera Katz, on the MLS deal, and Westerman said he would consult with Peden and Berg before commenting on Renaud’s remarks. We’ll update you as soon as we have a comment from the PPA.

Update, 12:51: Westerman says the PPA “wholeheartedly agrees” with Renaud’s request for better collaboration and dialog between the mental health community and the Portland Police Bureau. “It would be beneficial for all involved.”

“The issue that the PPA has with Renaud’s seven requests is that he is specifically focusing on the three officers. If they’re going to pull those three officers from patrol, the city may as well pull all police officers from the street,” Westerman says. “Because any officer on the Portland Police Bureau that was present in that situation would have likely had the same same outcome. The officers followed the bureau’s policy and procedures. The simple fact is that the three officers are being singled out in this tragic situation.”

Original post:“I’m not surprised the PPA has hired a public relations firm,” says Renaud, in response. “I think they’re in trouble. They’ve made an enormous public relations mistake by siding with three guys against 900. They’ve lost the media, they’ve lost the public trust, and even the commenters on the Portland Tribune’s website have turned against them.”

Renaud called on city council to remove the three Police officers involved in Chasse’s death from active duty this morning, along with six other actions to restore public trust. “The majority of police officers are well trained, and do an excellent job,” he said. “They do not make mistakes like these officers did.”

“Our organization and thousands of people in Portland believe injustice has prevailed, that a fair hearing on what happened to James Chasse has not occurred,” Renaud said to council this morning. “The final opportunity for intervention was a internal review of the officer’s actions, and a decision whether those actions were within the policy of the police bureau. After three years the bureau distributed a press release citing reasons their review was late. A minor technicality was found, so minor punishment may occur.”

“What’s occurred is impunity,” he continued. “The message delivered is a brutal beating and death of a person with a mental illness, even one with caregivers, friends, family, a home, a clean record, is acceptable within the Portland Police Bureau.”

Renaud called on council this morning to:

1.Release the full internal investigation of what happened to James Chasse – not a press release;
2. Move the three officers involved with the death of James Chasse – Humphreys, Nice and Burton - off patrol duty;
3. Make a goal to reducing the use of Tasers on persons with mental illness by 50% per year for the next five years;
4. Reopen the Chief’s Forum;
5. Form a joint effort by local governments and local police bureaus with mental health advocates to seek full funding for mental health services from the state legislature;
6. Open a sincere, staffed and ongoing public meeting between police senior staff and persons with mental illness;
7. Release the Crisis Intervention Team curriculum to public inspection, release data about police encounters with persons with mental illness.

“We expect council to do these seven actions,” says Renaud. “We’ll give them until the middle of next week. They are fairly simple, straightforward actions to take and will really help begin the rebuilding process.”

City Commissioner Amanda Fritz thanked Renaud for his remarks, apologizing for Police Commissioner Dan Saltzman’s “scheduled absence.” “I’ll be working with our human relations and police and community relations committee to continue working on this,” she said.

Update, October 1, 1:55 pm “We have had a public relations firm on retainer for years and years and years, we have just switched firms,” says Westerman, responding to Renaud’s comments about hiring a PR firm. “This is about contract negotiations, public relations, branding—trying to differentiate the PPA from the PPB, and media response.”

READ – Testimony for Portland City Council, September 30, 2009

Made September 30 2009, by Jason Renaud – volunteer board secretary

The mission of the Mental Health Association of Portland is to help persons with mental illness speak up and speak out, a community which asks you to rebuild the respect and trust damaged between the Portland Police Bureau and persons with mental illness.

I’d like to talk about impunity, when a person or an institution has been exempted from punishment.

Impunity is a corrosive to public administration, and extremely hard for partisans to distinguish from righteousness, or understand the damage it causes. It occurs when there is a wide variance between what is found just, and what is believed true.

The action which enables impunity to flourish is when persons in positions of authority claim due process equals justice, and somehow justice always prevails.

Our organization and thousands of people in Portland believe injustice has prevailed, that a fair hearing on what happened to James Chasse has not occurred.

The final opportunity for intervention was a internal review of the officer’s actions, and a decision whether those actions were within the policy of the police bureau. After three years the bureau distributed a press release citing reasons their review was late. A minor technicality was found, so minor punishment may occur.

What’s occurred is impunity. The message delivered is a brutal beating and death of a person with a mental illness, even one with caregivers, friends, family, a home, a clean record, is acceptable within the Portland Police Bureau.

It should be unacceptable to you. Impunity undermines and dissolves the most important tools police officers need – trust and respect.

Here are actions which can rebuild trust and respect.

1. Release the full internal investigation of what happened to James Chasse – not a press release
2. Move the three officers involved with the death of James Chasse – Christopher Humphrey, Kyle Nice and Bret Burton – off patrol duty
3. Make a goal to reducing the use of Tasers on persons with mental illness by 50% per year for the next five years
4. Reopen the Chief’s Forum
5. Form a joint effort by local governments and local police bureaus with mental health advocates to seek full funding for mental health services from the state legislature
6. Open a sincere, staffed and ongoing public meeting between police senior staff and persons with mental illness
7. Release the Crisis Intervention Team curriculum to public inspection, release data about police encounters with persons with mental illness

The right response to impunity comes from the top down. It’s your responsibility to act.

From the Oregonian Editorial Board, September 25, 2009

Many things can be said about the death of a mentally ill man in police custody. ‘Acceptable’ isn’t among them

Acceptable?

You can almost feel this community reeling in stunned disbelief at the headline coming out of the Portland Police Bureau this week (“Sizer: Chasse force acceptable,” The Oregonian, Sept. 24).

Nothing about the death of James P. Chasse Jr., a mentally ill and physically fragile musician, will ever be remotely acceptable.

Unacceptable: The secrecy that has swaddled this case. When there’s a death at police hands or in police custody, it shouldn’t take a federal lawsuit to illuminate what happened. The public deserves a full and prompt accounting in a public inquest.

Unacceptable: The length of time, three years, it has taken for the chief to decide on discipline — or lack thereof — for the officers involved. True, it has been complicated by the federal lawsuit filed by the Chasse family, which goes to trial in March, but there’s still no excuse.

Unacceptable: The officers’ maximum response on Sept. 17, 2006, to a situation that called for minimal intervention. It is not even clear that Chasse, a 42-year-old schizophrenic, actually urinated in public, the offense that supposedly triggered the police chase in the Pearl District.

Of course, police are often rightfully suspicious when people ordered to stop run away from them. But there is some doubt about whether Chasse was even capable of running, since he walked with a limp as a result of a traffic accident. We do know for certain he was terrified of the police. And, it turns out, he had every reason to be.

On Wednesday, however, Police Chief Rosie Sizer announced her conclusion that the officers who confronted Chasse three years ago conformed to bureau policy. The chief only singled out a sergeant for discipline, recommending he be suspended for an unspecified period — 40 hours has been discussed — for failing to ensure Chasse went to a hospital.

That lapse may sound minor, but it wasn’t. It violated a bureau policy, adopted in 2006, requiring that anyone stunned with a Taser who shows evidence of disorientation be rushed to a hospital.

Had the sergeant adhered to this policy, it might have saved Chasse’s life. As for whether everything else adhered to bureau policies — and a use-of-force review board backed up the chief — the response from this community must be: Well, great. Then change the policies.

And it’s reassuring to know that the bureau has done exactly that. Sizer, remember, was sworn in as chief on July 13, 2006, just two months before Chasse died. Since his death, and it’s not a coincidence, the bureau has instituted crisis intervention training for all uniformed officers; altered training on foot pursuits; and overhauled the protocol for evaluating and transporting the injured.

True, there have been many tragic deaths at police hands or in police custody over the years. Some have reverberated in this city for a time without fundamentally altering the culture of the bureau. A bureau chastened and revolutionized, a bureau that you can speak of as pre-Chasse and post-Chasse?

That’s the only outcome from this case that is remotely acceptable.

Rosie Sizer, Chief of Portland Police Bureau

More than three years after James P. Chasse Jr. died in police custody of blunt force trauma that splintered 16 of his ribs, Portland Police Chief Rosie Sizer found that a sergeant was the only one who violated policy, by failing to send Chasse to a hospital.

Sizer announced Wednesday that the officers who struggled with Chasse as they tried to take him into custody used appropriate force and acted according to bureau policy. But she found the sergeant failed to have Chasse , 42, taken to the hospital as required for certain people once they’ve been stunned by a Taser.

The chief has proposed an unpaid suspension for the sergeant, who may challenge the decision, but did not say for how long.

Sizer’s long-awaited ruling comes as the city and the Chasse family prepare to go to trial March 16 on a federal civil-rights lawsuit that accuses the officers and American Medical Response paramedics of using excessive force and denying Chasse appropriate medical attention.

The police union president praised the ruling, but mental health advocates and others who have closely monitored the case expressed frustration and called for changes to police policy.

Two Portland officers –Officer Christopher Humphreys and Sgt. Kyle Nice –and then-Multnomah County sheriff’s Deputy Bret Burton, who is now a Portland officer, arrested Chasse on Sept. 17, 2006, after one of the officers said he appeared to be urinating in the street. Police said he ran when they approached. They chased him, knocked him to the ground and struggled to handcuff him.

Ambulance medics called to the scene did not take him to a hospital, saying Chasse ‘s vital signs were normal. But jail staff members refused to book him because of his physical condition. Chasse , who suffered from schizophrenia, died while being taken to the hospital in a police car. The medical examiner said the cause of death was broad-based blunt-force trauma to the chest.

In a statement, Sizer said the bureau’s Use of Force Review Board found that the officers’ foot chase and the force they used to stop, control and handcuff Chasse was within bureau policy. The board also found there was no evidence that any of the officers involved “knew or should have known that Mr. Chasse had suffered a serious physical injury.”

However, the board found that Nice, the sergeant, failed to insist that Chasse be taken to a hospital after police stunned Chasse , as bureau policy required in such instances.

The 2006 police policy stated that people who are medically fragile or suffering from hyper stimulation, agitation, apprehension or agitated delirium, which includes paranoia, altered mental status, confusion or disorientation before or after the Taser is deployed, will be taken to a hospital by emergency medical personnel.

Had Chasse received proper medical attention at the scene or been taken to a hospital right away, he probably would have lived, state medical examiner Dr. Karen Gunson said in a deposition filed in federal court this summer.

The autopsy found Chasse suffered 26 breaks to 16 ribs, some of which punctured his left lung. Gunson said he suffered 46 separate abrasions or contusions on his body, including six to the head and 19 strikes to the torso. Fractures to his back ribs also probably did not result from Chasse getting knocked to the ground or someone falling on top of him, but more likely resulted from a kick or knee-drop, Gunson said in her deposition.

The review board also considered allegations of untruthfulness in Humphreys’ account of how he knocked Chasse to the ground. Immediately after the arrest, Humphreys was recorded on a jail video telling jail staff members how “we tackled him” and Burton is shown imitating a bear hug. Three days later, Humphreys told police investigators that he shoved Chasse down with both forearms against his back –following police training.

The review board, made up of bureau members and community members, concluded the untruthfulness allegation “was unproven,” Sizer said.

Chasse ‘s family attorney, Tom Steenson, accused the bureau of violating a federal judge’s protective order, which prohibits the parties to the lawsuit from publicly releasing the internal affairs inquiry.

The city sought the order two years ago, which was contested by Steenson along with The Oregonian and other media. Steenson said Wednesday he intended to file a motion to have the order lifted immediately and the full inquiry released.

Michael Hopcroft, a board member of the Mental Health Association of Portland, criticized the chief’s findings.

“The facts of the case as found by more independent objective individuals showed that Chasse ‘s injuries could only come about by excessive force,” Hopcroft said. “Why the chief’s protecting the officers involved, I really have no idea.”

Though community members sit on the bureau’s Use of Force Review Board, Dan Handelman of Portland Copwatch said the process is flawed because the board conducts its reviews behind closed doors. He said the public has no idea what influence the citizens wield or the information they’re given.

“If the police are not going to be held accountable, then the policy has got to change,” he said.

Last week, Sizer faced intense criticism for not having completed her internal review on the Chasse case as the third anniversary of his death passed. In her release Wednesday, the chief said, “I am respectful of the community’s desire for this information but also recognize that speed cannot trump thoroughness and fairness in a review process.”

Police Commissioner Dan Saltzman said he plans to sign the proposed discipline but also discuss with the chief the duration of the sergeant’s suspension. “We do regret the tragic circumstances around Mr. Chasse ‘s death.”

A 40-hour suspension for Nice has been one proposal discussed, but the chief wouldn’t comment.

Sgt. Scott Westerman, president of the Portland Police Association, the rank-and-file police union, said that the chief’s findings “reaffirm our belief” that the officers’ use of force was within policy. His prepared statement avoided any mention of Nice’s suspension.

Jason Renaud, who was a friend of Chasse ‘s and is a volunteer with the Mental Health Association of Portland, called the chief’s ruling “very disappointing.”

“They suspend Nice on a technicality to say they’ve done something on this case, and that’s worse than doing nothing at all, ” Renaud said. “It’s insulting and gives officers the message that this behavior is going to get them a slap on the wrist.”

The documents listed below available to be presented to a Multnomah County grand jury by Assistant District Attorney Christine Mascal on about October X, 2006. The order, the emphasis, and whether the entirety of the documents were presented is unknown – because grand jury transcripts are kept secret.

Transcripts of Citizen Witnesses of the Chasse Beating – PDF files

* Alireza Justin Soltani – interview summary by Detective Jon Rhodes, 10.01.2006
* Alireza Justin Soltani – taped statement transcription, 9.24.2006
* Ann Stevenson & David Lillegaard – interview summary by Detective Lynn Courtney, 10.05.2006
* Benjamin Persyn – interview summary by Detective Jon Rhodes, conducted 10.2.2006
* Constance Doolan – interview summary by Detective Lynn Courtney, 10.03.2006
* Constance Doolan – taped statement transcription, 9.23.2006
* Diane Loghry – interview summary by Detective Jon Rhodes, 10.01.2006
* Diane Loghry – taped statement transcription, 9.21.2006
* Elizabeth Anderson – interview summary by Detective Jon Rhodes, 9.28.2006
* Homer Williams – interview summary by Lynn Courtney, 9.30.2006
* Jamie Marquez – taped statement transcription, 9.24?.2006
* Jon Olsen – interview summary by Detective J A McCausland, 9.18.2006
* Mark Ginsberg – interview summary by Detective Lynn Courtney, 10.09.2006
* Mark Ginsberg – taped statement transcription, 10.03.2006
* Melissa Gaylord – interview summary by Detective Lynn Courtney, 10.06.2006
* Michael Gentry – interview summary by Detective Jon Rhodes, 10.10.2006
* Randall Stuart – interview summary by Lynn Courtney, 9.29.2006
* Randall Stuart – taped statement transcription, 9.21.2006

Portland Police Officer Reports & Testimony

* Officer C. Brown – special report, 9 17, 2006
* Officer Christopher Humphrey – special report – handwritten, 9.26.2006
* Officer Christopher Humphrey – special report to detectives, 9.26.2006
* Officer Christopher Humphrey – taped statement transcription, 9.20.2006
* Officer Christopher Humphrey – Use-of-Force report, 9.20.2006
* Officer Edward Johnson – special report, 10.01.2006
* Officer Gonzalez – special report, 9.17.200
* Officer H Singh – special report – property evidence, officer clothing, 9.17.2006
* Officer J A McCausland – special report – word picture of scene at 33rd and Clackamas, 9.25.2006
* Officer J Worthington – special report – contact two days prior with Jim Chasse, 10.06.2006
* Officer J. Shearer – special report – evidence inside squad car, 9.21.200
* Officer Jason Lile – special report, 9.18.2006
* Officer M. Bledsoe – special report, 9.17.2006
* Officer M. Bledsoe – taped statement transcription, 9.17.2006
* Officer N. Phothivongsa – special report – from MCDC intake, 9.17.2006
* Officer Pintarich – special report – follow ambulance to Providence ER, 9.17.2006
* Officer Troy Pahlke – special report, 9.28.2006
* Officer Troy Pahlke – taped statement transcription, 9.19.2006
* Sergeant G. A. Burke – special report, 9 17, 2006
* Sergeant Jason Pearce – special report, 9.17.2006
* Sergeant Jason Servo – special report – tow squad car, 9.17.2006
* Sergeant Jeff Niiya – special report – handwritten, 9.17.2006
* Sergeant Jeff Niiya – taped statement transcription, 9.17.2006
* Sergeant Kyle Nice – special report, 9.26.2006
* Sergeant Kyle Nice – taped statement transcription, 9.18.2006
* Sergeant Vic Doty – special report, 9.25.2006

Multnomah County Sheriff’s Deputies and Staff Reports & Testimony

* Brian Branch – information report, 9.17.2006
* Deputy Bret Burton – taped statement transcription – UNAVAILABLE
* Deputy Judith May – information report, 9.17.2006
* Deputy Martin McElhaney – information report, 9.17.2006 – UNAVAILABLE
* Deputy P Hubert – information report – combative inmate, 9.17.2006
* Deputy Thomas Hollenbeck – information report, 9.17.2006
* Deputy Thomas Hollenbeck, Deputy Judith May, Deputy Martin McElhaney – taped statement transcription, 9.18.2006
* Patricia Gayman, RN – special report – refusal of inmate at the door, 9.17.2006
* Patricia Gayman, RN – special report, 10.03.2006
* Patricia Gayman, RN – taped statement transcription, 9.18.2006

Miscellaneous Documents Presented to Chasse Grand Jury

* Autopsy of James Chasse – 9.17.2006
* Autopsy of James Chasse, attendance report from Detective Jon Rhodes, 10.12.2006
* Crime scene sign in sheet – 9.17.2006
* Detective Lynn Courtney – special report and summary, listing all people involved, 9.25.2006
* Detective Lynn Courtney – special report, defibrillator download, 10.16.2006
* Detectives acquire intake video from MCDC, 9.26.2006 – UNAVAILABLE
* Detectives acquire pre-hospital care report from AMR Ambulance, 9.25.2006
* District Attorney Report on County Jails – CHASSE – UNAVAILABLE
* District Attorney Report on County Jails – FULL – UNAVAILABLE
* Evidence Report – squad car, Officer Mark Johnson, 9.26.2006
* Evidence Report – “white powdery substance,” Officer J Mann, 9.17.2006
* Explanation of Jon Olson and the defibrillator – special report by Officer G Manougian, 9.17.2006
* Fingerprint Report – Officer Ken Jones, 9.18.2006
* Multnomah County Resolution 06-185, all county deputies must be CIT trained
* Property Evidence collected at Medical Examiner’s office – special report, Officer B McIntyre, (mistyped) 6.18.2006
* Property Evidence Receipts – items taken from officer & witnesses, various dates
* Report cover – undated
* Scene Response and Initial Investigation – Detective Jon Rhodes, 10.02.2006

Cascadia Behavioral Healthcare

* Ela Howard – Project Respond case worker – special report, 10.10.2006
* Yvonne Ingram – treatment counselor – special report, 10.12.2006

Portland Fire Bureau

* Bill Koppy – taped statement transcription, 9.21.2006
* Brian Malloy – taped statement transcription, 9.20.2006
* Donal Reeb – taped statement transcription – 9.22.2006
* Gary Szalay – taped statement transcription, 9.25.2006
* Robert Hawks – special report, 9.29.2006

Memos to Portland Police Officers

* Communication Restriction During Investigation Order for Officer Christopher Humphrey, Officer M. Bledsoe, Sergeant Kyle Nice, Officer Troy Pahlke, Sergeant Jeff Niiya, Officer C. Weldon

Untitled from pdx97217 on Vimeo.

This video is from a Multnomah County jail security camera over the door of a holding cell. It shows deputy Bret Burton and officer Christopher Humphreys carrying James Chasse into the cell, entering the cell to cut away his plastic holding ties (he had been tied hand and foot), and jail deputies reacting. At about 8 minutes, corrections health nurses enter, look at Chasse, and tell the officers to take him to a hospital. The re-tie him and carry him, shrieking in pain, out to their patrol car, where he dies about 10 minutes later.