Editorial: Multnomah County s investments mark a sea change oregonlive.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from oregonlive.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Maxine Bernstein wins first place in Best of the West contest for Fesser reporting
Updated 10:50 AM;
Today 10:50 AM
Michael Fesser speaks at an anti-racism rally in West Linn. Fesser was wrongfully arrested by West Linn police in 2017.
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The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Maxine Bernstein won first place in the Best of the West journalism competition in the category of social justice reporting.
Bernstein chronicled the case of Michael Fesser, a Black man who was subjected to false arrest by West Linn police. He ultimately won a settlement from the city of West Linn. Bernstein wrote dozens of articles on the case, which can be read at projects.oregonlive.com/michael-fesser.
Editorial: City’s refusal to fund new gun-violence unit will take toll on victims of other crimes
Updated Apr 11, 2021;
Posted Apr 11, 2021
Amid continuing calls to defund the police, the Portland City Council refused to provide any additional funds for a new police team to combat gun violence. Unfortunately, that will only further tax an already understaffed police bureau, leading to a reduced response from police to other crime victims, the editorial board writes.
Jamie Hale/The Oregonian
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On balance, the compromise plan adopted by Portland City Council last week offers a promising strategy to confront the city’s escalating gun-violence crisis and reshape public safety. Along with a $4.1 million investment in nonprofits working with at-risk communities and the addition of six detectives to a Portland Police Bureau team investigating shootings, the council assented to Mayor Ted Wheeler’s proposal to form a dedicated police unit to proactively head-off vi
Portland mayor proposed bringing back controversial Gun Violence Reduction Team: ‘Sell it to the new council ASAP’
Updated Jan 12, 2021;
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Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler told his top staff last month he was interested in reinstating “part or all” of the city’s disbanded Gun Violence Reduction Team and instructed them to find a way to convince the incoming City Council to support the controversial proposal.
“The dissolution of GVRT came at the request of the community, but I cannot escape the reality that the victims of gun violence in our community are overwhelmingly people of color,” Wheeler wrote in a Dec. 17 text message obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive through a public records request.