Oregon Capitol braces for more trouble in next few days
Authorities prepare for violent protests; pandemic has shut building for 10 months.
The Oregon Capitol targeted twice recently by anti-lockdown, pro-Trump demonstrators and breached once while lawmakers were in special session in December is girding for trouble again.
The Legislative Administration Office has closed the building in Salem for five days starting Saturday, Jan. 16, and running through Jan. 20, when Joe Biden will be sworn in as president and Kamala Harris as vice president at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C
Workers boarded up first-floor windows at the Oregon Capitol, a rare action, in anticipation of trouble. Earlier in the week, Gov. Kate Brown agreed to a request by Oregon State Police responsible for security within the building for help from the Oregon National Guard. Specific steps were not made public.
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The Oregon National Guard has been activated by Gov. Kate Brown to respond to possible protests at the state Capitol in the wake of Trump supporters storming the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 6.
Since the November election the Oregon State Capitol building in Salem has seen protests on an almost weekly basis with some turning violent, according to The Seattle Times, and federal authorities are wary of unrest breaking out in all 50 state capitols.
The Oregon State Police (OSP) announced on Twitter that it would utilize the National Guard as per the request of OSP Superintendent Terri Davie. Davie assured in an OSP Facebook post that her department would “continue to take a neutral role in ensuring Oregonians exercise their First Amendment rights.”
Man accused of jumping fence, shooting exterior of federal courthouse in downtown Portland
Updated Jan 12, 2021;
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A Beavercreek man is accused of jumping the security fence outside the federal courthouse Friday night and firing a 9mm handgun into plywood covering the facade just days after his arrest outside the state Capitol for allegedly trespassing with a gun.
Cody Levi Melby, 39, pleaded not guilty Monday afternoon in federal court in Portland to a misdemeanor charge accusing him of depredation of government property.
Melby, 39, a U.S. Army veteran, last week posted a YouTube video of himself standing outside the Oregon Capitol in Salem, reading from a pad and decrying how the “entire election process was subverted” and how the government’s mandate to wear masks and close businesses as a result of the coronavirus had “wreaked havoc and devastation around our republic.”
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SANTA FE – The New Mexico congressional delegation is raising questions about a COVID-19 outbreak among a group of Oregon Army National Guard soldiers who returned to their home base in El Paso after being deployed to Kosovo earlier this year.
In a letter to the Pentagon, the state’s senators and Congress members said 70 infantry soldiers had tested positive for the coronavirus as of Tuesday, a jump from 10 on Friday.
“We have also learned that dozens more are showing symptoms consistent with coronavirus and remain concerned about self-isolation and quarantine conditions the Army has put into place while monitoring and treating these service members,” the delegation wrote in the letter to U.S. Army Secretary Ryan D. McCarthy.
Benton County Sheriff Jackson Retires
December 9, 2020
On Dec. 8, Benton County announced that Sheriff Scott Jackson will retire on February 1, 2021.
Jackson began his career at the Sheriff’s Office in 1995 as a part-time, on-call Deputy, and was promoted to a full-time position within a few months. He was sworn-in as Sheriff on July 1, 2013. Since that time, Benton County voters have elected him to the position in 2014 and 2018.
According to the Benton County press release, Jackson “holds dual certifications in corrections and police through the Oregon Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST) and has held multiple positions within the Sheriff’s Office including Deputy, Corporal, Sergeant, Training/Policy Sergeant, Lieutenant (Jail Commander), and in 2008 was promoted to Undersheriff where he oversaw the day-to-day operations of the Sheriff’s Office.“