After meeting yesterday with Jesse Cornett and promising to talk to Police Chief Mike Reese about today’s expected promotion of Leo Besner, the officer who killed Raymond Gwerder, Mayor Sam Adams issued a statement this morning on the matter.

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Adams’ office confirmed this morning that the mayor, despite his concerns about Besner’s record of tort claims and legal settlements costing nearly $1 million, he wasn’t going to bigfoot Reese’s decision to make Besner a sergeant. Instead, Adams will work with Reese to devise a policy that incorporates those issues—possibly through annual performance reviews that Adams is pushing for officers—into the promotions process. Reese has defended Besner’s promotion, telling the Oregonian he had a “good” record and noting his performance on required examinations used to rank officers for advancement.

Cornett last night told me that he and Adams had a “good conversation,” and that the gesture “makes an impact on me,” even though Adams at no point gave him a hint one way or the other about how he was feeling.

“We highlighted these cases over and over and over—all of the lawsuits the city has settled and lost,” says Cornett, a former city council candidate, “and the mayor was really thoughtful, asking questions. He was very, very patient.”

Denis C. Theriault is the Portland Mercury's News Editor. He writes stories about City Hall and the Portland Police Bureau, focusing on issues like homelessness, police oversight, insider politics, and...

15 replies on “Mayor on Leo Besner: “Policy Questions,” But Promotion Will Proceed”

  1. Mayor Adams amde the politcally and legally correct decision in the case; too bad it’s the morally unpalatable decision.

    Odds are currently 1:1 that Bad Robot will now make some sort of horrid and typo-ridden screed against “po-piggies”.

  2. in response to “Graham”…rather than give you a “..typo-ridden screed against “po-piggies”…”, I agree the term is outworn and time for an upgrade to “PoPoMoFo’s” as that is precisely what they’ve degenerated to with this latest “F&#k-Y@U” to the public, and rather than you dudes out doing what you call “dancing” as you bleat ‘n’ gloat over what you now think is a big win for the Copster Crowd, you do better to be far less gleeful as matters like this can turn at a moments notice…as has been stated a number times by different writers here and elsewhere, a Big Media Dump is about to be made that will reverse the ill-gotten gains of Leo Besner and his protector, Chief Reese when the full implications of such are laid before the public and Sam will have no choice but to hand Reese his goodbye handshake as well has Besner being finally fired…maybe part of the “plan”
    was to keep it in the background to let the Copsters go ahead in their well-known arrogance and groupthink to proceed onward with the unwarranted promotion of Besner and give the citizens a middle finger salute via the media ((after all, people here know the cops far better than the cops do themselves….has something to do with intelligent levels, if your interested)) and gloated in it all as they’re so prone to do…let ’em rub it in the face of the PDX citizens and then next week or the next, or whenever, just drop the files,
    tapes, etc. etc. on the same media that will then call to question ((greatly at that)) the reasoning, logic, and advisability for this total miscarriage of justice in handing a promotion to a known Killer-Kop…who in their right mind would want to call in a problem and have to speak to this killer and anticipate help?… how about GETTING REAL, rather than waste time in these silly self-justifying exercises to vainly pull the cops out of the very gutter they’ve put themselves in? Makes NO SENSES, does it?

  3. message to “Graham”…sorry dude, I in way proved you right, and you are lame-brained to reveal your inability to comprehend the English language adequately by saying “…I really appreciate it…” how about reading the post with actual comprehension, rather than like a cop in order to fire back with a refute (kinda like shooting an innocent citizen in the back and killing him… then thinking just saying “oops!” will make everyone forgive and forget and not hold you to be accountable)

  4. I really like this “more” button for the comments. That way I don’t have to read people’s “…typo-ridden ….screed….”….

  5. message to “Graham”…who are you to be calling people
    dipshit? LOL as for using quote marks to encapsulate your name…shall continue to do as I please…what you going to do?>>>call the PoPoMoFo’s to shoot me in the back to stop
    me from it???? GET REAL, clown!!!!!

  6. @Bad Robot: 4/10 Troll. Random punctuation is a nice touch, but overall lacking in a valid call to arms that is the hallmark of the succesful troll. Better luck next time.

  7. The Mayor is excellent at fake consultation (nonsultation?). That is, he is excellent at listening intently, nodding thoughtfully and saying, ‘Thank you so much for your valuable input. It is vital to hear what the public has to say.’ Then he goes ahead and implements the decision that was made well before the public comment.

  8. who is GRAHAM? can’t help but wonder if he’s one of the unpaid wannabe cops that are not quite yet a real cop, and they give them the job of manning the computer to scan local “hotbeds of conspiracy” and “anarchist thought” to seek to further engage so the real hipster cops can decipher who may be lurking behind the make-believe monikers, or is he a real cop that’s not so swift on the job, so they’ve detailed him to the computer to monitor local commentary…so, who is he really?

  9. @Bad Robot: 0/10 Troll. Calling /b/town a “hotbed of conspiracy” or that it has “anarchist thought” is really amusing, but you’re serious, so it’s not actually funny.

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