A Portland police officer shot at a man driving a car in North Portland’s St. Johns Neighborhood Tuesday morning, after the driver allegedly attempted to run over a cop. According to a press release from the Portland Police Bureau (PPB), officers arrived at the scene near N Fessenden St. and N Macrum Ave. around 1:15 […]
Alex Zielinski
Alex Zielinski is a former News Editor for the Portland Mercury. She's here to tell stories about economic inequities, cops, civil rights, and weird city politics that you should probably be paying attention to.
Posted inNews
Retired Portland Cop Convicted for Driving Car Into Burglary Suspect During Protest
Retired Portland cop Scott Groshong pleaded guilty to charges of assault and misconduct Monday for driving his car into an individual who he believed had just robbed a store during a protest. Groshong was on the clock working for the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) at the time of the June 15, 2020 incident, but retired […]
Posted inCops
Police Identify Officer Who Fatally Shot Man in Centennial Neighborhood Sunday
Update, July 27: The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has identified the person killed by a PPB officer Sunday as 19-year-old Johnathan Worth. Original story, July 25: The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has identified the officer who fatally shot a man in Southeast Portland’s Centennial Neighborhood early Sunday morning as Gelsomina “Mina” Cavalli-Singer. Cavalli-Singer and an […]
Posted inGood Morning, News!
Good Morning, News: Portland Cop Fatally Shoots Man, Multnomah County Declares Emergency Over Heat, and Monkeypox Continues to Spread
The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support! Gooooood morning, Portland! It’s going to be an unbearably hot week. But […]
Posted inNews
Mayor Wheeler Announces State of Emergency to Streamline Response to Gun Violence
The program directs additional funding to gun violence intervention programs that are already operating within the city.
Mayor Ted Wheeler has announced a state of emergency to address Portland’s surge in gun violence during summer months. The announcement allows Wheeler to gather all city departments related to deterring gun violence under his office in hopes of orchestrating a coordinated response. “Emergency declarations can get results the status quo cannot,” said Wheeler at […]
Posted inNews
Jury Finds Right-Wing Brawler Mackenzie Lewis Guilty of Riot at Cider Riot
A jury has found 32-year-old Mackenzie Lewis, an affiliate of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer, guilty of engaging in a riot during a Portland street brawl on May 1, 2019. The brawl took place after members of the conservative group approached a now-shuttered Northeast Portland bar called Cider Riot, where a group of anti-fascist activists […]
Posted inNews
City Withdraws Employment Offer to Police Bureau’s New Training Dean
The decision comes five days after announcing his hire.
On Friday, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) announced that the city had hired its first “Civilian Dean of Training”—a position laid out as a requirement in the city’s settlement agreement with the US Department of Justice (DOJ). Days later, PPB has announced that they’ve rescinded the job offer to their new hire, former Los Angeles […]
Posted inNews
Judge Acquits Patriot Prayer’s Joey Gibson and Russell Shultz in Riot Case
The judge found both individuals’ actions did not meet the state’s definition of riot.
A Multnomah County judge has acquitted two members of Patriot Prayer, the right-wing activist group based in Vancouver, WA, of federal riot charges linked to a May 1, 2019 street brawl. Judge Benjamin Souede determined that both Patriot Prayer founder Joey Gibson and ally Russell Shultz are not guilty of engaging in a riot during […]
Posted inGood Morning, News!
Good Morning, News: Day One of Patriot Prayer Trial, Portland’s Housing Director Leaves, and Congress Moves to Codify Same-Sex and Interracial Marriges
Good morning, Portland! It’s expected that we’ll hit the 90s again today—a diagnosis that can only be cured with one thing: boozy slushies! It’s the Mercury’s Summer of Slushies week, which means you can find delicious and refreshing slushies for only $6 at drinking establishments across the city. YUM. Learn more here. – How did […]
Posted inNews
Attorneys Paint Right-Wing Activists As Nonviolent Bystanders in Day One of Patriot Prayer Riot Trial
Attorneys representing Patriot Prayer members challenge violent characterization of clients.
“On May 1, 2019, Portland had a heck of a day,” said Multnomah County deputy district attorney Brad Kalbaugh Monday morning, kicking off opening arguments in the long-awaited trial against three members of the right-wing activist group Patriot Prayer. The case centers on a street brawl that took place the afternoon of May 1, 2019, […]
Posted inNews
Uprooted and Unhoused
Portland’s homeless camp sweeps undermine the efforts of people seeking permanent housing.
Becky Lange had spent months building and maintaining the community vegetable garden at NE Dekum and 33rd Ave. Neighbors had donated planting containers and vegetable starts at the beginning of spring, and the late-June heatwave meant the garden was finally producing enough bounty to share. That’s why, on June 27, Lange held back tears as […]
Posted inNews
Judge Rejects Don’t Shoot Portland’s Request for Class Action Lawsuit
The judge believes there aren’t enough commonalities between people hit by tear gas and munitions during the 2020 racial justice protests to place them in a specific class.
A federal judge has barred Portland protesters from upgrading their lawsuit against the city to “class action” status, arguing that there aren’t enough commonalities between people hit by tear gas and munitions during the 2020 racial justice protests.