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Matt Davis

Matt Davis was news editor of the Mercury from 2009 to May 2010.
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Our Blessed Saint of Narcotics?

Who Is Jesus Malverde, and Can He Really Make Drugs Invisible?
Avatar photo Matt Davis

Statues of Jesús Malverde are selling like hotcakes in East Portland—as well as aerosols, trading cards, and candles emblazoned with his picture. Dressed in his distinctive white suit, with a prominent moustache, he’s either the patron saint of narcotics, or the Mexican Robin Hood… depending on whom you’re talking to, and why you’re asking. Some […]

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Shooting Back

Family of Man Shot by Police Sues Sniper and the City
Avatar photo Matt Davis

The family of a man shot in the back by a cop sniper in November 2005 is suing both the sniper and the City of Portland for undisclosed damages. Civil rights attorney Tom Steenson—the same attorney suing over the death-in-custody last September of James Philip Chasse Jr., filed a federal suit at 1:30 pm yesterday, […]

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Black Exclusion Zones

Are Drug-Free Zones Targeting African Americans?
Avatar photoAvatar photo Scott Moore and Matt Davis

The City of Portland’s problema-tic Drug- and Prostitution-Free Zones may have just gotten a lot more troubling—new data released by the police bureau possibly reveals that the “exclusion” zones are overwhelmingly targeted at African Americans. The report, obtained by the Mercury on Tuesday, March 6, shows staggering racial discrepancies in the way exclusions are used […]

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Painted Into a Corner

Cops Target Skateboard Shop Over Graffiti
Avatar photo Matt Davis

A downtown cop is targeting a skate and snowboard shop for “inadvertent promotion” of graffiti culture—because the store stocks spray paint. “The problem is, we have a skateboard shop that sells skateboards, apparel, and then paint,” says Officer Matt Miller, referring to The Office, which opened a store at SW 1st and Ankeny last May. […]

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Choked Up

Was a Street Kid’s Arrest an Inappropriate Use of Force?
Avatar photo Matt Davis

A bike cop’s arrest of a downtown street kid shocked bystanders last week—and raised questions for homeless advocates over how the mayor’s controversial Sit-Lie Ordinance might be enforced in the spring. In a picture taken by one anonymous onlooker with a cell phone (see larger version here), bike patrol Officer Craig Dobson appears to be […]

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Lies, Lies, and Statistics

Numbers Worry Racial Profiling Committee
Avatar photo Matt Davis

The mayor’s Racial Profiling Committee grappled with new traffic stops data last week, and discovered some unwelcome surprises. The statistics, covering 2006, show that Latino drivers were more likely than ever to be searched by Portland’s police. According to the data, Latino drivers—accounting for nine percent of stops last year while making up just six […]

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Legal Afterlife

James Chasse Jr.’s Family Files a Federal Lawsuit
Avatar photo Matt Davis

The family of James Chasse Jr. is suing the police officers as well as others it claims are responsible for his “inhumane and tortured death,” the family’s attorney announced last week. Chasse’s father, James Sr., sat silently in a blue bowtie alongside civil rights attorney Tom Steenson at a press conference at the World Trade […]

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NoPo Goes Loco

Pissed Off Neighbors Take on Police Chief
Avatar photo Matt Davis

Rosie Sizer is a killer—of police precincts, if you believe the aggressive public relations campaign launched against her last week by nine North Portland neighborhood associations. “The Portland Police Bureau intends to kill North Precinct,” according to the “Save Our Precinct” fliers blanketing North Portland. There are also hundreds of “Save Our Precinct” postcards pre-addressed […]

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Mental Wealth

Can Mental Health Advocates Find $6 Million?
Avatar photo Matt Davis

The mayor’s Mental Health/Public Safety Initiative Committee released an ambitious $6 million “action plan” last Friday, February 2, calling for things like a new short-term mental health care facility and housing and treatment programs—additions it hopes will prevent tragedies like the death of James Chasse Jr. last year. Now, mental health advocates face an uphill […]

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Chasse Family Sues

Attorney Takes Aim at Those Responsible for James Chasse Jr.’s “Tortured Death”
Avatar photo Matt Davis

The family of James Chasse Jr. is suing the police offiers and others it claims are responsible for his “inhumane and tortured death,” the family’s attorney announced this afternoon. Chasse’s father, James Sr, sat silently in a blue bowtie alongside civil rights attorney Tom Steenson at a press conference at the World Trade Center on […]

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NoPo’s PoPo

North Precinct Closure: Is Sizer Really Pushing Potter’s Buttons?
Avatar photo Matt Davis

Last Wednesday, Police Chief Rosie Sizer encouraged disgruntled North Precinct residents to write the mayor if they had a problem with her plan to possibly close their precinct. Sizer had invited local residents to the January 24 “input session” at the Historic Kenton Firehouse on N Brandon, after rumors of the precinct’s possible closure sparked […]

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Vigil Ups the Ante

Crowd Prays for Police Accountability
Avatar photo Matt Davis

A crowd of over 100 gathered to light candles, pray, and call for an end to police violence on the corner of NW Hoyt and Broadway last Saturday—near the spot where a 15-year-old autistic boy, Sir Millage, survived being Tasered repeatedly and struck by Portland Police on December 5. Police found Millage—who at 240 pounds […]

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