How would you feel about being fined $421 for showing up to work? That’s what’s been happening to security personnel in the downtown entertainment district over the last two weeks, amidst a continuing crackdown by Portland police. The cops have been tightening their grip on the clubs since Commander Mike Reese took over Central Precinct […]
Matt Davis
Matt Davis was news editor of the Mercury from 2009 to May 2010.
Posted inNews
A Taxing Incident
A Good Citizen Pays by Getting Deported
If you’re a Portland Latino, don’t walk into the federal building on NW Broadway to file your taxes without photo ID—unless you want to be deported. That’s the chilling message making the rounds of Portland’s Latino community following the recent deportation of a woman and two members of her family—a process which began when she […]
Posted inExtras
Cop Says “Rap Concerts Lead to Fights.”
Racism or Pragmatism? Either Way, Cops are Cracking Down on Clubs.
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Identity Crisis
Convicted Forger Gathering Signatures
Would you give your name, address, and signature to a convicted forger and identity thief? In the past few months, hundreds—if not thousands—of Oregonians have, in the name of democracy. Gregory Moser, AKA Ronald Phillip, who circulated petitions for a number of initiatives hoping to make the November ballot, carries numerous convictions, including theft, carrying […]
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Gang Initiation
Mayor’s Gang Czar Faces First Challenge
On Monday, July 17, John Canda hadn’t even finished settling into his new office—the mayor recently appointed him as head of the city’s new Office of Youth Violence Prevention—before he started tackling his first major challenge: to untangle and coordinate Portland’s disparate gang-prevention efforts. As it stands now, there are several different gang-prevention tactics in […]
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V for Vendetta
New Boise Bar Friendlier Than it Sounds
Though only in business since June 2, Vendetta is already a hot topic among bar hoppers. However, its biggest strength is evoking a homey, living-room-style establishment for residents of the Boise Neighborhood. One of the owners previously managed the Bagdad Pub, and he’s brought much of its hassle-free atmosphere along for the ride. Arriving with […]
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Fighting in the Streets
Can Cops Curb the Violence?
Following a thwarted gun attack this weekend and continuing violence in the downtown entertainment district, Portland police are expected to meet with downtown bar owners some time in the next month. Police are particularly concerned about fights—some of them gang related—taking place in and around the parking garage on the corner of NW 1st and […]
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Slow Time on Broadway
Accident Leads to Bicycle Crackdown
Last April, a speeding bicyclist traveling down SW Broadway Drive hit and seriously injured Lynn Takata just outside her home. Even after back surgery, Takata says she’s still in pain and is waiting for another session under the knife. Now, a year after the accident—at a police meeting on June 27 at Central Precinct—Takata asked […]
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Sizeable Challenge
New Police Chief Takes on Racial Profiling
Mayor Tom Potter gave Acting Police Chief Rosie Sizer the permanent job last Thursday, June 22—a week after demoting her predecessor, Derrick Foxworth, to captain. One of Sizer’s biggest challenges is to address the concerns of Portland’s African American community over racial profiling: The bureau’s recent traffic stop statistics show black drivers are nearly four […]
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Drop the Bomb
Cops and Zoobombers Face Off
Last Sunday night, two Portland Police Bureau officers threatened to arrest Zoobombers for the first time in their four-year history of riding mini bikes down the hill from the Oregon Zoo every weekend. The move appears to be part of a confused reaction by police to a June 4 crash on Highway 26, which landed […]
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Bourdain Noir
Kitchen Confidential Author Anthony Bourdain Likes What’s on Portland’s Menu
“I could say, you know, the mushrooms are awesome, but it was the tattoos that bought me to Portland,” says rock ‘n’ roll chef Anthony Bourdain, through a cloud of smoke from the first of two back-to-back Gauloises. We are in a room at the Heathman Hotel and besides the cigarette smoke, his voice is […]