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Courtney Ross lays candles at the intersection where her boyfriend, George Floyd, was killed by Officer Derek Chauvin.
Courtney Ross lays candles at the intersection where her boyfriend, George Floyd, was killed by Officer Derek Chauvin. Brandon Bell / Getty Images

GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! We used to be crazy in love. Can we go back to how it was? When did you get too comfortable? 'Cause I'm too good for that, I'm too good for that. LET'S GO TO PRESS.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

ā€¢ An Oregon man who had attacked a journalist during a right-wing demonstration at the statehouse has now been arrested for (surprise!) attacking officers and participating in the domestic terrorist insurrection on January 6 at the nation's capitol.

ā€¢Ā The Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board will hold its first meeting this week, and is tasked with figuring out how therapeutic psilocybin use should workā€”something no state has done before. Our Blair Stenvick has a fascinating preview of what they'll be tackling over the next two years.

ā€¢ After a sweet run, the Oregon State basketball team was defeated and booted out of the NCAA Men's Tournament after falling to Houston, 67-61.

IN NATIONAL NEWS:

ā€¢ After four years of Trump appointing right-wing, unqualified federal judges, President Biden is trying to balance the scales, starting with his slate of diverse judicial nominees, three of whom are Black women.

ā€¢ Yesterday marked day one of the Derek Chauvin murder trialā€”the former Minneapolis police officer who killed George Floyd by brutally kneeling on his neck for (what we now know) was more than nine minutes. The prosecution showed disturbing video of the killing, bystanders gave chilling testimony, and a martial arts expert testified that the move Chauvin used on Floyd is called a "blood choke"ā€”the purpose of which is to cut off air flow to the victim. Today even more witnesses to George Floyd's murder will testify.

ā€¢Ā COVID-19 cases are on the rise again, and the CDC is predicting "impending doom" if Americans don't re-tighten basic safety measures such as WASHING YOUR DAMN HANDS, WEARING YOUR DAMN MASKS (which is what Biden is telling states to do), and KEEPING YOUR DAMN DISTANCE.

ā€¢Ā Another bad day for conspiracy theorists: According to an investigative report filed by a team of World Health Organization experts, the original coronavirus almost certainly jumped from animals to humans, and it was "extremely unlikely" that it was leaked from a lab.

ā€¢ The NYPD are searching for a man who attacked and kicked a 65-year-old Asian woman, as witnesses watched but didn't intervene. If you haven't already, now is a good time to read Janey Wong's emotionally stirring open letter to the AAPI community and allies.

ā€¢ Best headline of the day so far (at least I thought so): "Church membership in the U.S. has fallen below the majority for the first time in nearly a century."

ā€¢ HELLO, STONERS! You will be pleased to know that SPLIFFā€”the short flick film festival about cannabis and all things "stoned"ā€”is kicking off April 16-24 and you can get your tickets NOW. (So hurry up before you forget... because you know you will.)

ā€¢ And now... THE WEATHER REPORT: Expect a nice sunny day and a balmy high of 56!

ā€¢ And finally, if I were a kid seven years ago, this would be me, 100 percent!