Comments

1
Looks like a blade of just over 1"? (I can't tell, but I think that says "metric," which means it's in cm?) Anyway, yeah, that would explain why they didn't include the photo. Pretty weak stuff.
2
Nope. Not over an inch. The blade is less than 2 centimeters long. Say, 3/4 of an inch long.

Check out your blade options here: http://www.xacto.com/Catalog/Knives/Blades

3
I think it's interesting to note that Rosie Sizer described the knife as an Exacto knife at her first press conference in which she announced yet another police shooting. Thereafter, the description of the knife seems to have been conveniently left out of any police statements.
4
Of course, I meant "an X-Acto knife". Sometimes, that English undergrad degree gets the better of me.
5
"I see the chief has played knifey-spoony before."
6
But that handle is DEFINITELY a six-incher. Fearsomely so.
7
Having used an xacto myself (nerd alert!), I can attest it's certainly sharp. If you cut yourself, you'll need bandages. On some occasions even a stitch or two.

And...if a bleeding old man approached me with it? I'd be a little freaked.

Freaked enough to shoot him? Hmm. Maybe. Maybe not.

But either way, the PPD should have been upfront about this xacto knife from day one. Now they seem like they're trying to hide something from us. Again.

The fact that they went to bizarre lengths to call it a "razer knife" and not disclose the photo indicates that even they thought shooting an inebriated bleeding guy holding an xacto might be hard to accept. Now I trust them even less.

That said, I wasn't there. I don't know the officer or what I would have done. So I'm not disparaging him.

But the PPD? Yep. They need to get their act together. They've lost our trust time and again. They need to be transparent about everything going forward.

And I suspect our next election will see votes going toward new candidates with a platform to clean house and bring the Portland Police under control.
8
The ambiguity around the knife is intentional. Whatever most people hear first is what they are going to believe. Thus the progression from knife to razor knife to 6 inch handled knife to an exacto knife with a 3/4" blade. When they give inexact information many people assume that the knife must have been impressive and the officer justified. As more exact information arises people resist acknowledging it because they have already created a scenario in their heads with whatever size knife they feel appropriately constitutes a deadly threat. Classic damage control tactic and more city/ppb propaganda at work.
9
Another example of this would be PPA head Scott Westerman telling the media, before police had realeased detailed information mind you, that Walters was charged by Collins who burst out of the bathroom at him. Now we find out that witnesses describe him as slow moving and having a drunken stumble. Fool me once shame on you fool me twice shame on me.
10
I'm not sure it really matters how long the blade is: you could certainly cut deeper than the blade simply by stabbing someone and driving the blade in deeper than the handle. Bone might break that blade, but not tissue. It appears to measure 2.3 centimeters on the straight side. That equals 0.9", not 0.75". Either way, if you are charging a police officer and refuse to stop advancing or drop your weapon, you either lack cognitive function, a self-preservation instinct, or both. I would have shot him before he got within 10 feet.
11
"Either way, if you are charging a police officer and refuse to stop advancing or drop your weapon, you either lack cognitive function, a self-preservation instinct, or both. "

Or you are, you know, mentally ill and drunk, as Mr. Collins was. The bottom line is that we have to stop accepting "I was scared" as a justification for ANY police shooting. There has to be a point where you say, hey, that's not sufficient here. You could have done more.
12
I don't blame the cop, since he is a vegan and everything, but if he only had his club and taser on him I think they would have both survived.
13
Step up to getting cut by it then. Go ahead. Pussies.

Some psycho comes at me with that knife and I kill him by any means possible. But, I'm not a cop.
14
Really, Bruce? Wow. Guess we can all breathe a sigh of relief you're not a police officer then. Good thing you don't carry a gun (we hope?) or else you'd terrify any hipster with a couple of lemon drops in 'em fixing their flat tire on the way home from the bar.

Plus, the PPD? They disagree with you. If they believed this was such a scary weapon? They'd have released the photo/info from the start.

Bruce is a textbook example from thrillho's first post.
15
Maybe Dave J. can provide his cellphone number to PPB. The next time there's a drunk bloody mentally ill homeless man who's cutting himself and threatening others, they can call you to come show them how to safely disarm him. Better yet, how about the armchair ninjas just run down to the Portland Building and fill out a job application for the Police Bureau: there is no application fee.
16
And...guess it's also good Suburban Porn King (seen here "talkin' tough" on the internets) doesn't carry a gun. I love blog tough guys.
17
Can we all agree that if the knife was a big sharp Crocodile Dundee style knife the police would have released the photos within hours?
18
That thing is plenty dangerous... cut your throat from ear to ear.
19
I use one of those at work everyday. I have cut the shit out of my fingers many times, stabbed my own hand twice and had all sorts of other accidents with them. They're sharp little fuckers, I'll admit. But then again I change to fresh blades almost once a week, they doll-up fast.

That said, I still feel that if an old man came at me with one of those, even I might have something (that isn't a gun) hanging from my belt that I could defend myself with.

Did Officer Walters (No relation) have anything else on his utility belt that day that he could have used to defend himself against something I use to create vinyl decals with?
20
It was a good shoot.... case closed move on. The crocodile tears shed for this incident are laughable at best.
21
THAT was the knife that caused this whole thing? I'd laugh if the end result wasn't so tragic.
22
"Maybe Dave J. can provide his cellphone number to PPB. The next time there's a drunk bloody mentally ill homeless man who's cutting himself and threatening others, they can call you to come show them how to safely disarm him."

Uh, Bruce. Let me explain this to you clearly. I AM NOT A COP. They have received training. I have not. (Or, maybe they have not, which is perhaps the problem.) But still, I am a citizen, so I am entitled to say "you guys have problems and need to fix it."

To use a different analogy: Joey Harrington sucks as a NFL quarterback. I can say this with some certainty, as I have watched many of his games. And yet, here's the interesting thing, HE IS STILL BETTER THAN I AM. I cannot throw the ball farther than he can. I am not as fast. But I am still qualified to say he sucks as a quarterback. So...paradox? Did I just blow your mind?
23
That blade could do a lot of damage. It could make a deep gash and perhaps even sever an artery. Also, Collins had been cutting himself. The blood on the blade clearly substantiates this. How does officer Walters know Collins is free of any blood borne diseases? I wish Walters had chosen to use his Taser instead of his gun, but I do not blame him for defending himself and neutralizing a clear threat to the community. I would have probably have done the same thing if I were in his shoes. Think about it, Officer Walters can't run away and leave an inebriated man with a blade in the park. What if Walters had done just that and then Collins attacked a civilian? One, Walters would have failed at his duty to protect and serve. Two, Walters and the City would be liable. This is a tragic situation. I wish we had robust or even adequate services for the homeless and mentally ill. If so, this situation would have likely been avoided and Collins would still be alive. Unfortunately, Oregon doesn't like to spend money on services for the less fortunate among us.
24
@PRWalters "Strapped to Walters' belt were a baton, pepper spray, a Taser, and a gun." From Mirk's previous story in the news section.
25
Um...like PRWalters, I work in the TOTALLY MACHO world of graphic design. Where we manly men use an xacto knife regularly. And...we cut ourselves, too. Ouch! Stingy.

I'm not saying it doesn't hurt. But... I don't know what Bruce, SPK, Robert, etc think an xacto is. But, sorry fellas, it ain't that.

Why else do you think the PPD hid this lil' guy? And that's the real problem. This is not scary. The bottom line is Portland Police need to be 100% transparent and let the chips fall where they may.
26
I think the takeaway here shouldn't be about the the knife or whatever you want to call it (seriously, that's ACTUALLY what you think this comes down to?), but the simple notion that regardless of how much training you receive, nothing much is going to prepare you for a drunk transient covered in blood who has already threatened violence against others advancing on you with a blade. It's one of those situations you can't judge until it happens. I guess you can, but that says more about your lack of intelligence than anything else.

So those of you who hate cops are still going to hate cops. Those who defend them at all costs will still defend. Those who are reasonable can judge the situation for what it is: unfortunate and unavoidable, at least in a city with way more homeless/mentally ill than the system has devoted resources to address.
27
I'm sorry, but anyone who thinks the term "razor knife" was some sort of cover up needs to get their head out of their ass. Those are the words the cop used when he was on the radio to dispatch. The audio tapes have been released, so you can check for yourself.

In his own words (according to the report the PPB released yesterday), he couldn't think of what the knife was called off the top of his head. He was freaked out and coined the term at the time of the incident. The term didn't come from any secret goddam meeting or anything like that.

Also, you know that pointy thing at the end of the knife's handle? IT'S A FUCKING RAZOR BLADE.
28
This thread seems to be divided between people who think the Portland Police should have been honest and up-front from the start...versus a few ALL CAPS GUYS who are absolutely terrified by a two centimeter razor.

Of course, they may just not want to shave. After all, this is Portland where beards rule supreme...
29
While the term might have been used on the scene the fact that it was the only characterization after the fact is where the control of info comes in mr. grumbles. If they had said exacto knife or 3/4 to 1" blade people would have been given a more realistic depiction of the events that transpired. Police do the opposite many times releasing information that is damaging to suspects immediately to justify arrests and prosecutions. It is a double standard that taints the whole organization and the city.

Also I disagree with people saying Walters was protecting the community. This is simplistic language as I do not understand at what point Mr. Collins stopped being a part of the community. Like it or not that man was not transient, he lived in portland for 13 years. Lot longer than most "community" members I know. Small point but language is powerful and we must be mindful how we use it.
30
My favorite part was when the Westerman started referring to the knife by its handle length. That's when I thought, "Who the fuck refers to a knife by the length of its handle?" It seems like this case was a tough call from the officer's perspective. I think the pepper spray on his belt may have been the better choice. But the real take home of this case is that first impulse of the PPB and that buttlicker Westerman at the police union is to try to cover shit up and mislead the public.
31
Let me pose a though experiment for those so threatened by an exacto blade. I work in construction ( a field which actually has more on the job fatalities than policing). Lets say I'm doing a remodel on someone's house and I am working alone. My work clothes, and often my everyday clothes, are pretty shabby and I have wild facial hair at times. Let's say I fall off a ladder for some reason hitting my head in the process. As all us experts know head wounds tend to be bleeders so i am now covered in blood. Let's say that blow also concussed me. Again us message board experts surely know that concussions can cause confusion and an agitated state. Maybe when I fell I was holding a boxcutter, common tool with about an inch blade, and it gets blood on it. For some reason I hold onto this tool and stumble outside. Some people walking by see me and are shocked. Maybe they offer help but in my confusion I yell threats at them to scare them away. The police get called find me in the same situation as mr. collins and act in the same manner.

How are these situations the same? How are they different? How would you want police to act in my hypothetical compared to what did happen? How outlandish is my example compared to some of the potentials that police employ to justify their uses of force?
32
thrillho: how outlandish is your example? incredibly outlandish, even when compared to a bad monster movie, let alone some of the specious justification the PPD use on occasion.

but even so, if you managed, in your concussion-induced yet aggressive stupor (good luck figuring that one out), to not advance on the officer, you probably make it out alright.
33
ch, have you ever been concussed? Suffered any head trauma? My depiction of that is certainly not outlandish. Try it out some time. See how you feel. Besides that, though, thanks for the response and the acknowledgment of specious justifications by police.
Couple more questions: What makes you think I would be ok if I did not advance? What if I did advance on the officer? If I was shot by this potential officer what do you think the story the police would release would read?
34
I use an X-acto all the time doing hobby work. They are sharper than hell and if someone slashed your neck with one it could definitely kill you. Same with a single edged razor blade.
35
I have been concussed, and it's certainly no fun, but while i was a bit confused, it certainly didn't result in my yelling at others trying to offer assistance. That's far fetched at best.

What makes me think you'd be ok if you didn't advance? Well, for as many mistakes as police make, shooting people following orders to drop weaponry usually isn't one of them, though I probably just jinxed that scenario.
36
For the record, I do not generally trust the police. However, they have witnesses, the call to the poilice, the weapon, a man with a history of drunkeness and mental illness. WTF more do you need? Not everything is a case of police malfeasance. I expect you think the cops should have danced around like a pack of Oompa Loompas against Veruca Salt until he "dropped it".

When people don't get mental health and dependency treatment, this is what happens. Don't blame the police for our failed policies.

I'm not a tough guy either. I just wouldn't want to be killed by a transient.
37
THIS is what Collins died over? This is what the pig Walters used to justify pumping 4 bullets into Collins? A fucking little artists' cutting blade?! WOW, i thought Ofc. Walters was a punkass cop before. But now after seeing the actual "weapon" Collins had...

Clearly he shot the man down for NO damned reason! There's no way Walters could've possibly felt "threated" by this.
38
Or do words have meanings?
39
So this is all it takes to be gunned down in your own city? Damn...
I say we all smear some red corn syrup on our faces and hold out a bunch of these and walk all zombie-like toward the central precinct. They'll be so "scared" we can run em out of town!
Or die in the streets.
40
Died for nothing.
41
Died for not following simple instructions.
42
Died from bleeding to death; which it's highly probable he would have done anyway since, y'know, he had self~inflicted slash marks on his neck and was covered in his own blood, even before the meant~to~be~non~fatal bullet hit an artery.
43
Threatening enough to shoot someone four times? I think not.
44
Wow, too bad the police officer did not have time to whip out his ruler and determine the length of the blade and decide whether it was "harmless"! How dare he make a split-second decision to save his life!

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