This morning the Portland police released the 911 calls relating to the shooting of Jack Collins. The calls do not reveal any new, game-changing information, but they are interesting to listen to and paint a more detailed picture of what went down at Hoyt Arboretum two weeks ago.
LISTEN
Original 911 call from Hoyt Arboretum
Here’s an abridged transcript:
Caller: Hi, I’m at Hoyt Arboretum, we have an intoxicated fellow, looks to possibly be a transient, threatening people on the trails, he just walked through our parking lot.
Operator: Is he white, black, Asian, Hispanic?
Caller: He’s white, 5’8, 180 pounds, carrying a plastic bag with probably liquor in it, wearing a hooded sweatshirt…
Operator: Is he actually physically trying to harm anyone?
Caller: There are a couple of women who said he “threatened” them, that was their description.
Operator: Did they say what specifically he said?
Caller: I didn’t get that yet, I have one of them out here, I just wanted to call in and see if there was an officer in the area…
Operator: I’m going to go ahead and get this set up to get someone out there. If you find that he was actually physically trying to harm people, definitely give us a call back.
Later, during police interviews of all witnesses, that woman defined “threatened” as Jack Collins verbally threatening to kill her.
Also released today is a 13-minute long recording from the police dispatch at the time of the shooting.
At first, the dispatch is discussing a transient man who lit some kind of fire behind Moonstruck Chocolates downtown. Officer Jason Walters first comes into the recording at one minute and 20 seconds. “Can I have cover up here, we’ve got one a razor,” says the officer, over the radio. But ten seconds later, Officer Walters is back on the radio, “Shots fired, shots fired,” he says.
“Shots fired, copy, code three medical,” replies the dispatch, his voice still calm. Two units start radio in that they’re heading up to the scene.
“Yeah, I’m 104, right here at Hoyt Arboretum. That guy’s down and I spy him,” says Officer Walters.
Two and a half minutes, there are five officers on the scene. “The guy’s still down, not approaching him yet,” says one officer over the radio. No beanbag guns are on the scene at this time, the officers note, but an officer with one in her car is racing to the shooting.
Police wave in medical support to the park about five minutes and 20 seconds after the shots were fired. More officers dispatch, their sirens audible over the radio as they discuss setting up a staging area.
For twelve minutes the shooting response dominates the police radio. And then, at minute 13:18, other police business edges onto the radio: “A male black dealing drugs in Oregon Park from a black SUV.”
LISTEN
Police dispatch recording: Jack Collins shooting