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Good morning, Portland! Today is the Big Heat day, with temps expected to peak around 102 degrees. Hopefully you were able to bring in some early morning air before shutting the windows and closing the blinds. Now, onto the news!

In local news:

• As a reminder: Five cooling shelters are opening at 2 pm today. The shelters are available to anyone who wants to sit in an air conditioned space for a while. Investigations following last year’s heatwave revealed that some of victims didn’t reach out for help or go to a cooling center because they didn’t want to be a burden, so I stress: The cooling shelters are there to be used!!! If your home is getting a bit too toasty for your liking, grab a book, call 211, and get a ride to your nearest cooling center!

• ICYMI: A Portland Police officer shot and killed a member of the public Sunday while responding to a domestic disturbance call. A video of the situation shows two officers grappling with a person on the ground, the person seemingly firing their own gun into the sky, and then PPB officer Mina Cavalli-Singer shooting the person six times directly into their body.

• In other cop news:

• Several residents of a low-income apartment complex in Newberg are facing eviction for using in-window AC units. While Oregon law requires landlords to allow in-window units from May to September (a change made following last year’s deadly heatwave), the units can still be banned if they are deemed a fire hazard or otherwise unsafe. The tenants, who report getting sick from the heat and are unable to afford indoor AC units, must move out by the end of the month—during the ongoing heatwave.

• The World Athletics Championship in Eugene, Oregon, came to a close last weekend. The event made history for being the first time the massive competition has ever been held in the United States. Check out OPB’s roundup of some of the top moments from the event, including this announcer who got to narrate his son winning a gold medal:

In national and international news:

• Ukrainian refugees who evacuated earlier this year as Russian forces invaded the country are now returning to the front lines—not because it’s safe, but because they can’t afford to live in safer places. Tens of thousands of people have already returned, and some have already been killed by Russian attacks. “We cannot win,” said one Ukrainian refugee. “They don’t hire us elsewhere and you still have to pay rent.”

• Twice-impeached former Prez Donald Trump will deliver a speech on crime (HA!) before a think tank in Washington DC Tuesday. The think tank, the America First Policy Institute, has been crafting an agenda for a possible second term for Trump, the star player in the House investigation of Jan. 6 who refused to condemn the violent mob that attacked the capitol.

• Feeling lucky?

• A shooting erupted during a weekly softball game in Los Angeles that promotes peace between regional gangs on Sunday. Witnesses say a dispute between two people escalated into a gunfight that killed two people and wounded six others. (Side note: Mass shootings have seemingly become a staple in this section of the news roundup and I would just like to say that it SUCKS.)

• Parents of a 14-year-old accidentally killed in a police shooting are suing the Los Angeles Police Department and the officer responsible. Valentina Orellana-Peralta was killed by police in December while officers confronted an assault suspect in a department store. Body cam video shows an officer, despite being urged to slow down by fellow officers, rushing ahead to locate and shoot the suspect. Orellana-Peralta was in a dressing room behind the suspect and was struck and killed by a bullet. The lawsuit alleges LAPD failed to adequately train the officers and that the department fosters an environment that allowed the shooting to occur. 

• Okay, July has been a little rough, but August is already looking up: