Score: Sizer, 1. Jackson, 0.
Officer Ron Frashour appears to be staying on the job this afternoon, at least until the grand jury transcripts are released tomorrow, after Mayor Sam Adams met with Police Chief Rosie Sizer and Police Commissioner Dan Saltzman in Saltzman’s office. Mayor Adams had earlier met with Marva Campbell-Davis, the mother of Aaron Campbell—the man Officer Frashour shot. Campbell-Davis told him she wanted Frashour off the street as a “sign of respect,” Adams said. Adams promised to relay her feelings to the Chief and Commissioner Saltzman.
“I’ve conveyed the family’s wishes to Chief Sizer and the commissioner personally,” said Adams, leaving the meeting with his deputy chief of staff. Then Sizer came out.
“He has been transferred, for the moment, to East Precinct on the Neighborhood Response Team, on a non call-taking assignment,” she said. “He was moved from Afternoon shifts at East Precinct into this arrangement, that lets him get less exposure to the kinds of crisis calls we’re talking about.”
That’s exactly the same situation as this morning. Does Sizer have a response to the mayor’s expression of the family’s wishes?
“I clearly understand that people have a variety of perspectives,” she said. “But I think this is a reasonable alternative to either having him on paid leave but not working, and otherwise having him on a shift taking calls.”
Commissioner Saltzman may still overrule Sizer, but the decision is up to him. He’s currently in a second meeting with the Portland Development Commission in his office, having declined the opportunity to give the Mercury a comment. At least for the time being, it seems Chief Sizer has won out.
Update, 3:47: “We’re going to wait until tomorrow until we’ve had a chance to review the Grand Jury transcript, which I’m delighted was released today,” says Saltzman.
And is it possible he will make a different decision tomorrow about suspending any of the officers involved?
“It’s possible,” he says. “Yeah.”
Would giving this man the paid vacation that Jesse Jackson is demanding really accomplish what the Rev wants it to?
It’s unclear. I would also imagine that it’s possible that there may be other suspensions tomorrow—not Frashour, necessarily, but some of the other cops on the scene. Like those who were a yard away from him and didn’t say, “hey, put your gun down!”
But we’ll see.
Or maybe the person or people that knew but didn’t tell Frashour that negotiators had asked Campbell to come outside… major faux pas.
We just went a similar situation with the Chris Humphries debacle not long ago. If Chief Sizer or Saltzman actually tried to do anything, why should we expect there to be any actual consequences this time either? The police union would just take anything imposed on them to arbitration, and with the terms of our current agreement, likely walk away with whatever they want.
That’s the root of the problem. There’s little mechanism to actually make the police union respect the authority of our elected officials- and by extension- the people that elected them. Until that gets fixed, it’s foolish to think that the PPA is going to act any differently.
Great coverage, Matt.
Is the police union intentionally maintaining a lower profile in this case? I would have expected them to make some bold and brash threats about what they would do if Saltzman or Sizer takes any adverse action against Frashour.
what’s this “conveying” business about? Isn’t Sam Adams the Mayor and not some “messenger boy” trading messages back and forth! Wow!
This saga becomes more bizarre by the day, with these horrible “bad actors” doing it all on the fly, mumbling their way through their lines and botching their roles.
They need to be OVERTHROWN and better capable people put in to their seats. Enough of this silliness is enough!!
But what if they go and the people that replace them turn out to be even bigger bozos? Then we’re really screwed.
Portland shouldn’t hold on to poor leadership in fear of a worse alternative. These are jobs that can be filled with more competent replacements. I admit that I voted for Sam Adams for mayor just because Sho Dozono was unprepared and no one really credible ran against either of them.
It is really, really strange to see the police union laying so low on this one. They seem to know that the elected officials will do absolutely nothing AGAIN.
The issue that the city’s current leadership is taking on here is one of the deepest, most intractable core problems Portland has, anchored in racism and indifference to inequities of class. If this one is tough, there are good reasons. This would be a huge culture change. If Saltzman looks at the grand jury proceedings and does not find a reason to question Frashour’s reassignment to active duty or if Sam Adams fails to act as a vocal, strategic advocate for community concerns — the ones Jesse Jackson reminded him of in no uncertain terms — that will be a huge failing. But give them a chance.
…but I’m mad NOW.