COVID-19 Update 7/10/20

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Fri, 07/10/2020 - 2:00pm to 3:00pm

These are the news headlines for Friday, July 10. I’m Lisa Loving.

 

Early this morning an African American man was shot to death in Portland, in an apparent bias crime. Social media reports by family members of Dominique Dunn say that Dunn was out with friends when a white man approached them and called them the n-word. The family members report that he ignored the man, continued on his way, but was shot to death when the  man ran to his car for a gun. This is a breaking news story, stay tuned for more details.

 

There are now three class action lawsuits pending against the city of Portland as well as lawsuits filed this week by KBOO producers Cory Elia and Leslie McLam--all regarding police use of force during civil disturbances, several involving journalists arrested while reporting on riots.

The Oregonian reports that rather than a lawsuit,  they have filed a complaint with the City’s Independent Police Review Division over a riot police attack on reporter Beth Nakamura.

 

Portland Attorney Alan Kessler is pushing back on a new interpretation of Police Bureau disclosure rules that allows the city to obscure officers’ identities during protests and also--apparently--in the course of legal actions.

The Oregonian reports today that Kessler asked the city for documentation of officers’ identities// after former Chief Jamie Resch allowed street cops to use numbers in place of their id badges during protests. 

But instead of providing the information he requested, Kessler says the city’s response was that the Portland Police Union claimed an exemption from normal procedures providing officer disclosure.

The bureau argues that the cops’ families are in danger from harassment if the officers’ names are visible.

In a memo dating from last month, the city argued that Kessler could obtain the information about specific officers’ identities--if he could provide the officers’ names and justify why he wanted them.

Kessler told the Oregonian QUOTE: 

“It’s this catch-22 where they say I cannot tell you their name unless you give me their name, which is silly.”

Kessler has appealed to the Multnomah County District Attorney.

 

 

 

Incoming District Attorney Mike Schmidt this week unveiled a panel of advisors that he says will help him transition into a major reform of the DA’s office.

The group includes some of the most beloved community leaders in the metro area, including: retired community organizer Antoinette Edwards; Unite Oregon Executive Director Kayse Jama,; Latino Network advocacy director Ricardo Lujan-Valerio; Gresham City Councilor and East County Rising founder Eddy Morales; Street Roots publisher Kaia Sand, and Lamar Wise of Oregon AFSCME.

Schmidt is scheduled to be sworn in on August 1.

 

 

In Covid news, Oregon continues to break daily records for coronavirus cases, with 389 new documented infections and six deaths reported Thursday.

The State health authority says it’s the highest  number of cases clocked in the state since the start of the pandemic. Total documented cases statewide are now 11,188 infected people, as of yesterday. 

Officials link the growing numbers to  workplace outbreaks and community spread, particularly in rural counties.

The state reports at least 230 deaths in total, with the most recent reported in Crook, Marion, Umatilla and Clackamas counties yesterday. Many of those cases come from an outbreak at a potato processing facility.

Malheur County case numbers have tripled since June 23, bringing some of the highest rates of new cases// in the week leading up to July 4. 

 

 

 

The Associated Press reports that Oregon Court of Appeals this week upheld  a Eugene resident’s right to be listed on their drivers license and other personal documents as nonbinary.

Jones Hollister’s legal bid for a nonbinary gender designation was denied by Lane County Circuit Court Judge Charles D. Carlson last year.

But an Appeals Court ruled Wednesday that the circuit court erred in concluding that it lacked authority under state law to approve Hollister’s application for a legal change of gender from female to nonbinary.

Groups supporting Hollister in the appeal including the ACLU and Basic Rights Oregon argued a precedent exists for the designation -- and State Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum was among those who had filed briefs in their support.

It’s a first, nationwide. In 2017, Oregon became the first state in the country to allow residents to identify as nonbinary on their driver licenses and state identity cards.

 

And finally -- this is a volunteer broadcast, and the KBOO News needs more headline producers. Want to be a reporter? Email newsdirector@kboo.org

 

Those are the news headlines for Friday, Juy 10. I’m Lisa Loving, KBOO News

 

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