Today the Portland Police Bureau announced that Officer Christopher Humphreys had been placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into an incident this weekend – caught on video tape – that showed Humphreys’ shooting a 12-year old girl with a bean bag gun at a MAX stop. The girl was resisting arrest. Regardless, the use of force is disturbing and raises fundamental questions about the Portland Police Bureau and our elected officials. 

Officer Humphreys’ was one of the officers involved in the 2006 death of James Chasse, a Portlander who died violently under police custody. Just recently the city decided to give Humphreys’ a 2-week suspension for his role in Mr. Chasse's death. Many, me included, have called for Humphreys’ to resign over his conduct in the Chasse matter. 

The incident under investigation today shows a police bureau out of control. Increasingly, Portlanders have less and less confidence in the leadership of Mayor Sam Adams, Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman (the city’s police commissioner), and Police Chief Rosie Sizer. 

Obviously, Humphreys’ cannot and should not be allowed to remain on the force. At the same time, however, this case raises the question as to whether or not the right people are at the helm of the Portland Police Bureau. The Portland City Council has thus far failed to adequately address the issues surrounding the death of Mr. Chasse, whose memorial I helped to officiate. Police officials dragged their feet for three years on their internal investigation of incident and the city is fighting a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the Chasse family when they should simply admit fault. 

In police custody, Mr. Chasse was shot with a Tazer by Officer Humphreys and received fractures on 16 of his ribs and 26 different broken bones in the front and back of his rib cage. His crime? The police thought he was peeing on the street. 

And Officer Humphreys’ punishment is a 2-week suspension?  Mr. Chasse received a death sentence.  

Sgt. Scott Westerman, the president of the police union, attacked the city today for both the proposed 2-week suspension and the administrative leave placed on Officer Humphreys this afternoon. The Oregonian reports that Sgt. Westerman defended the shooting of the girl: 

"This action was appropriate," he said. "It was just. It was warranted." 

His comments only go to show that the culture of the Portland Police Bureau is out of sync with the values held by the majority of Portlanders.  They routinely defend the inexcusable. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: 

Over the years the Portland Police Association has served as a right-wing noise machine that often obscures the good work done by the bureau. PPA is, in the end, a political group with a conservative social agenda that does not reflect the values that have made Portland an open and progressive city. 

There is a big mess to clean up in Portland. Ultimately, that should be the role of the mayor. Will he finally step up or are his self-inflicted political wounds so deep as to leave the bureau out of control without effective civilian oversight?