Officer Humphreys rats himself out
The Portland police officer who needlessly killed James Chasse in 2006 changed his story in crucial respects just days after the killing on a Pearl District street, according to a fine investigative story by Nick Budnick in the Trib today. Officer Christopher Humphreys, a notorious "thumper," is captured on video the night of the killing admitting that he and his partner tackled the diminutive Chasse. Two days later, Humphreys told investigators that he merely pushed Chasse, who fell to the ground.
The 42-year-old, 145-pound man suffered at least 26 broken and shattered bones in his rib cage and a punctured left lung as a result of his "fall." Humphreys directly denied to police investigators that he landed on Chasse.
When history remembers Tom Potter as mayor of Portland, his failure to respond adequately as police commissioner to this deplorable incident will no doubt be mentioned. Not a great legacy, Mayor.
| Posted at 12:59 AM | Permalink |
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Comments (5)
don't recall anyone ever saying that Tom and
Rosie's dumbdowned PoPo were very smart and
this seems to highlight that FACT. Do you
recall all those silly op-ed pieces that the
copsters (Rosie, Tom & Robert King and that
sort of ilk) wrote 2 years ago to try to lie
and cover-up the TRUTH that has now come back
to haunt their damned A$$e$? My! My! When
the masks come off, we see just how ugly and
evil these disgusting people really are don't we.
Posted by Little Birdie | October 30, 2008 9:55 PM
I've been reading and listening to the various reporting on this subject for some time - and besides an overwhelming sadness for the death of a fragile, mentally ill individual - I'm most struck by the holes in the story.
You start with the whole, 26 broken bones, thing. I pray by all that is right and good that if any child, woman or adult dies with such injuries, the person who caused them doesn't get to say -- "I fell over him." I don't care if you are a foster parent of the child, a spouse of the dead woman or the cop who responded to a complaint of a mentally ill adult urinating in public. You don't get to say that -- and get away with it.
Then you get to the weird tale of the drive to the hospital. You tell me -- you're three minutes from a hospital and your wife is ready to give birth -- do you pull off the road, spend 19 minutes doing, hum, nothing? -- and then call an ambulance to take her to the hospital three minutes away? -- I don't think so.
So by what reason on earth did those cops pull off the road with Chasse, hang around for all that time, waiting for an ambulance to take him to the hospital? Why not just go the extra 3 minutes to get him to the hospital, themselves? If that wasn't their intent, why start the journey? (Remembering that the nurses at the jail had refused to accept him because he needed to be seen by medical personnel ASAP.) I don't see hanging around on the median strip with a dying man as ASAP getting him to medical attention.
At least, I hope no one ever mistakes my own medical needs, as such...
Posted by Anne Dufay | October 30, 2008 10:03 PM
Poorly trained, weakly managed, with a mean streak, and dishonest about its mistakes -- that's the Portland Police Bureau. Officer Humphreys is the poster child.
Posted by Jack Bog | October 30, 2008 10:24 PM
So Jack, what do you think about the dead space in the media coverage of this incident around the 19 approx minutes the cops spent with Chasse -- pulled over on the side of the road "waiting for the ambulance."
WTF were they doing during that almost 20 minutes? Where are the questions about that?
Posted by Anne Dufay | October 30, 2008 10:56 PM
Today is the last day but if you still have time to get your application in by 4:30.
http://www.portlandonline.com/auditor/index.cfm?c=27069
The Independent Police Review (IPR) is accepting applications for volunteers to serve on the Citizen Review Committee (CRC).
IPR receives and screens complaints about Portland Police Bureau (Bureau) officers. IPR may investigate, mediate, dismiss, or refer complaints to the Bureau. IPR oversees investigations, analyzes complaint patterns, and conducts policy reviews. CRC members are appointed by the City Council to monitor and advise IPR, hear appeals, and receive public concerns. Applications must be received by 4:30 PM on Friday, October 31, 2008.
Posted by Good Citizen | October 31, 2008 10:49 AM