Twice a year, the city's Police Review Board quietly drops a report detailing serious complaints against officers. And the latest—months late—just came out. Allow Merc reporter Doug Brown to guide you through the tales of steroid use, domestic assault, and infidelity that the report has to tell.
Also in cops: We wrote yesterday about a recent report on how the city's complying with a federal settlement over police abuses—touching on some places where the city needs to improve. One thing that I don't want to get lost in that: Captain Mark Kruger, the man who was found to have constructed memorials to Nazi-era german soldiers but still works for the city, recently filed a "hostile work environment" complaint against the city's Independent Police Review. The reason? Apparently that Kruger had to watch an activist toss a cup of water onto another man. I don't understand it, either.
Thanks, Loy Clark Pipeline Co. Turns that the Tualatin-based subcontractor is the one that broke a gas line on Wednesday, resulting in explosions that rocked Northwest Portland and injured eight. The company is helping build a mixed-use building at NW 23rd and Glisan.
Speaking of explosions, a pot processing company in Astoria blew up last night.
Governor Kate Brown and challenger Dr. Bud Pierce had their final debate last night, and it went pretty much like the others have (though Pierce didn't put his foot in his mouth by suggesting well-educated women are immune to domestic violence).
And if Brown was riding a bit high in the debate (I didn't see it)? It's maybe because the President of the United States had just recorded a campaign video for her. It's the only one President Obama has recorded for a gubernatorial candidate this cycle, Brown's camp claims.
SPEAKING OF DEBATES: The Merc is co-sponsoring a debate between City Commissioner Steve Novick and Chloe Eudalytonight at 7 pm. The subject is housing/homelessness, I'm helping to moderate, and it should be a very interesting discussion. Also it's free, and Revolution Hall serves beer. So show up!
READ THIS: The NYT has pored over 130 recent mass shootings in an effort to analyze whether laws might be meaningfully tightened to reduce gun violence. Results aren't great. "In more than half the 130 cases, at least one assailant was already barred by federal law from having a weapon, usually because of a felony conviction, but nonetheless acquired a gun... Of the remaining assailants, 40 percent had never had a serious run-in with the law and probably could have bought a gun even in states with the strictest firearm controls."
There are 18 days left until election day, and my ballot showed up on Thursday. We wrote about a bunch of local races here, and offered very-abbreviated takes on a bunch more here. VOTE, DAMN YOU.
Donald Trump's faux-withering "what a nasty woman" from Wednesday night has become a godsend for Hillary Clinton, because Donald Trump is terrible at everything he does.
Trump is continuing his playground antics, telling supporters yesterday: "“I will totally accept the results of this great and historic presidential election — if I win." Clown show. (Most people want him to just take his medicine.)
Hilariously, a GOP group is now running ads implicitly premised on the fact that Trump will not be in the White House in January.
