Oregon County Plants Trees to Honor Victims of Killer 2021 Heat Wave
Family members of people killed by record-breaking heat in the Portland area three years ago gathered over the weekend to plant trees across Multnomah County in honor of its 72 victims. Authorities say more people died from the heat in the greater Portland area that June than in the entire state over the past 20 years.
Washington State Bar Association OKs Far Lower Caseloads for Public Defenders
The Washington State Bar Association has approved far lower case limits for public defenders in an effort to stop them from quitting, to help with recruiting and to fairly represent defendants. Skeptics agree the system is breaking down but are concerned about finding more attorneys to hire. Many counties, especially rural ones, already struggle to employ enough public defenders and get almost no state funding, which some say should change.
Portland Establishes Monument Review Process
City Council unanimously votes to create policy for questioning public monuments, now classified as separate from public art.
Lawsuit Accuses Portland Police Officer of Fatally Shooting Unarmed Black Man in the Back
According to the complaint, in 2022, the officer shot Immanueal Clark in the back as he ran away.
Black Girls Do Engineer is a nonprofit dedicated to getting more Black and brown girls into STEM ...
Rose Festival Princess From Grant High School Selected
On March 14, Daniela Gray was named a Princess of this year's court. ...
Portland Rose Festival 2024 Court Member from Cleveland High School Announced
The Rose Festival Princess from Cleveland High School, Zora Forsberg, was selected March 14. ...
Portland Rose Festival 2024 Court Member from Central Catholic High School Announced
The Rose Festival Princess from Central Catholic High School, Jayda Jackson, was selected March 8. ...
Portland Rose Festival 2024 Court Member from Lincoln High School Announced
The Rose Festival Princess from Lincoln High School, Isabelle Muresan, was selected on March 12. ...
Oregon man found guilty of murder in 1980 cold case of college student after DNA link
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — A man living in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, has been found guilty in the 1980 cold case murder of a 19-year-old college student. Multnomah County Circuit Judge Amy Baggio on Friday found Robert Plympton, 60, guilty of first-degree murder in the death of...
Oregon county plants trees to honor victims of killer 2021 heat wave
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Family members of some of the people killed by record-breaking heat in the Portland, Oregon, area three years ago gathered over the weekend to plant trees across Multnomah County in honor of its 72 victims. The event, coordinated by county and local officials...
Georgia ends game on 12-0 run to beat Missouri 64-59 in first round of SEC tourney
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Blue Cain had 19 points, Justin Hill scored 17 off the bench and 11th-seeded Georgia finished the game on a 12-0 run to beat No. 14 seed Missouri 64-59 on Wednesday night in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament. Cain hit 6 of 12 shots,...
Georgia faces Missouri in SEC Tournament
Missouri Tigers (8-23, 0-18 SEC) vs. Georgia Bulldogs (16-15, 6-12 SEC) Nashville, Tennessee; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. EDT FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Bulldogs -3; over/under is 147 BOTTOM LINE: Georgia plays in the SEC Tournament against Missouri. ...
OP-ED: Congress Is Right: Federal Reserve’s Reg II Will Hurt Minority Communities in America
The Fed is taking every effort to promote income equality and workplace diversity and inclusion, but Regulation II would undercut its great work in this respect and cause potential harm to millions of minority families. Now that a congressional coalition has...
OP-ED: A Silent Killer No More
Data from Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City shows that more than 13 percent of African American men between the ages 45 and 79 will develop prostate cancer in their lifetimes. And Black men have a 70 percent higher rate of developing...
Message from Commissioner Jesse Beason: February is 'Black History and Futures Month'
I am honored to join the Office of Sustainability and to co-sponsor a proclamation to mark “Black History and Futures Month” ...
Ending Unfair Contracts Harming Minority Businesses Will Aid Gov. Kotek’s Affordable Housing Goals
Senate Bill 1575 will protect small businesses from state and local government’s unfair contract practices while also allowing the building industry to help the governor meet her affordable housing project goals. ...
Buddhists use karmic healing against one US city's anti-Asian legacy and nationwide prejudice today
ANTIOCH, California (AP) — For one afternoon, on Antioch’s main street and tranquil riverbank, the fragrance of burning incense was paired with the sound of Buddhist and Tao chants. Their cumulative calming energy was meant to be a balm of sorts to soothe the racial and religious hate that cast...
Antioch, a city with a complex anti-Asian history, takes meaningful steps toward reconciliation
ANTIOCH, Calif. (AP) — In 1939, after attending the Golden Gate International Exposition in San Francisco, Alfred Chan and his friends were headed back home to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. “They got really hungry and decided to stop halfway in Antioch for a meal,” his son...
6 former Mississippi law officers to be sentenced for torture of 2 Black men
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Six former Mississippi law enforcement officers who pleaded guilty to a long list of state and federal charges for torturing two Black men will be sentenced by a federal judge starting Tuesday. U.S. District Judge Tom Lee will sentence two defendants each day...
The Lionheart: Dan Wheldon documentary covers grief, loss, love and familial legacy
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — It was 10 years after the death of their father that associates of filmmaker Laura Brownson brought her an article to read about the late Dan Wheldon. Standing below the monument on Dan Wheldon Way along the downtown St. Petersburg race course that honors...
Music Review: Kacey Musgraves’ 'Deeper Well' trades country-pop hooks for deep, folk-y meditation
Just over a decade ago, Kacey Musgraves emerged as a fresh new voice in country music – a mid-tempo storyteller with an incredible acuity both in her lyrics and in her instrumentation, knowing just when to pick up the harmonica, whistle a tune or break out the vocoder. In the years...
A new generation of readers embraces bell hooks' 'All About Love'
NEW YORK (AP) — In the summer of 2022, Emma Goodwin was getting over a breakup and thinking hard about her life and how to better herself. She decided to try a book she had heard about often, bell hooks’ “All About Love: New Visions." “I loved it. It takes seriously a subject...
Housing Secretary Fudge Resigning. Biden Hails Her Dedication to Boosting Supply of Affordable Homes
The average bonus on Wall Street last year was 6,500. That's down slightly from 2022
NEW YORK (AP) — The average Wall Street bonus fell slightly last year to 6,500 as the industry added...
US defense chief vows continued aid to Ukraine, even as Congress is stalled on funding bill
RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, Germany (AP) — Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin vowed Tuesday that the U.S. will continue to...
Tuesday's primaries include a key Senate race in Ohio and clues for the Biden-Trump rematch
NEW YORK (AP) — Five states will hold presidential primaries on Tuesday as President Joe Biden and former...
The UK's contentious plan to send asylum-seekers to Rwanda is close to clearing Parliament
LONDON (AP) — The British government hopes one last push can revive its stalled plan to send some asylum-seekers...
South Korea will suspend licenses of 2 senior doctors in first punishment for doctors' walkouts
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean authorities will suspend the licenses of two senior doctors for allegedly...
Notre Dame Cathedral's restoration has been a 5-year journey of dedication and recovery
PARIS (AP) — The restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris following a tragic blaze in April 2019 is a story...
Ferguson Police Chief Tom Jackson begins to march with protesters before clashes led to arrests in front of the Ferguson Police Department, on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2014. (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Cohen)
FERGUSON, Mo. (AP) — Cast as an olive branch by some, the Ferguson police chief's attempt to march with protesters demanding charges in the killing of an unarmed, black 18-year-old by a white officer still erupted into a clash that activists Friday blamed on police missteps.
The trouble Thursday night came hours after Police Chief Tom Jackson released a videotaped apology to Michael Brown's family that drew skepticism from residents and protesters who still crave answers about Brown's death. A county grand jury is weighing whether to indict Ferguson officer Darren Wilson in the Aug. 9 shooting, and the Justice Department is investigating whether Brown's civil rights were violated.
The latest unrest occurred two days after many in the St. Louis suburb complained Ferguson police did little to douse a fire that destroyed a makeshift memorial for Brown.
"You have people grasping for a crumb of justice," protester Charles Wade, 31, of Austin, Texas, said Friday near a canopy across the street from the police station where protesters have regularly gathered since shortly after Brown's death. "There's a circle of trauma that keeps happening."
He said Thursday night's protesters appeared largely unmoved by Jackson's apology, saying they "felt it was more of a PR move than sincere." In it, Jackson acknowledged Brown's body should have been removed from the street much sooner than the four hours it remained there as police collected evidence.
"I'm truly sorry for that," Jackson said, insisting officers meant no disrespect to Brown's family or the largely black community. To Brown's parents, Jackson added, "I'm truly sorry for the loss of your son."
PHOTO: Protesters lock arms, blocking S. Florissant Road in front of the Ferguson Police Department, calling for the resignation of Police Chief Tom Jackson on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2014. (AP Photo/St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Robert Cohen)
Also Thursday, news surfaced that the man hired to handle public relations for Ferguson, including the chief's apology, was fired after officials learned he had been convicted of reckless homicide in 2006 in connection with a shooting in Shelby County, Tennessee. Devin James told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch the shooting was self-defense and he served 90 days in prison and five years of probation.
James and Jackson did not return messages to The Associated Press seeking comment Friday.
Col. Ron Replogle of the Missouri State Highway Patrol said Friday that Missouri police have been undergoing training on responding to civil unrest, buying more equipment and "planning for the worst" throughout the St. Louis region if a grand jury opts not to indict Wilson.
Thursday's flare-up came after Jackson agreed to join marchers but failed to tell officers monitoring his safety to stand down, witnesses said Friday. That led to some officers forcing their way into the gathering, then pushing and shoving marchers, the witnesses said. Several protesters were arrested.
"If (the officers) had just not come in, everything would be all right," protester Steven Wash, 26, of Ferguson, said Friday.
"It was absolute mayhem," Wade added. "Jackson decided to come out and broker some peace and pretty much asked what he could do to build a new level of trust, and police continued to come, come, come. The olive branch he tried to extend was great, and it showed he wasn't a robot. But police forced him out like he was a diplomat in a war zone."
Activist groups continued pressing for Jackson to resign Friday. Montague Simmons, leader of the Organization for Black Struggle, accused the chief of pandering to cameras and "throwing out empty promises of accountability" as "a charlatan in uniform."
In a letter released Friday, Justice Department civil rights investigators reminded Jackson that he is to ban his officers from wearing bracelets supporting Wilson while on duty. Ferguson residents complained about the bracelets, which are black with "I am Darren Wilson" in white lettering, at a meeting with federal officials this week.
___
Associated Press writers David A. Lieb in Columbia and Alan Scher Zagier in St. Louis contributed to this report.
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.