Thanks to Salem Weekly, we now know more about Daniel Benjamin's assault arrest.
Before considering voting for Ward 6 candidate Benjamin, be sure to check out the updated SW online story, "City Council Candidate Misrepresents HIs Troubled Past, Gets Statesman Journal Endorsement Anyway."
The print version will hit the streets tomorrow.
You won't find this information in Salem's so-called "paper of record," the Statesman Journal. So pick up a copy of Salem Weekly and learn what the Statesman Journal editorial board, which endorsed Benjamin, doesn't want you to know.
Excerpts to whet your appetite for the full story:
Earlier this month Salem’s Statesman Journal newspaper endorsed a candidate for the Salem City Council who it knew misrepresented himself to them. The endorsement was made while the paper possessed documentation of misrepresentations made by the candidate – Daniel Benjamin, who is running for the open seat in Ward 6 in East Salem.
...In fact, Benjamin was arrested three times in the 1990s on charges of assault, including throwing an ex-girlfriend into a dumpster and throwing her into a tree. Benjamin’s record also shows traffic violations including driving with a suspended license in 2006.
On April 28, Statesman Journal staff was provided with documentation of these arrests, including a police report from the Gresham Police Department.
Statesman Journal elected to not publish this information, and on May 4, officially endorsed Benjamin as the best candidate running for city council in Ward 6.
The Gresham Police Department report can be read in its entirety. On the Salem Weekly web site, of course. Not the Statesman Journal's. This wasn't a sudden emotional outburst where Benjamin hit a girl. It was a lot more than that; a lot more disturbing. Read the report.
Most people running for public office would have answered "yes" to a candidate questionnaire that asked “Any skeletons in your closet or other potentially embarrassing information that you want to disclose before it comes up in the campaign?”
Daniel Benjamin didn't think voters deserved to know about his assault arrests, including this domestic violence episode. I guess he doesn't consider throwing an ex-girlfriend into a dumpster and then hitting her, along with forcing her mouth shut so she couldn't scream for help, is embarassing.
Consider that, Ward 6 voters. Then cast your ballot for Xue Lor.
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