Salem Political Snark

Excessive force by Salem police officer costs city $1 million

Justice has been served Eleaqia McCrae, who was shot in the eye and chest with rubber bullets by Salem police in May 2020 during a Black Lives Matter protest.

Today the Salem Reporter published a story about the $1 million awarded McCrae by a jury after she filed a lawsuit.

The city of Salem will have to pay a protester just over $1 million because police violated her constitutional rights when they shot her with rubber bullets at a local protest two years ago.

A federal jury on Friday, Sept. 30, unanimously ruled in favor of Eleaqia McCrae, 22, who sued the city over its handling of a protest against police violence on May 31, 2020. She said in her suit that she was left with permanent eye damage after an officer shot her twice with rubber bullets, hitting her chest and eye.

Following a trial last week in the U.S. District Court of Oregon, the jury unanimously found Salem Police Department officer Robert Johnston used excessive force when he shot McCrae, violating her Fourth Amendment rights.

For sure, this wasn't a shining moment for the Salem Police Department. In September 2020 I wrote a blog post about what sure seemed to be an attempted cover-up by the department.

Here's some excerpts from Rubber bullet lawsuit undermines credibility of Salem Police Department. 

I'm changing my mind about the Salem Police Department. By and large, I've believed that Salem has been fortunate to have a well-run department marked by honesty, integrity, and a willingness to admit mistakes.

Sure, the department's actions during this year's Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd were questionable at best and outrageous at worst. Using tear gas and playing nice with armed counter-protesters put chinks in the Police Department's "well-run" reputation.

To me those chinks widened to a crevasse after I read the front page story in today's Statesman Journal by Whitney Woodworth, 
"Protester sues city, Salem police for civil rights violations, shooting her in face, chest with rubber bullet."

...Contrast those allegations in the lawsuit with what Police Chief Jerry Moore said in a June 24 after-action report to Steve Powers, the City Manager. The following is part of a description of what happened on May 31, the day Eleaqia McCrae was shot by rubber bullets.

At 2158 hours, Lt. VanMeter authorized the use of CS gas and other munitions on the unlawful protestors and those launching items at the officers. LRAD announcements continued to be given. While we are not aware of any injuries to those in the crowd due to police actions, we were able to assist one female protestor who officers witnessed being struck in the head by a brick thrown by another protestor/rioter. After providing medical assistance and ensuring she was safe we had her transported to the hospital via ambulance.

This sure sounds like a Salem Police Department cover-up. There's little or no doubt that McCrae's injuries were caused by rubber bullets. She says that a police officer spoke with her after she was shot in the chest and eye. She was taken to the Salem Hospital Emergency Room.

Yet Chief Moore claimed that he wasn't aware "of any injuries to those in the crowd due to police actions."

Wow. Chief Moore must not have done much investigating before the after-action report was written. Or his police offices lied to him about their not being any injuries to protesters. Or Chief Moore deliberately withheld the rubber bullets injuries from his report.

Whichever possibility is true, it's a big blow to the credibility of the Salem Police Department. Shouldn't the department have contacted the Emergency Room to learn if there were people admitted with injuries caused by the actions of police officers?

They learned about a protester being struck in the head by a brick thrown by another protester. Yet the department was clueless, supposedly, about a protester being shot in the eye and chest by bullets fired by a police officer or officers.

There's no doubt that Chief Moore's after-action report was deeply flawed. The only question is whether this was deliberate or a result of incompetence. 

Hopefully we will learn which is true in the course of the lawsuit being adjudicated.

Now we know that Eleaqia McCrae was indeed seriously injured by Salem police during the protest. Yet Chief Moore, now retired, claimed otherwise in his after-action report filed more than three weeks after the protest. 

Whether Moore and other police department leaders were lying or incompetent is an open question. Regardless, this episode shows that when the Salem Police Department claims something is true, some healthy skepticism is in order.

Why Walsh deserves to win over Thatcher in SD 11 race

I could describe what happened in the main part of Friday's Salem City Club debate between Richard Walsh and Kim Thatcher before telling you who I think should win in the race for an open state senate race in District 11.

Richard Walsh and Kim Thatcher

However, the way Thatcher answered a question from an audience member near the end of the debate to my mind disqualifies her from serving not only as the SD 11 senator, but in any political office.

That's because I have no tolerance for those who spread the Big Lie that Joe Biden somehow stole the 2020 presidential election from Donald Trump even though there is zero evidence of this. And it was pretty damn obvious that Thatcher embraces the Big Lie, though she didn't say so absolutely directly.

The person who asked the question mentioned the Big Lie, asking Thatcher who she thought won the presidential election. Thatcher started off with the usual Republican trying to look halfway moderate in a swing district approach by saying Biden currently is the president, so he won.

But Thatcher didn't stop there, though she would have been politically wise to do so. 

Thatcher went on to say that there were questions about the 2020 election, and questions should be allowed from both sides. OK, so far, so good. But Thatcher then said that in Pennsylvania there were more votes than registered voters. 

That's part of the Big Lie. See here, here, and here. Actually 77% of registered voters in Pennsylvania cast a ballot in 2020.

Thatcher could have learned this, just as I did, from a few minutes of Googling. That she didn't do so, or knew the truth and spewed the lie at the City Club debate anyway, shows that Kim Thatcher doesn't respect facts -- a very bad attribute for a state legislator.

Otherwise, the debate was fairly predictable. Walsh is a Democrat. Thatcher is a Republican. Their views on various policies mostly matched their party.

Asked about which of the four ballot measures on the November ballot are most important, Thatcher said that she doesn't support Measure 111, which puts a right to health care in the state constitution, while Walsh likes that measure.

Both candidates support the police. What a non-shock.

On fighting inflation, Walsh mentioned lowering prescription drug costs and supporting higher wages, which gives workers more money to spend on stuff. Thatcher favored doing away with government red tape and lowering taxes, which also gives workers more money to spend on stuff.

Regarding Measure 110 that decriminalized drugs, Walsh supports the voter's decision, noting that resources were supposed to be committed to treatment programs, which has been slow in happening. Thatcher agreed with Walsh, adding that she'd like to send the measure back to voters with modifications aimed at strengthening incentives to seek treatment.  

Lastly, Thatcher talked several times about bringing "balance" to the Oregon legislature. Meaning, more Republicans to counter the current Democratic majority. She believes rural Oregonians are underrepresented in the legislature. 

Well, my attitude is that this is how democracy works. Does Thatcher feel that the legislatures in Oklahoma, Alabama, Mississippi, and other red states are out of balance because they're controlled by Republicans? I deeply doubt it. 

This "out of balance" argument by Oregon Republicans seems to be rooted in the false GOP attitude that any election where Republicans don't win is unfair. Which is just one step away from the Big Lie spewed by Trump that Thatcher echoes.