11-26-2024  8:27 pm   •   PDX and SEA Weather

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NORTHWEST NEWS

Forecasts Warn of Possible Winter Storms Across US During Thanksgiving Week

Two people died in the Pacific Northwest after a rapidly intensifying “bomb cyclone” hit the West Coast last Tuesday, bringing fierce winds that toppled trees and power lines and damaged homes and cars. Fewer than 25,000 people in the Seattle area were still without power Sunday evening.

Huge Number Of Illegal Guns In Portland Come From Licensed Dealers, New Report Shows

Local gun safety advocacy group argues for state-level licensing and regulation of firearm retailers.

'Bomb Cyclone' Kills 1 and Knocks out Power to Over Half a Million Homes Across the Northwest US

A major storm was sweeping across the northwest U.S., battering the region with strong winds and rain. The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect. 

'Bomb Cyclone' Threatens Northern California and Pacific Northwest

The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks beginning Tuesday and lasting through Friday. Those come as the strongest atmospheric river  that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season bears down on the region. 

NEWS BRIEFS

Vote By Mail Tracking Act Passes House with Broad Support

The bill co-led by Congressman Mfume would make it easier for Americans to track their mail-in ballots; it advanced in the U.S. House...

OMSI Opens Indoor Ice Rink for the Holiday Season

This is the first year the unique synthetic ice rink is open. ...

Thanksgiving Safety Tips

Portland Fire & Rescue extends their wish to you for a happy and safe Thanksgiving Holiday. ...

Portland Art Museum’s Rental Sales Gallery Showcases Diverse Talent

New Member Artist Show will be open to the public Dec. 6 through Jan. 18, with all works available for both rental and purchase. ...

Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Oregon Announces New State Director and Community Engagement Coordinator

“This is an exciting milestone for Oregon,” said DELC Director Alyssa Chatterjee. “These positions will play critical roles in...

Eggs are available -- but pricier -- as the holiday baking season begins

Egg prices are rising once more as a lingering outbreak of bird flu coincides with the high demand of the holiday baking season. But prices are still far from the recent peak they reached almost two years ago. And the American Egg Board, a trade group, says egg shortages at grocery...

Two US senators urge FIFA not to pick Saudi Arabia as 2034 World Cup host over human rights risks

GENEVA (AP) — Two United States senators urged FIFA on Monday not to pick Saudi Arabia as the 2034 World Cup host next month in a decision seen as inevitable since last year despite the kingdom’s record on human rights. Democrats Ron Wyden of Oregon and Dick Durbin of Illinois...

Missouri hosts Browning and Lindenwood

Lindenwood Lions (2-4) at Missouri Tigers (5-1) Columbia, Missouri; Wednesday, 6:30 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: Lindenwood visits Missouri after Markeith Browning II scored 20 points in Lindenwood's 77-64 loss to the Valparaiso Beacons. The Tigers are 5-0 on...

Pacific hosts Paljor and UAPB

Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions (1-6) at Pacific Tigers (3-4) Stockton, California; Wednesday, 10 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: UAPB faces Pacific after Chop Paljor scored 22 points in UAPB's 112-63 loss to the Missouri Tigers. The Tigers are 1-1 on their home...

OPINION

A Loan Shark in Your Pocket: Cellphone Cash Advance Apps

Fast-growing app usage leaves many consumers worse off. ...

America’s Healing Can Start with Family Around the Holidays

With the holiday season approaching, it seems that our country could not be more divided. That division has been perhaps the main overarching topic of our national conversation in recent years. And it has taken root within many of our own families. ...

Donald Trump Rides Patriarchy Back to the White House

White male supremacy, which Trump ran on, continues to play an outsized role in exacerbating the divide that afflicts our nation. ...

Why Not Voting Could Deprioritize Black Communities

President Biden’s Justice40 initiative ensures that 40% of federal investment benefits flow to disadvantaged communities, addressing deep-seated inequities. ...

AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE NEWS

Walmart's DEI rollback signals a profound shift in the wake of Trump's election victory

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart's sweeping rollback of its diversity policies is the strongest indication yet of a profound shift taking hold at U.S. companies that are re-evaluating the legal and political risks associated with bold programs to bolster historically underrepresented groups. ...

Trump vows tariffs over immigration. What the numbers say about border crossings, drugs and crime

WASHINGTON (AP) — In a Monday evening announcement, President-elect Donald Trump railed against Mexico and Canada, accusing them of allowing thousands of people to enter the U.S. Hitting a familiar theme from the campaign trail and his first term in office, Trump portrayed the...

Louisville police officer alleges discrimination over his opinion on Breonna Taylor's killing

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A Kentucky police officer who was shot in 2020 during protests over Breonna Taylor’s death is suing his department, alleging his superiors discriminated against him after he expressed his opinion about Taylor's shooting. Louisville Officer Robinson Desroches...

ENTERTAINMENT

Book Review: 'How to Think Like Socrates' leaves readers with questions

The lessons of Socrates have never really gone out of style, but if there’s ever a perfect time to revisit the ancient philosopher, now is it. In “How to Think Like Socrates: Ancient Philosophy as a Way of Life in the Modern World,” Donald J. Robertson describes Socrates' Athens...

Music Review: The Breeders' Kim Deal soars on solo debut, a reunion with the late Steve Albini

When the Pixies set out to make their 1988 debut studio album, they enlisted Steve Albini to engineer “Surfer Rosa,” the seminal alternative record which includes the enduring hit, “Where Is My Mind?” That experience was mutually beneficial to both parties — and was the beginning of a...

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Dec. 1-7

Celebrity birthdays for the week of Dec. 1-7: Dec. 1: Actor-director Woody Allen is 89. Singer Dianne Lennon of the Lennon Sisters is 85. Bassist Casey Van Beek of The Tractors is 82. Singer-guitarist Eric Bloom of Blue Oyster Cult is 80. Drummer John Densmore of The Doors is 80....

U.S. & WORLD NEWS

Biden proposes Medicare and Medicaid cover costly weight-loss drugs for millions of obese Americans

WASHINGTON (AP) — Millions of Americans with obesity would be eligible to have popular weight-loss drugs like...

Surveillance tech advances by Biden could aid in Trump's promised crackdown on immigration

President-elect Donald Trump will return to power next year with a raft of technological tools at his disposal...

New rule allows HIV-positive organ transplants

People with HIV who need a kidney or liver transplant will be able to receive an organ from a donor with HIV under...

G7 ministers throw support behind Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire but make no mention of ICC warrant

FIUGGI, Italy (AP) — Foreign ministers from leading industrialized countries threw their strong support Tuesday...

Russia expels British diplomat after accusing him of spying

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian authorities on Tuesday ordered a British diplomat to leave the country on allegations of...

Middle East latest: Ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon begins

A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants began early Wednesday morning, after Beirut...

Lisa Loving of The Skanner News

The more-than 700-page plus Grand Jury transcript of the Keaton Otis shooting shows the police officer Otis shot never saw a gun, and also that Otis had assaulted a man in North Portland on Feb. 9.
The Grand Jury ruled last week that there was no wrongdoing on the part of officers in the traffic stop, which resulted in death and injury.
Officer Chris Burley was reportedly shot twice by Otis during the traffic stop May 12. Seven Portland police officers surrounded his car, three of whom fired more than 30 bullets into it.
Otis died at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds. Burley was hospitalized and released, and is expected to make a complete recovery.
Otis' family has publicly stated their 25-year-old son had been diagnosed with a "mood disorder." Otis, who lived with his parents, had no known gang ties, but was shot to death by members of the Portland Police anti-gang squad.
The Grand Jury documents, released Monday afternoon, show that after the hail of bullets ended and Otis stopped moving, officers were ordered to move in and Taser him, then fire three beanbag rounds at his body.
When there was no physical response, an arrest team moved in, pulled Otis' lifeless body out of the car, and handcuffed it.
An unidentified questioner during the Grand jury proceedings asks, "Just to be clear, why did you have him fire beanbag rounds?"
"…I thought potentially we could move forward and take him into custody and, in turn, get him medical care," Sgt. Don Livingstone says. "But before I did this, I wanted to make sure he was not faking, he was not lying in wait for us to make a movement and then again would shoot at us when we walked forward," he said.
A few minutes later Livingtone adds, "We move forward. They grab the suspect's arms. They pull him out of the vehicle, up onto the sidewalk and place him into custody without incident."
Another unidentified person says, "What do you mean when you say, 'They placed him into custody?'"
"They put handcuffs on him,' Livingstone says.
"Around his back on in front?"
"Behind his back, put handcuffs behind his back. We're still going to have to make sure he doesn't have a weapon on him before medical can come in and check him," Livingstone says.
Detective Erik Kammerer reported to the Grand Jury that out of 32 shell casings found at the scene, only one did not correspond with the officers' own bullets.
Kammerer said the unique bullet was found in the front passenger floor of Otis' car.
The AMA Coalition for Justice and Police Reform announced Monday afternoon they'll be holding a press conference to look at "Lingering questions about the incident and the investigation."
In the court transcripts released Monday, Burley testifies that he never saw a gun at the scene. Just before he was shot, he tried unsuccessfully to use a choke hold on Otis.
Burley says that "the last situation" he dealt with like that involved a meth addict who assaulted both him and his partner.
"And I'm backing up, I'm backing up, and then it looks – I'm still kind of got this vision just straight into the car of this guy. And I believe I hear – I believe I hear 'Gun'. And then it looks like he's looking over at me. And I couldn't tell if he was arched back in the seat like this or if he was – kind of bent over in the car so he's hunched over. I couldn't—couldn't tell which was he was situated, because everything's happening so quickly. And then I hear two gunshots from inside the car. And then I automatically – as soon as I hear the gunshots, I feel burning in my legs and I realized that I have been hit, and I go to the ground," Burley says.
On further questioning, Burley said he did not remember that any officers were facing him as he was shot. He said he could not recall seeing any of the officers with their guns out, and also couldn't remember whether Otis had his seatbelt on.
Also in the testimony, a local merchant with a booth at the Lloyd Center said that Otis drove up to him on the street in February, and threatened him with an aluminum baseball bat over a woman the merchant employs.
Farhan Rashtabadi said Otis was under the impression that he was a rival for the woman's affections.
The businessman said Otis waved the bat in his face, cursing and saying, "Leave her alone. She's mine."
After the altercation came to a close, Rashtabadi noted the Toyota's license plate number and reported the incident to the police.
His employee indicated she had dated Otis once, and that he still occasionally sent her "weird" text messages.
"I thought maybe he is just being a psycho or something, he is obsessed with my employee," Rashtabadi said.
As police May 12 decided to pull over Otis' car, they noted that it wasn't linked to any offenses, but that it came back "registered to a woman." After they put on sirens and tried to pull Otis over, his driving became erratic; they eventually boxed in the vehicle and began the fatal stand-off.

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