Salem, Ore. – Oregon municipalities and public corporations are required to file annual financial reports with the state. As of the end of the year, 238 entities were at least one year behind in filing.
“It’s a requirement because people need to have confidence that public dollars are being used correctly and that those municipalities are following the law,” says Oregon Secretary of State Tobias Read, “Essentially [it’s] a representation that the numbers are accurate. They have to be reviewed by a CPA.”
He admits it’s tough for some entities to do it, and if an audit by a certified public accountant is necessary, there’s a cost, “These are often very small municipalities that don’t have a lot of people and a lot of resources. I understand they have a lot of things going on, but it’s that rigor, that consistency that discipline really matters and that’s why we’re highlighting it.” He adds, “The fact that we had a lot of challenges through the COVID environment and the combination of that and a lack of adequate resources.” And, Read says, there are accommodations, “Sometimes, if it’s a smaller entity they can self-report that. It’s a way of being transparent and if that doesn’t happen we need to hold them accountable.”
Not filing can affect an entities’ ability to service debt or get new debt. School districts can lose funding from the Oregon Department of Education if they miss three years. Special service districts can be dissolved if they fail to file for three years.
Among those with missing reports in 2025: The cities of Albany and Sweet Home, and Baker County. Click HERE for the complete list.
After the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office announced plans to cleanup Oregon’s voter rolls in early January, false claims about voter fraud in the state spread on X. Those claims were then elevated by Tesla CEO and former DOGE leader Elon Musk.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Hundreds in the NASCAR community gathered for a memorial service at Charlotte’s Bojangles Coliseum on Friday for former driver Greg Biffle, his family and others who were killed in a plane crash last month.
Biffle was among seven killed along with his wife, Cristina, and children Ryder, 5, and Emma, 14, when the plane crashed as it returned to the airport in Statesville, North Carolina, according to authorities. Others on the plane were identified as Dennis Dutton, his son Jack, and Craig Wadsworth.
Driver/influencer Garrett Mitchell, known as “Cleetus McFarland” in his YouTube videos and a close friend of Biffle’s, was among those who spoke at the service.
“We have all been saying, ‘Be like Biff,’ since we lost our hero,” said Mitchell, who befriended Biffle later in his life. “What does that mean? That means to take opportunities when you see them. Whether you are taking opportunity to pass somebody on the track or getting off your couch to chase a dream you have only been talking about for the past five years.
“It means showing up for your friends and family. It means using your heart to make the world a better place. It means being generous whenever you can and helping other humans when they’re down. That is what it means to be like Biff,” Mitchell added.
Biffle, who was 55, was selected by NASCAR as one of its top 75 drivers in history, was a Hall of Fame nominee for the stock car series and drove for 18 years at the top of the sport.
He drew headlines last year for his tireless humanitarian efforts as a helicopter pilot supplying aid in the devastation left behind by Hurricane Helene.
Biffle’s niece, Jordyn Biffle, told stories about Ryder’s hero being his father, Emma’s laughter and Cristina’s loving nature.
She said the Biffle family “lived fully, loved deeply and gave freely.”
“Their lives remind us that what matters isn’t how long we are here, but how we use the time we are given and how fiercely we love while we are here,” Biffle added. “And while this loss is devastating beyond words, their impact remains etched into all of us that were lucky enough to have known them, loved them and be changed by them.”
In the parking lot outside of the coliseum, fans paused to peer inside three racecars Biffle drove during his career.
Inside, the pictures of the seven who lost their lives where shown on a videoboard above the makeshift platform in the center of the covered hockey rink. There were seven wreaths on the stage where Mitchell, Biffle and former drivers Jeff Burton and Phil Parsons addressed the crowd.
Dylan Zirkle, 28, of Archdale, North Carolina, worked one year for Biffle at Roush Racing as a pit support employee while he was in high school.
He said Biffle made a lasting impact on him, and felt he needed to attend.
“Greg was always a really good guy and I enjoyed being around him,” Zirkle said. “You could always talk to him at anytime and he was just a real person. You could talk to him about anything.”
Back home, Zirkle still has model racing trucks in his gameroom autographed by Biffle that he cherishes.
Zirkle said he didn’t believe the news of the crash when he heard it.
“It still doesn’t feel real,” Zircle said. “I was watching some of his YouTube videos the other night and it just doesn’t seem real at all.”
Tanner Roberts and Jassamin Green made the four-hour trek from Wilmington, North Carolina, with their 7-year-old son Bentley after hearing about the memorial.
“He was a good racecar driver and I enjoyed him,” Roberts said. “And he was a good person. I grew up watching him and Dale Earnhardt. Them two were my favorites. They were good people and they loved to race.”
The Cessna C550 carrying the Biffle family and the others erupted in flames when it hit the ground shortly after it had departed Statesville Regional Airport, about an hour’s drive north of Charlotte.
The plane crashed while trying to return and land, authorities said.
The crash a week before Christmas left the NASCAR community shaken and was another blow in a long offseason. Ten days later, on the 52nd wedding anniversary of Denny Hamlin’s parents, the house the future Hall of Famer built to repay them for their years of sacrifice burned down. His father, Dennis, was killed, and Mary Lou Hamlin was rushed to a hospital burn unit.
Sheriff’s deputies are also investigating an alleged break-in and theft last week at Biffle’s home in Mooresville that netted $30,000 in cash, some guns and memorabilia.
As part of the public tribute, Mitchell planned to do a burnout later Friday near Biffle’s marker along the North Carolina Auto Racing Walk of Fame in Mooresville.
Nearly 100 Oregon Army National Guard soldiers are greeted by Gov. Tina Kotek as they disembark from their plane at the Portland International Airport on the evening of Jan. 15, 2026, after arriving from Fort Bliss, Texas. The soldiers were called up on Sept. 27, 2025, as part of Task Force Rose Shield to support U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facilities during protests in Portland. The returning Soldiers traveled to Fort Bliss, Texas, to process their Title 10 active-duty orders before returning home.
Portland, Ore. – The 100 Oregon National Guard troops federalized in September to respond to protests in Portland are finally back home after 100 days in limbo. They were part of a group of 200 mobilized by the Trump Administration on September 27th as part of “Task Force Rose Shield,” but never patrolled the city, due to a federal court decision.
Governor Tina Kotek spoke to the group after their plane landed Thursday night at the Portland Airport. “Missions are all different. But you show up with your skill, your professionalism and your commitment to keeping Oregon safe, our country safe, every single time,” Kotek told the soldiers, “I’ve been keeping all of you in my thoughts and prayers on this unique mission. I’m really glad you’re home. I’m glad you get to go back to your family and your friends and your communities, and that you’re here safely.”
The returning Soldiers traveled to Fort Bliss, Texas, to process off Title 10 active duty orders before returning home. Demobilization included required medical exams and paperwork. With their return, Oregon’s Guard is back under the Governor’s authority.
“On behalf of all Oregonians, we thank you, we’re with you, we’re glad you’re back, do take care of yourselves,” Kotek told them, “I hope you get a good couple of days to reconnect with all your loved ones. And just know that Oregon will always have your back, no matter what the situation is; and I really appreciate your commitment, courage and professionalism in this situation. So, thank you and welcome home.”
Athletes Unlimited Softball will make its Pacific Northwest debut this summer with the Portland Cascade hitting the circle.
Commissioner Kim Ng said the area is a hub for women’s sports, both on the field and in the stands with fan support.
“This market has shown it will support women’s sports on a large scale basis,” Ng said. “Quite simply, you all show up. You support. You embrace. It’s in your culture. It’s in your fiber.”
“When we were presented this opportunity to call this market one of our six homes, we pounced,” Ng continued.
With the Hillsboro Hops baseball team thriving every summer since 2013, there is now room for softball in the area. K.L. Wombacher, the Hops president, says how this development will help Hillsboro continue to grow.
“To be part of the quality of life (and) adding a new professional team to the mix right next door where now we’ve got pro baseball and and pro softball, it’s just a perfect fit,” Wombacher said.
Portland will play its home games at Hillsboro Ballpark, now the former home of the Hops, who will be moving to a new facility across the street. The AUSL season starts June 9th and the Cascade have their home opener on the 18th.
The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!
Good morning, Portland! Here’s comes the sun.
It’s been a busy few days, let’s get straight into it.
IN LOCAL NEWS:
An East Portland resident says he was ambushed by men in tactical gear who drew guns on him and tried to pry him from his vehicle. Home surveillance footage shows three men in plain clothes emerge from an unmarked SUV, then immediately indicate they mistook the man in the vehicle for someone else. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions asking whether the men in the footage were sworn agents or impersonators. The Mercury’s Courtney Vaughn got a hold of the video, which you can read about and watch here. This happened the same day the city was considering a bill that would ban law enforcement officers from wearing masks in the city, which seems like a good thing to do for obvious reasons. Whether a secret police force will obey a local law intended to keep them not-so-secret is another question, but everything that isn’t nothing seems worth trying.
This was a big week at Portland City Council. If you read Good Morning, News earlier this week, you know that a bunch of racist texts a local developer and some of his conservative activist friends sent in a group chat caused a bit of a stir during the election for a new council president. And you also know that one councilor, Dan Ryan, was publicly very upset about… oh, wait… the reporter? Not the texts, just the reporter? Well, he issued an apology to the Mercury on Thursday, and that is a tough thing to do. Note: It’s never too late for public servants to hold themselves accountable, and if they decide not to, well, that’s what we’re here for!
In local environmental news and anti-environmental tech:
The Dalles, a rural city in north-central Oregon, wants to expand its reservoir in the Mount Hood National Forest to store more water. While city officials say the water is needed for a growing population, environmental advocates worry it’s really for Google and its growing number of data centers.
Kristen Stewart’s first feature film—eight years in the making—is an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s 2011 memoir, The Chronology of Water. It’s an often brutal and often beautiful portrait of the Oregon writer’s life, told through fragmented memories and dreamy 16mm. Our own Lindsay Costello has a gorgeous review of the film, in which themes of trauma and grief come in waves, but not without some levity.
Gus Van Sant’s first feature in seven years is an uncomplicated potboiler that returns the Portland director to his true crime roots. For the Mercury, Dom Sinacola describes Al Pacino’s accent in Dead Man’s Wire as “ambien’d-up Foghorn Leghorn” via this stunning review.
IN NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL NEWS:
Oh, come on. President Trump’s war on Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil continues through an endless appeals process after a federal appeals panel ruled in favor of the Trump administration Thursday. The 2-1 decision could pave the way for Khalil’s rearrest, after the court ruled that New Jersey didn’t have the right to order his release because the case must go through the full immigration court process first. He isn’t supposed to be, but the feds don’t exactly follow this stuff very well. Importantly, the panel did not decide whether is was constitutional for the administration to throw him out due to his activism and criticism of Israel (ahem, it wasn’t, and it isn’t complicated). Some court will one day decide if violating the First Amendment violates the First Amendment, but for now we wait to hear if Khalil can freely live with his family in the “freest country in the world”—unlike the many tens of thousands of Palestinian people he was advocating for. Read more on the story here.
The death of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a man who died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in early January, may be investigated as a homicide. The local medical examiner in El Paso, Texas reportedly told the family that Campos’ preliminary cause of death was “asphyxia due to neck and chest compression,” quite the opposite of the government’s story following his death. The Guardian reports that 2025 was the immigration agency’s deadliest year in two decades, and Campos was the second death that that facility. This is obviously the intended outcome for people like Trump advisor and expired hemorrhoid sausage Stephen Miller, but abolishing ICE is an altogether moderate option as well.
Meanwhile, a Minneapolis church is demonstrating a parallel universe in which people simply take care of their neighbors. In response to the onslaught of Proud Boys, I mean, federal agents in the city, 400 mutual aid volunteers have delivered some 12,000 boxes of food, with 20,000 people registered to receive food, according to Minneapolis Public Radio. There’s a good interview here with the pastor, who says he thought, “what’s going on here with ICE, families might be afraid of coming out,” and just started doing it. It’s nice to see a church putting its nonprofit status to good use. This is also, by the way, called anarchism.
Sources told the Mercury early Friday that it is a “big deal” that George R.R. Martin has spoken out about his long overdue books, particularly for those who consider themselves “dragon nerds.” The “Game of Thrones” author talked to the Hollywood Reporter about his empire of fantasy novels, HBO shows, and spinoff concepts and his “tortured inability to ‘finish the book, George,” as his fans (and people who have definitely written one good, effortless paragraph this week) say. You can read the full story here.
The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support!
Good morning, Portland! Here’s comes the sun.
It’s been a busy few days, let’s get straight into it.
IN LOCAL NEWS:
An East Portland resident says he was ambushed by men in tactical gear who drew guns on him and tried to pry him from his vehicle. Home surveillance footage shows three men in plain clothes emerge from an unmarked SUV, then immediately indicate they mistook the man in the vehicle for someone else. The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions asking whether the men in the footage were sworn agents or impersonators. The Mercury’s Courtney Vaughn got a hold of the video, which you can read about and watch here. This happened the same day the city was considering a bill that would ban law enforcement officers from wearing masks in the city, which seems like a good thing to do for obvious reasons. Whether a secret police force will obey a local law intended to keep them not-so-secret is another question, but everything that isn’t nothing seems worth trying.
This was a big week at Portland City Council. If you read Good Morning, News earlier this week, you know that a bunch of racist texts a local developer and some of his conservative activist friends sent in a group chat caused a bit of a stir during the election for a new council president. And you also know that one councilor, Dan Ryan, was publicly very upset about… oh, wait… the reporter? Not the texts, just the reporter? Well, he issued an apology to the Mercury on Thursday, and that is a tough thing to do. Note: It’s never too late for public servants to hold themselves accountable, and if they decide not to, well, that’s what we’re here for!
In local environmental news and anti-environmental tech:
The Dalles, a rural city in north-central Oregon, wants to expand its reservoir in the Mount Hood National Forest to store more water. While city officials say the water is needed for a growing population, environmental advocates worry it’s really for Google and its growing number of data centers.
Kristen Stewart’s first feature film—eight years in the making—is an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s 2011 memoir, The Chronology of Water. It’s an often brutal and often beautiful portrait of the Oregon writer’s life, told through fragmented memories and dreamy 16mm. Our own Lindsay Costello has a gorgeous review of the film, in which themes of trauma and grief come in waves, but not without some levity.
Gus Van Sant’s first feature in seven years is an uncomplicated potboiler that returns the Portland director to his true crime roots. For the Mercury, Dom Sinacola describes Al Pacino’s accent in Dead Man’s Wire as “ambien’d-up Foghorn Leghorn” via this stunning review.
IN NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL NEWS:
Oh, come on. President Trump’s war on Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil continues through an endless appeals process after a federal appeals panel ruled in favor of the Trump administration Thursday. The 2-1 decision could pave the way for Khalil’s rearrest, after the court ruled that New Jersey didn’t have the right to order his release because the case must go through the full immigration court process first. He isn’t supposed to be, but the feds don’t exactly follow this stuff very well. Importantly, the panel did not decide whether is was constitutional for the administration to throw him out due to his activism and criticism of Israel (ahem, it wasn’t, and it isn’t complicated). Some court will one day decide if violating the First Amendment violates the First Amendment, but for now we wait to hear if Khalil can freely live with his family in the “freest country in the world”—unlike the many tens of thousands of Palestinian people he was advocating for. Read more on the story here.
The death of Geraldo Lunas Campos, a man who died in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in early January, may be investigated as a homicide. The local medical examiner in El Paso, Texas reportedly told the family that Campos’ preliminary cause of death was “asphyxia due to neck and chest compression,” quite the opposite of the government’s story following his death. The Guardian reports that 2025 was the immigration agency’s deadliest year in two decades, and Campos was the second death that that facility. This is obviously the intended outcome for people like Trump advisor and expired hemorrhoid sausage Stephen Miller, but abolishing ICE is an altogether moderate option as well.
Meanwhile, a Minneapolis church is demonstrating a parallel universe in which people simply take care of their neighbors. In response to the onslaught of Proud Boys, I mean, federal agents in the city, 400 mutual aid volunteers have delivered some 12,000 boxes of food, with 20,000 people registered to receive food, according to Minneapolis Public Radio. There’s a good interview here with the pastor, who says he thought, “what’s going on here with ICE, families might be afraid of coming out,” and just started doing it. It’s nice to see a church putting its nonprofit status to good use. This is also, by the way, called anarchism.
Sources told the Mercury early Friday that it is a “big deal” that George R.R. Martin has spoken out about his long overdue books, particularly for those who consider themselves “dragon nerds.” The “Game of Thrones” author talked to the Hollywood Reporter about his empire of fantasy novels, HBO shows, and spinoff concepts and his “tortured inability to ‘finish the book, George,” as his fans (and people who have definitely written one good, effortless paragraph this week) say. You can read the full story here.
FILE – Beachgoers walk a dog and fly a kite as they near Haystack Rock, April 4, 2022, in Cannon Beach, Ore. Cannon Beach, a popular tourist destination, reopened Monday, July 17, 2023, after closing due to a cougar sighting near the iconic Haystack Rock. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Monday the cougar had moved on, as confirmed by wildlife and law enforcement officials. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
A little after 8pm Thursday night, the National Weather Service Tsunami Alerts Center put out a social media post saying that there was a magnitude 6.0 earthquake that hit off the coast of Oregon. The strike happened about 183 miles west of Bandon. The U.S. National Tsunami Warning Center says there is no imminent danger at this time.
A magnitude 3.1 aftershock occurred nearly three hours later in close proximity.
The City of Cannon Beach reported seven earthquakes in the last 24 hours. The public was more concerned that there was nearly an hour of delay between when the 6.0 earthquake occurred and when the alert was reported.
This is the first major earthquake alert off the Oregon Coast to occur since last September, when a 5.8 earthquake was discovered 102 miles west of Port Orford. In both instances, seven earthquakes were reported within 24 hours.
HILLSBORO, Ore. (KOIN) — A local sheriff’s deputy is back on the job after battling a rare and aggressive brain tumor. Gabe Monteiro, a patrol deputy with the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, is returning to the beat after a life-altering diagnosis that changed his perspective on life. Monteiro shared exclusively with KOIN 6 the journey […]
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Gusty winds are working their way through the Columbia River Gorge Thursday night and they are expected to last through Saturday. A small portion of Multnomah County is under a wind advisory from the Portland National Weather Service Thursday night to Saturday afternoon. Winds around Gresham, Troutdale, and Fairview could gust […]
Photo courtesy of the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.
Lincoln County, Ore. – Authorities say a helicopter crashed Thursday morning in eastern Lincoln County. According to the Sheriff’s Office says the chopper went down in a cow pasture near milepost three on Moonshine Park Road. The pilot was the only person on board and was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
Lincoln County deputies and other agencies responded. The FAA and NTSB are now investigating the cause of the crash.
This story has been updated from a previous version.
Al Pacino does not stand up at any point in Dead Man’s Wire. He’s in three scenes, sitting in all of them—supine, in fact. We could call the performance somnambulant were he to ever actually get up and walk.
However, no one expects Pacino to put his whole mid-octagenarian, egregiously feather-haired self into what amounts to a glorified cameo. What everyone should expect, though, is that he’ll roll that old-ass tongue around an accent that must be from the Kentucky side of Indiana—where Gus Van Sant, Dead Man’s Wire director, grew up—because why else would he sound like an ambien’d-up Foghorn Leghorn?
Pacino plays mortgage broker M.L. Hall as a pretty straightforward, low-effort Bad Dad, the kind of hyperquiet rich monster who’d rather whisper goodbye to his own son Richard (Dacre Montgomery) than admit to any wrongdoing or compromise with Tony Kiritsis (Bill Skarsgård), a desperate behind-on-his-mortgage-payments everyschlub who has taken his son hostage.
Dead Man’s Wire is based on a real 1977 Indianapolis hostage situation, where the real Tony Kiritsis kidnapped the son of his mortgage broker at the end of a 12-gauge sawed-off shotgun. In Van Sant’s film we see Kiritsis rig the shotgun with the titular wire, setting it up to blow Dick’s head to smithereens if he tries to escape.
At first glance, Dead Man’s Wire looks like a return to the media-obsessed true crime Candyland of Van Sant’s early breakthrough To Die For (1995), which was a breakthrough amongst breakthroughs Van Sant enjoyed throughout the late ‘80s and 90s, squeezed between Good Will Hunting (1997) and the twin triumphs of Portland outsider tales, Drugstore Cowboy (1989) and My Own Private Idaho (1991).
But the most surprising thing about Gus Van Sant’s first feature in seven years might be that it’s a mostly uncomplicated potboiler.
Unlike Pacino, Skarsgård attacks Kiritsis’ whole deal with barely sublimated intensity, constantly smoothing out his thin mustache to tamp down anger and a sense of personal justice bubbling beneath the surface of his eternally moist dermis. It’s an undeniably charming performance from a preternaturally handsome Skarsgård, but his Kiritsis is a whole different physical specimen from the actual Kiritsis.
We know this because Van Sant fills his film with actual news footage from the 62-hour standoff, constantly smearing his fictionalized Indianapolis with the well-documented, if sensationalized, events. Cinematographer Arnaud Potier—most recently employed by Harmony Korine for 2023’s Aggro Dr1ft—helped Van Sant maintain some notion of vérité throughout the film. Potier’s late-’70s Indiana (filmed in Louisville) is an ochre-and-gray winter urban nowhere that stitches up seamlessly with the well-aged broadcasts from the time. As a result, watching the film feels like being a bystander both at home and on the scene, wondering what all the fuss is about.
If you know this story, you know how the movie ends: Kiritsis’ plan to hold the young Hall until he gets the money he feels he’s owed, an apology, and a pardon doesn’t quite go his way. But even if you don’t know this story, it’s difficult to imagine that you wouldn’t have heard about it, had it really broke bad.
Deluged by reality, Dead Man’s Wire begins to leak tension, and even the manufactured parts of the narrative don’t reveal much we couldn’t gather from a well-written article about what happened. The film never quite exits that liminal space between adapted and contrived.
In that sense, Dead Man’s Wire resembles last year’s The Smashing Machine, directed by Benny Safdie and based with meticulous verisimilitude on the 2002 John Hyams documentary of the same name. Led by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s performance as iconic mixed martial artist Mark Kerr, the film goes to great lengths to essentially reenact the documentary, in many cases shot-for-shot, to the extent that Safdie’s attention to detail begins to function as an exercise instead of any sort of unique perspective.
During the softer moments of Dead Man’s Wire, questions may drift to the back of your mind, like: With all this material, why not just make a documentary? Even Van Sant’s admitted that this was a for-hire directing gig. As geeked as he seems to be able to make a movie quickly in his hometown, he doesn’t exactly evince any real emotional connection to the script, nodding along with the vague thematic ties to his own work.
Still, it warms the heart to see Van Sant somewhat back in his thriller element after the sparsely pleasant Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot (2018), which was preceded by my nomination for Van Sant’s worst film, treacly suckfest The Sea of Trees (2015). That an old hand like Cary Elwes—in a very un-Cary-Elwes-like role as scummy cop Mike Grable—and a new working titan like Colman Domingo (as effortlessly cool DJ Fred Temple), are game to join Van Sant’s cast for glossless character work helps liven up the otherwise A-to-B proceedings.
It’s interesting to have Domingo’s presence, as it reminds us of the last film in which he was the source of light for a dreary ensemble, the spineless Running Man remake starring Glen Powell. And like Powell, Skarsgård’s overt handsomeness and effusive likability belies the real anger and naïve sense of injustice at the heart of Kiritsis’s story.
Far from a heady dissection of the media mechanisms that convinced Kiritsis that he could get away with such a plan—that were so prevalent even in the ’70s that he believed popular consensus would prove him to be the hero—Dead Man’s Wire is about as compelling as Pacino’s performance. Regardless, the film should give us hope for a new prolific era in the 73-year-old director’s long career. At least he’s doing something.
Dead Man’s Wire opens in wide release on Fri Jan 16, 105 minutes, rated R.
Earlier this week, three men in tactical gear ambushed a man in East Portland with weapons drawn, before promptly leaving after indicating they were looking for a different person.
The incident took place Tuesday, January 13, just five days after two people were shot and injured by a Border Patrol agent, also in East Portland.
It’s unclear whether the men in the video are sworn federal agents or impersonators.
Warning: video footage may contain offensive language.
Home surveillance video shared with the Mercury shows an unmarked black SUV pull into the driveway of a home near SE Holgate and 116th in East Portland. Immediately, three men in plain clothes with camouflage tactical vests emerge and rush toward a man, out of view of the camera, shouting as they encounter him.
“Sorry, we thought you were someone else,” one of the men in camo says, as the resident screams at them for ambushing him with guns drawn. Seconds later, the three men run back to the unmarked SUV and drive away. The camera captured audible laughter from one of the men.
The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to emails from the Mercury asking the agency to confirm whether the men were federal agents.
Residents at the home said the three-person crew never presented a warrant.
“An unmarked Ford SUV with three unidentified white males pulled into my driveway and ran up to my fiance’s vehicle with guns drawn, yanking him out of his vehicle,” the man’s fiance explained in a statement provided to the Mercury via a neighbor. “They grabbed his shirt and put a gun in his face. My fiance was defending himself screaming for help while he was trying to get away.’
The fiance went on to confirm the black SUV didn’t appear to have license plates, “nor did they identify themselves as federal ICE agents.”
“As far as I’m concerned those white men are intruders and kidnappers. My fiance is a legal citizen here and has legal documents showing he is an American citizen,” she added.
The incident occurred the same day as Portland’s Community and Public Safety Committee considered legislation that would require law enforcement to wear visible identification and prohibit them from obscuring their faces with masks.
The proposed ordinance, introduced by City Councilor Sameer Kanal, was primarily developed to try to prevent vigilante civilians from posing as law enforcement. Kanal cited the murder of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark Hortman, who were killed in their home by a man who disguised himself as law enforcement. The same man is charged with stalking and shooting Minnesota State Senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette Hoffman, and attempting to shoot the couple’s daughter.
Kanal also said Oregon residents have a right to know whether legitimate law enforcement officers are carrying out immigration enforcement, which often looks like kidnapping.
“You have a right to know that a person claiming to be law enforcement actually is law enforcement, not an imposter,” Kanal said Tuesday. “You have a right to know which agencies are operating in your city exercising law enforcement authority. You have a right to know, if you feel wrongdoing has occurred, enough information that you can file a complaint, and you have a right to know that law enforcement operates transparently and accountably.”
It’s unclear whether the ordinance will make it out of committee for consideration by the full City Council. Local police conveyed skepticism about the effectiveness of such an ordinance, in effect calling it a futile effort.
“I want to highlight that federal law does supersede local laws and ordinances under the Supremacy Clause,” Portland Police Bureau Commander Brian Hughes told councilors during Tuesday’s Committee meeting. Hughes said the city “has no authority to require federal agents to unmask or identify themselves.”
California is currently caught in a legal battle over similar legislation.
Who’s ready to have some fun? Well, the Mercury is here to help with FREE TICKETS to see some of Portland’s best concerts and events; our way of saying thanks to our great readers and spread the word about some fantastic upcoming performances! (Psst… if you want to say thanks to the Mercury, please consider making a small monthly contribution to keep us alive and kickin’!) And oh boy, do we have some fun events coming at ya this week! CHECK IT OUT!
Polaris Hall, 635 N. Killingsworth Ct, Fri Jan 23, 8 pm, $32.21, 21+
Celebrating their 20th Anniversary, Oregon indie rock favorite Typhoon visits Rev Hall for two nights of music, merrymaking, and many happy returns. Each night will feature a unique set from the extended Typhoon discography (including never-before-played songs) plus appearances from some special guests. Don’t miss the band’s birthday celebration! Get your tickets now or enter to win a free pair!
Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark Street, Fri January 23, 7 pm, $43.76, 21+
Throughout their storied 25+ year career, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe has electrified audiences around the globe, from the infamous Fuji Rock Festival in Japan, to the hallowed stage of Madison Square Garden in New York City. Catch the legendary performers in Portland when they bring their world-renowned live show to the Aladdin! Get your tickets now or enter to win a free pair!
Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie, Fri January 23, 8 pm, $43.73, All Ages
An annual celebration of folk and Americana music showcasing 30 local and national artists hosted by the historic Crystal Ballroom with all proceeds donated to Sunstone Way. Featuring Glitterfox, Hot Buttered Rum, Greg Holden, Rizo, Marty O’Reilly, Family Worship Center + many more! Get your tickets now or enter to win a free pair!
McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, 1332 West Burnside Street, Fri Jan 30 and Sat Jan 31, 6 PM and 3 PM, 48.75+, All Ages
For three decades, San Francisco’s Super Diamond has become one of the most popular live shows at major nightclubs, theaters, ballrooms, festivals, and public events throughout the United States. Don’t miss the uncanny tribute to beloved master singer/songwriter-performer and American pop icon Neil Diamond. Get your tickets now or enter to win a free pair!
McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, 1332 West Burnside Street, Fri Feb 6, 8 PM, $38.00, 21+
GOOD LUCK! Winners will be notified on Monday, and check back next week for more FREE TIX from the Mercury.
A federal judge sided with Oregon in a tentative ruling on Wednesday, challenging the Trump administration’s efforts to access sensitive information on Oregon voters.
Good Morning, Portland: Someone’s dog horked in front of my apartment building yesterday. And yeah, I hosed it away eventually, but not before I saw, like, 10 tiny passion plays of people talking their dogs down from rolling in it. Anyway, apropos of nothing—here’s the news!
• Also at Wednesday’s council meeting, the Mercury got a shoutout from Councilor Dan Ryan who claimed reporter Jeremiah Hayden didn’t give him time to comment or clear enough context regarding Hayden’s Boomer text size scandal at City Hall“Racist, Dehumanizing”: Chat Images story from Tuesday. Ryan said this as if Hayden hadn’t just revealed himself as a pretty hardcore receipt king.
• Today in enforceable (?) a proposed city policy change would seek to ban law enforcement from obscuring their faces with masks and to require them to wear identifying information or a badge. Championed by Councilor Sameer Kanal, the new policy responds to ongoing concerns of public safety, as federal immigration agents carry out arrests and detentions nationwide. The Oregonian‘s Austin De Dios reports that a draft policy calls for restriction of “the use of facial coverings to specific, clearly defined, and limited health circumstances,” which would seem to leave room for medical masks. The proposed ban would rely on Portland police to enforce it. The state of California passed a law stripping masked law enforcement of “qualified immunity,” last year, and it would have gone into effect this month, but it’s currently being contested in court.
• In the late ’00s and into the ’10s, Oregon’s “population and economy were growing robustly, yet power demand was flat” writes the Oregonian‘s Mike Rogoway. “Major advances in power conservation, like LED lightbulbs and more efficient heating and air conditioning, kept a lid on electricity use. That helped hold down rates because Oregon’s utilities could make do with the power they had.” But now the increasing energy demands of data centers mean power companies need to figure out how to meet that demand—and it’s going to cost us.
• Kristen Stewart’s first feature film is an adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s 2011 memoir, The Chronology of Water. Starring Imogen Poots and Thora Birch—with sometimes Oregon cannabis farmer Jim Belushi as Ken Kesey—the film leans on 16mm-shot atmospheric moments that feel like fragmented memories. Lindsay Costello reviews the new work for the Mercury, just ahead of a special Q&A at Living Room Theaters on Friday.
• Portland says goodbye to rock & roll troll Dim Wit, and says hello to its new Elliott Smith!(?) This week’s Mercury Music Picks doesn’t shy away from local hardcore, Jersey footwork, or ambient ether. Not too shabby for mid-January in the opinion of Mercury music editor Nolan Parker.
IN NATIONAL / INTERNATIONAL NEWS: • Today’s will they or won’t they: Will the Trump administration cut 2 billion to the nation’s substance abuse and mental health programs? Reports of the sudden cuts led to confusion and alarm on Tuesday as agencies scrambled to safeguard their most vulnerable programs and clients. The cuts amounted a quarter of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services’ budget. But then, by Wednesday night, the Trump administration said it would restore the money, though some agencies have yet to officially hear this.
• US forces seized another oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea early Thursday morning. The Trump administration says it the ship has ties to Venezuela, so [to paraphrase] it’s okay to be pirates now.
• AP reports that a state senator in Nebraska resigned Wednesday after facing possible expulsion, due to allegations of sexual misconduct. If Dan McKeon had been expelled he would have been the first in the state’s legislative history and 57th on a national level. Last May a staffer complained that McKeon told her she should “get laid” on her vacation and patted her on her butt. A report about the incident notes that McKeon characterized the remark as being about a receiving a lei (the flower garland) in Hawaii but the staffer had no plans to travel to Hawaii. Following the complaint, McKeon was instructed not to attend parties where staffers would be present, but he still did so. He also sent the woman a note telling her she should find it within herself to forgive him “because that is what the Bible instructs people to do,” and told an officemate of the staffer that the woman “seems to be difficult to work with.” A report determined that his conduct did not rise to a level of sexual harassment or retaliation that is actionable under state or federal discrimination law, but he could still be expelled for it.
• Always appreciate hearing about a pretty nebula. The Oregonian‘s Jamie Hale notes that the Rosette Nebula—ALSO CALLED 💀SKULL NEBULA💀—is best viewed during the winter. Some amateur astronomers “offer detailed instructions” for those with strong enough telescopes who want to find this nebula in the night sky.
PORTLAND, Ore. — Two juveniles have been arrested in connection with the fatal shooting of a Southeast Portland convenience store employee last month, Portland police said.
The suspects — a 12-year-old boy and a 15-year-old boy — were arrested Wednesday in Vancouver, Washington, following an investigation into the Dec. 9 killing of 33-year-old Santi Ram Rai.
Officers responded that night to 3D’s Market on Southeast 139th Avenue, where they found Rai suffering from a gunshot wound. Paramedics were called, but Rai was pronounced dead at the scene. The medical examiner later ruled his death a homicide caused by a gunshot wound.
Detectives with the Portland Police Bureau identified the two suspects through investigative leads and located them in Vancouver. With assistance from the Vancouver Police Department Major Crimes Unit and Clark County Regional SWAT, officers arrested the juveniles near Northeast 112th Avenue and Northeast 49th Street.
Both were transported to the Robert L. Harris Juvenile Justice Center in Vancouver.
The 12-year-old was booked on charges including first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, unlawful use of a weapon and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. The 15-year-old was booked on charges including second-degree murder, first-degree robbery, unlawful use of a weapon and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, police said.
Authorities said both juveniles also face additional charges related to alleged criminal activity in the Vancouver area, including two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of a stolen firearm and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.
Rai was working at the convenience store at the time of the shooting. Police said he was well known in the community and often served as a translator for members of the Bhutanese community.
In a joint statement, Portland police Chief Bob Day, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson and Community Safety Director Stephanie Howard expressed condolences to Rai’s family and said the case highlights the ongoing impact of gun violence involving youth.
“This loss has profoundly impacted the Southeast Portland community,” the statement said. “The arrest of two juveniles, ages 12 and 15, in connection with this homicide is a sobering reminder of the devastating reach of gun violence and the urgent need for continued prevention and intervention.”
Last night I had a dream and you were in it, and I was in it with you. I was doing the packing I never did. Not sure how it started, that’s how dreams go. But I was nervous that you might show up. Just like you were nervous I’d be there. Eventually you did show up, but your head was buzzed and dyed orange. See you just reminded me of how much … well … I turned and tried to get back to painting with the ache that was there. I check under the bed to make sure I didn’t leave anything and used it to cry. We never had any closure. Some things hurt the most. I never knew what you all wanted.
