gdp's Comments

KATU - Portland, OR : Motorcyclist overshoots turn, crashes into bicyclist | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News,

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 20:29:13 +0000

This knucklehead can look forward to additional crimes like Assault (the degree depends on the bicyclist's injuries) and Reckless Endangerment. Want to get drunk and risk your life on a bike? Great, go for it! Just do it on your own property and don't put others at risk. Better yet, incompetent tough guy / Harley owner, get a revolver and play Russian Roulette in your shower. That sounds like a win-win for society.

KATU - Portland, OR : \'I think they knew they messed with the wrong girl\' | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News,

Fri, 22 Jun 2012 20:13:36 +0000

Yes, when someone reaches a black belt they must register as a weapon. Thank you for informing the public. In that same vein, here are some other things I discovered on the internet that are totally true: - If you ask a drug dealer if he is a cop, he has to tell you; - Nigerian princes will pay you good money to briefly hold some of their inheritances; and - If you make a silly face, your face will freeze in that pose forever.

KATU - Portland, OR : Detectives identify 12 teenagers in grocery store \'flash rob\' | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Port

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 20:31:32 +0000

Attempted Riot may be a stretch, it depends on the facts. Here is the link to the underlying crime (ORS 166.015): http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/166.html Here are the elements of the underlying crime: "A person commits the crime of riot if while participating with five or more other persons the person engages in tumultuous and violent conduct and thereby intentionally or recklessly creates a grave risk of causing public alarm." I haven't seen the video but based on the article's description the kids' activities seem to satisfy every element except for "violent conduct". Didn't see a mention of violence. Since every element must be satisfied, without violent conduct there is no Attempted Riot. Perhaps there's more to the story than this piece discusses. Love how people just downvote because they want the kids to burn, not because people have anything to contribute analytically to a simple and seemingly sincere question.

KATU - Portland, OR : Two pulled from burning wreckage after car bursts into flames | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portla

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 16:55:41 +0000

I wasn't predisposed to believing they were god-sent but since you said they were, I believe it.

KATU - Portland, OR : Barefoot man grabs police stun gun, leads officers on chase | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland

Sun, 3 Jun 2012 23:46:33 +0000

You have no idea how Tasers work, their practical limitations or how officers deploy them. Read up, then try penning condescending, snarky comments. They won't sound as side-splittingly hilarious when you have basic facts. They'll just sound ignorant. Signed, Someone with Taser experience

KATU - Portland, OR : Kyron Horman\'s mom plans to file civil suit against Terri Horman | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Po

Fri, 1 Jun 2012 12:26:30 +0000

KATU, Thank you for explaining to readers a bit about the legal standards of proof in criminal versus civil cases. That said, a couple times you referred to someone being "guilty" in a civil case. That's not possible. Guilt is found only in criminal cases. One can be liable for a civil claim but never guilty of it.

KATU - Portland, OR : Oregon considers mileage tracking system for road tax | Transportation | KATU.com - Portland News, S

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:29:34 +0000

Bad news: you do live in "that kind of country". The feds already intercept and evaluate domestic and international communications. It's warrantless and, no, it isn't a conspiracy. In a nutshell the NSA was caught redhanded years ago by Mark Klein, an AT&T engineer who discovered NSA hardware on AT&T's data backbone that allows NSA to receive pure AT&T customer communication. Other AT&T-like companies allow NSA to obtain communications data from their customers using similar hardware. NSA has amped it up since then. The saddest part is that next to nobody seems to care. Enjoy some brave new world reading: http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/03/ff_nsada... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Room_641A https://www.eff.org/issues/nsa-spying http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/16/us/16nsa.html?p... http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2006-05-1... http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/03/nsa-whis...

KATU - Portland, OR : Stripping naked at airport was the \'right thing to do,\' man says | Local & Regional | KATU.com - P

Thu, 19 Apr 2012 04:15:35 +0000

Movie shows 87938409798743 people being shot / maimed: American parent lets children watch. Movie shows breasts or a butt or, madre de dios, genitals: Stop corrupting my children!

KATU - Portland, OR : Man protests airport security - naked | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News, Sports, Traffic

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 22:26:44 +0000

I did not say he would be convicted -- just that the City Code applies, which it most certainly does. However, he very well might win on a First Amendment political speech ground. I wish I could offer a primer on the arguments and issues but I don't have the time to write it and it would be so long only a handful of people would read it. That said, here's the most applicable case I've seen (note: I only spent a couple minutes on research, so salt grain and whatnot) that frames the issues and helps you make the argument that this guy's exposed junk in this setting is protected speech: City of Portland v. Gatewood, 76 Or. App. 74, from 1985. I wish I could give you a free online site to read it but I don't know of one with cases that far back. Try google or, if you're really motivated, any law library in Oregon will have it. As a side point, saying "explain it to us dullards" is unhelpful strawman rhetoric. Nobody was called a dullard and I was not condescending in the least. I was merely offering information which, based on my professional experience and abilities, I have knowledge of. You are free to disregard it but please don't pretend I was being insulting or rude. I was, and am, simply helping people correctly understand the applicable law. Civility is rare and appreciated, if not the least because of its rarity.

KATU - Portland, OR : ESPN article highlights \'smokin\' Ducks: U of O responds | Sports | KATU.com - Portland News, Sport

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 21:14:45 +0000

Your first comment centered around the ethics. This comment concerns the law, and it makes me wonder if you're not confusing the two. Just because something is illegal does not make it unethical. It may be illegal to whistle on Sundays, but it's not unethical. Conversely, just because something is legal does not make it ethical. It's legal to call someone a racist slur, but it's not ethical. Weed is illegal. So what? People who don't use turn signals cause far more potential harm to others than someone's act of pot smoking. Now, if you argue that the team depends on the athletes to take utmost care of themselves, or that the school provides benefits in exchange for the player adhering to the rules the players agreed to follow, etc., then you may be onto something. But doing something illegal is not intrinsically wrong by virtue of it being illegal. Legislatures are not the highest source of ethics.

KATU - Portland, OR : Man protests airport security - naked | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News, Sports, Traffic

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 16:11:21 +0000

It's not indecent exposure under state law. The state law is ORS 163.465 but it requires genitals exposed with the intent of arousing sexual desire. Thus, not applicable here. The Portland City Code applies though, and 14A.40.030 outlaws exposed genitalia in public where the opposite sex may be there. On the surface it seems like a supremacy problem would invalidate the City Code provision (cities can't make laws that the state has already covered), but City of Portland v. Jackson (316 Or. 143) is a silly opinion that allows this specific Portland public indecency provision to stand.

KATU - Portland, OR : 4,800 Oxycontin pills found during routine traffic stop | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland New

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 23:26:17 +0000

Presence doesn't necessarily equal the commission of a PCS, and certainly not a DCS. Explaining it would take awhile. Google it. As for child endangerment (ORS 163.575), it requires the mental state of knowing the drugs were there. While we don't know what happened exactly, it's quite possible dad confessed and said mom knew nothing about it. Add mom saying she knew nothing about it and there's no case for criminal child endangerment unless additional evidence shows up. Here's how these things usually work: one person confesses to being the transporter / seller. Unless there is additional evidence BESIDES MERE PRESENCE (like a confession or the confessor diming them up), then the other person / people don't get charged. We don't know what happened or what was said. There are scenarios that make the traffic stop results absolutely understandable. I give the benefit of the doubt to the cop on this one. You're free not to.

KATU - Portland, OR : 4,800 Oxycontin pills found during routine traffic stop | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland New

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:32:54 +0000

The police certainly had the authority to impound the car. But that's not the question. The real question is this: is impounding the car the proper move under the circumstances? It might not be. These kids might be from California. That's a distinct possibility given how the story reads. So the cops take dad and take the kids. Now mom is stranded in Wilsonville with no car. Now the children are in a whole other state, hundreds of miles from home, away from their school, their friends, probably their family. Does that seem preferable? Sure seems better to let Mom drive the kids home and let California initiate denial of parental rights in CA State court in this scenario. The kids come first and cops' decisions should be based on that when considering whether to impound the car or not. As a former cop, I can see plenty of reasons to not impound the car.

KATU - Portland, OR : 4,800 Oxycontin pills found during routine traffic stop | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland New

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 20:28:16 +0000

The wife didn't commit a crime under Oregon law. Therefore the children have a legal guardian available who can take the children. The police report will be forwarded to Oregon's CPS, it's routine for cases like this. Then CPS can begin proceedings. It's not the police's place to deny parental rights -- it's the court's, and CPS can initiate it if they have jurisdiction here. It might be California jurisdiction, in which case CPS can inform the appropriate CA agency.

KATU - Portland, OR : Woman charged with murder after man who walked into hospital dies | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Po

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 00:26:12 +0000

And after you love them, the stabbing.

KATU - Portland, OR : Police look into Lake Oswego home invasion robbery | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News, Sp

Sat, 7 Apr 2012 05:31:17 +0000

I think you mean "blunderbuss". BlunderBust must've been one of those 18th century corsets.

KATU - Portland, OR : Opera singer found shot in car well-respected by colleagues | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland

Sat, 31 Mar 2012 15:20:50 +0000

That's quality headline writin'. It's good to know this man's colleagues respect his car. After all, it's a Chevy Cobalt.

KATU - Portland, OR : Gresham officer fires gun during burglary investigation, no one hurt | Local & Regional | KATU.com -

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 18:02:31 +0000

The bullets go where the barrel was pointed upon firing. Not trying to be snarky, but lots and lots of rounds don't hit the intended target. Happens all the time. It happens a ton less when the rounds originate from officers' guns than thugs' and crooks', but it still happens a lot. Cops train a lot for lethal force situations. But all the training in the world is still just training. It's impossible to be completely prepared for situations like this. The real thing is always very different than training and the body knows it. The body produces tremendous physiological effects under intense life-or-death situations that alter body control and perception. It's frankly amazing cops don't miss a whole lot more.

KATU - Portland, OR : Gresham officer fires gun during burglary investigation, no one hurt | Local & Regional | KATU.com -

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 17:54:27 +0000

Thank you for asking the question instead of claiming the assertion as fact. Former Portland cop here, hopefully I can help answer. There are lots of variables into Tazer usage. I say "Tazer" instead of "stun gun" because stun guns require contact with the unit, and Tazers are probes fired from the unit. I assume you meant Tazer. A baseball bat can easily kill you. One Louisville Slugger to the head and you can be toast. Someone threatening that level of force against a solo cop isn't going to get Tazed, they're getting shot if they get anywhere near the cop. If two cops are present it's common -- if the logistics allow it -- for one to fire hisTazer at the suspect and the other have his gun drawn if the Tazer doesn't work and the baseball bat knucklehead is approaching swinging range. It's important to realize that Tazers OFTEN don't work. They fire two little probes that must attach to the body. Both probes must pierce whatever clothing and hook into the suspect. Multiple clothing layers? Often doesn't hook. Leather jacket? Don't even bother with the Tazer. Moving suspect? One or two probes often don't hit the suspect at all. Target not very close to you? Out of Tazer range. Sounds here like the cop was solo. Any cop without a death wish would keep the Tazer holstered when against a guy with a baseball bat.

KATU - Portland, OR : Police identify robbery suspect shot by four officers | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News,

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 20:13:05 +0000

You internet studs have no idea what it's like to be in a firefight. You have no concept of the adrenaline wave that slams into your brain and all your muscles, causing massive effects on motor control. You also have never experienced the genuine shock and fright of being confronted with a gun. You have no idea how to proceed in a firefight. How to take cover, how to protect yourself and others. How to stop shooting when the threat is neutralized. How targets move and don't just stand there motionless like a carnival shooting gallery. The armchair shooting quarterbacks at least are always amusing. Their puffed chests would instantaneously deflate when confronted with a gun as they experience the frigid shock of reality instead of a first-person shooter video game.