By Zane Sparling
Source oregonlive.com
Bystander footage of Monday’s fatal police shooting on Interstate 5 in Portland provides the first detailed look at the deadly encounter.
The brief video shows three officers walking with weapons drawn toward a white SUV that’s moving slowly on the interstate. One officer points a rifle at the vehicle, while another raises a handgun.
Then 10 shots ring out, shattering the driver’s side window as the SUV slows to a halt.
The bystander who captured the video told KGW (8) he was stuck in traffic Monday when he heard police ordering the driver of the SUV to stop as the car crept forward at about 2 or 3 mph.
“The police were on my right side, taking down the perpetrator,” the eyewitness told KGW. “If they were to shoot back, I would have been the car right behind (police).”
The fatal freeway shooting was the culmination of a violent crime spree that began after the suspect, identified by police Wednesday as Brandon L. Keck, stole a car during an armed home invasion in Northeast Portland, according to police.
Keck, 30, soon ditched the vehicle and carjacked a driver at gunpoint in the Lloyd District, police said. He then began driving the wrong way onto Interstate 5 and attempted another carjacking, according to police.
Police initially said he shot another motorist in the process. But police reported Wednesday the motorist wasn’t injured by gunfire, and that detectives were working to determine the cause of her injury.
Officials have identified the officer who opened fire as John Hughes, a 17-year veteran of the force who is now on administrative leave — as is standard practice after police shootings.
Portland police spokespeople did not immediately respond Wednesday to questions about whether the other officers shown in the video opened fire.
Police Chief Chuck Lovell said in a Tuesday statement that the bureau hoped to release more information about the shooting after investigators interviewed Hughes.
“While we understand members of the community are shocked and saddened by what occurred yesterday, we must balance the need for transparency with the responsibility to provide accurate information, while protecting the integrity of the investigation,” Lovell said.
The incident marked the fourth fatal police shooting in Portland this year, following the deaths of Robert Douglas Delgado, Michael Ray Townsend, and Alexander Tadros.
Grand juries have cleared the involved officers in the deaths of Delgado and Townsend, while the shooting of Tadros remains under review.
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