FILE - Massive crowds gather in Portland, Ore., for a fourth evening of protests over the killing of George Floyd, a Black man from Minneapolis who was killed after an officer pushed his knee into his neck for nearly nine minutes, on June 1, 2020. Portland will pay $938,328 to nine journalists and legal observers injured by police during 2020 racial justice protests. The City Council approved the settlement 11-1.
Jonathan Levinson / OPB
The city of Portland has agreed to settle a lawsuit from journalists and legal volunteers who were injured by police during the city’s marathon of racial justice protests in 2020.
Portland City Council on Wednesday voted 11-1 to pay $938,328 to the plaintiffs, which includes several reporters who covered the nightly protests that lasted more than 100 days and drew nationwide attention. There were nine plaintiffs total, including legal observers who volunteer to watch and gather information during the demonstrations.
The settlement also requires Portland Police Bureau to include clearer protections for journalists and legal observers in their policy manual until Dec. 31, 2028.
Related: 50 days of protest in Portland. A violent police response. This is how we got here.
Several councilors reflected during the hearing that they supported peaceful protesters and the rights of journalists and legal observers. Some noted that more protests could be on the horizon during President Donald Trump’s second term.
“I feel compelled to note that this is a time when freedom of the press is under assault in a way that we probably haven’t seen since the First World War,” said Councilor Steve Novick. “If I were a praying man, I would pray that we still have a free press four years from now.”
In their June 28, 2020, complaint, the journalists and legal observers said police on multiple occasions used force against them despite their rights to be present and document events without participating.
Plaintiffs made an array of claims, including that they were tackled, hit with batons and rubber bullets, sprayed with pepper spray, targeted with tear gas and arrested without cause. Plaintiffs said their equipment was seized during the protests, too.
“Journalism is not a crime,” said Athul Acharya, one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys. “It’s not a threat to public order. It is one of the fundamental freedoms secured by our Constitution, and law enforcement must respect that.”
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In a statement, Portland police chief Bob Day said “over the past 18 months, we have made meaningful progress in how we engage with public order events, and I am committed to building on that momentum.”
The settlement passed with near-unanimous support. Councilor Loretta Smith delivered the sole “no” vote, after she pressed city attorneys to explain why they recommended councilors approve it.
Deputy City Attorney Denis Vannier replied that he didn’t want to reveal too much detail in a public setting, but said the recommendation “was based on the review of the evidence and the case in a variety of considerations.”
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Smith told OPB she cast her vote because she wanted a clearer explanation from Vannier about how they arrived at their recommendation.
The plaintiffs will receive $44,000 each, according to one of the plaintiffs’ attorneys. The remainder will cover legal fees.
According to staff, the city of Portland has paid more than $4.5 million in the past five years to settle claims linked to Portland police. The vast majority of those payments went to people injured during the protests.
