By Ian K. Kullgren
The Oregonian
SALEM — The Oregon House passed a bill Wednesday to shield the identity of the officer who killed standoff spokesman Robert “LaVoy” Finicum.
In a bipartisan vote, the House approved legislation that would let a judge bar for 90 days the disclosure an officer’s name who uses deadly force. It passed 55-3, and now heads to the Senate.
The bill came at the request of Oregon State Police Superintendent Richard Evans, Jr., who told a Democratic lawmaker that he has received death threats against the officer who shot Finicum last month. Police haven’t identified the officer, citing an ongoing investigation.
“This bill is deadly serious,” said Rep. Jeff Barker, D-Aloha, told the House chamber Wednesday. “This isn’t to protect a wrongdoer. It isn’t to protect a police department that screwed up.”
Some worry the bill could protect other officers from public scrutiny, including those involved in racially motivated killings. Portland-based Black Lives Matter groups tried to rally opposition for the bill on social media this week, with little success.
“We are stacking the deck against citizens every time we bring an exemption to public records,” said Rep. Julie Parrish, R-West Linn, one of three Republicans who voted no. “If someone had their loved one shot by their government, they should be able to face that person.”
Rep. Lew Frederick, a Portland Democrat who sponsored anti-profiling bills in the 2015 session, said he’d normally err on the side of transparency. But in this case, he said, lawmakers must protect the officer.
“We need to take very seriously when people arm themselves to enforce laws that exist only in their fantasies,” Frederick said. “Sometimes deadly force is not only justified, but necessary.”
Finicum, 54, was killed Jan. 26 along a wooded stretch of highway 20 miles north of Burns. The Arizona rancher was driving three other militants to a community meaning in John Day, nearly a month after the group seized the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge headquarters.
An aerial FBI video shows Finicum exit his Dodge Ram pickup with his hands raised, then appear to reach for a pocket on the left side of his jacket before getting gunned down. Police said he had a 9mm semi-automatic handgun.
Rep. John Huffman, R-The Dalles, said he’ll work with senators on an amendment to make the bill expire, likely after the Finicum case is settled.
“I don’t want our state to be perceived...as non-transparent,” Huffman said.
Copyright 2016 The Oregonian