A recent bike theft recovery story spurred a debate about what to do if you see a stolen bike in your neighborhood or for sale online. In the story, someone approached a thief and paid them $150 for a bike they suspected was stolen. Some people were happy the owner got his bike back, while … Read more
Cyclist Mike Reuter was the first person to utilize a little-known legal procedure known as the Citizen Initiation of Violation Proceedings. This legal process allows crash victims to take the law into their own hands. It was first brought to light by Portland lawyer Ray Thomas and I posted about it back in January. Back … Read more
[Officer Darke Hull.] Officer Darke Hull of the Portland Police Bureau Traffic Division is one of six Portland officers to have been recently certified as a Pedestrian and Bicycle Crash Investigation expert. The certification came after a rigourous, 5-day course offered by the Institute of Police Technology and Management (IPTM). I met with Officer Hull … Read more
Last week, there was a lot of discussion about a stop sign enforcment mission by the Traffic Division of the Portland Police Bureau (PPB). In response to a citizen complaint, they sent several officers out to SE 23rd and Salmon Streets to nab law-breaking cyclists. Until now, the one group we hadn’t heard from was … Read more
Yesterday morning the Portland Police Bureau Traffic Division set up a sting at SE 23rd and Salmon streets. Several cyclists were given $242 dollar fines (the same amount for motor vehicles) for rolling through the four-way stop. This enforcement “mission” was motivated by a phone call to 823-SAFE (the City’s traffic safety hotline) several weeks … Read more
[Photo Kerrke Yu] The calm and civility that has long been the hallmark of Portland’s Critical Mass ride was shattered last Friday. According to a report and photos on Indymedia there were several arrests that got out of hand. As usual, there are several different accounts of what happened. One says the riders instigated the … Read more
[Meet your new Sheriff (maybe).Click to enlarge] Last week, the Willamette Week ran a photo of Multnomah County Sheriff write-in candidate Paul Van Orden holding a helmet. Since then, several people have emailed and called me saying this guy is the real deal and that I should interview him. I eventually heard from Paul himself. … Read more
[Captain Marty Rowley] According to a statement on the Police Bureau website, Interim Police Chief Rosie Sizer has just named Central Precinct Captain Marty Rowley the new Commander of the Traffic Division. Rowley takes over for a retiring Bill Sinnott and the change is effective April 13. The Commander of the Traffic Division is a … Read more
Six Portland Police officers from the Traffic Division recently underwent a comprehensive, 40-hour pedestrian and bicycle crash investigation course offered by the Institute of Police and Technology Management (IPTM) in Jacksonville Florida. According to IPTM literature, the course addressed the special dynamics involved in pedestrian and bicycle traffic crashes. From reaction times to victim injury … Read more
Right now the Chief of Police and Mayor Tom Potter are working to find a new Commander of the Traffic Division to replace the retiring Bill Sinnott. Bill was an ally to the bike community and we need to make sure his successor is just as open and willing to work with us. This position … Read more
What the heck is going on? Seems like every time I log on there are more stolen bikes to publish. There are 107 listed so far and I’m averaging about one a day for the past 2 months…and that’s only what gets listed here! There are surely many other bikes stolen throughout the city every … Read more
[L to R: Sinnott, Jeff Bernards and Dat Nguyen] After more than 25 years with the Portland Police Bureau, Traffic Division Commander Bill Sinnott will move on to a new career. Sinnott was a tremendous ally of the bike community. He was open and sincere about working with us to find solutions and ease the … Read more