Meanwhile, referrals for theft prosecutions in Multnomah County by police have declined in each of the past three years, from about 3,100 in 2019 to just over 900 in 2022, data shows. Nearly two-and-a-half years later, the front entry to the gleaming new Multnomah County Justice Center at the foot of the Hawthorne Bridge, which houses his office, is still boarded up, a daily reminder of a divided city. Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt knows he has an image problem. Schmidta diplomat who would very much like to be reelectedsays his job is a tightrope between those who want him to move fast and break everything and those who want a return to old-school law and order. And that person gets released and they come right back to the neighborhood. On Saturday, Apr. Your job is to enforce the law, says Billy Williams, the former US Attorney for Oregon. Under your leadership, seven consecutive men were promoted or hired into leadership positions. Schmidt says he also hopes the neighborhood DAs help ease current anxieties around crimeeven if those worries are rooted in flawed assumptions. He broke a few glass doors and managed . As district attorney, I will always defend a persons right to free speech but I will not defend, nor support anyone who knowingly or recklessly or intentionally destroys property or engages in violence.[11], Long time prosecutor Amber Kinney resigned 10 January 2022, with a 7-page letter criticizing his leadership, saying that progress, especially for women, has been "set back decades". Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated 4/4/2023), Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (updated 1/26/2023). Schmidt represents a progressive view towards prosecutions and criminal justice reform, preferring alternatives to prison, against trial as an adult for juveniles, for police accountability, against mandatory sentencing, and against the death penalty. We have a lot of significant challenges from housing to mental health in the community, but punishment isn't a good tool to respond to that., Schmidt maintains that his neighborhood prosecutor program is not intended to increase prosecutions. (In the most extreme instance, his home address was publicly leaked, allegedly via an internal law enforcement system that can only be accessed from a patrol car. When Amber Kinney, a deputy district attorney, Mike Schmidt Doesnt Want to Be the Next Chesa Boudin, Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, hundreds of social justiceminded protesters, Multnomah Countys Next District Attorney Got a John Legend Bump on Election Eve. This program creates a misunderstanding that the DAs office is working as counsel for communities, which is ethically dubious. Schmidt said he was inspired to rebuild his offices neighborhood prosecutor division after talking with other prosecutors around the country at a recent DA conference. August 12, 2020 11:42 AM Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt announced his office will not prosecute nonviolent misdemeanor charges that have been levied against hundreds of. And its just completely inconsistent with everything we know.. MGFiZGU5ZmUyMmFiNDc3YThjNDYwNTAyZGExOGMyMDZhZGE1NDM2ZjkyMjJm There has been a pronounced turnover of lawyers in the DAs office, some of whom have gone public with detailed concerns about his leadership. He faced internal criticism when he hired outside counsel, at a cool $300 an hour, to put the case of a Gresham police officerwhod shot and killed a man within seconds of arriving at a crime scenebefore a grand jury, even though the prosecutor originally assigned to the case didnt think it was worth pressing charges. Schmidt won election to the office in May 2020 with about 75% of the vote on a platform of ending mass incarceration and holding law enforcement accountable. This data, paired with the publics growing discomfort with private businesses covering a portion of the neighborhood DA salaries, slowly pushed the program out of favor until it ended under countywide budget cuts later that year. Mike Schmidt, District Attorney Multnomah County Central Courthouse 1200 S.W. He understands that were not going to solve problems in the community by just putting people in jail or prison and racking up their fines and fees and taking them away from their community, says Aliza Kaplan, a Lewis & Clark law professor who oversees the Criminal Justice Reform Clinic at the school. ), Its a dynamic bred from the first major decision he made upon taking officenot to bring charges against hundreds of social justiceminded protesters whod faced off against police in the streets for more than 100 days after George Floyds murder. Willamette Week's journalism is funded, in part, by our readers. New Mike Schmidt Billboard downtown. The Criminal Justice Commission, Schmidts former employer, also earmarked a $1 million grant to start up a new restorative justice pilot project, to allow both victims and alleged perpetrators to meet with a trained facilitator instead of going through the legal system. Your access to this site was blocked by Wordfence, a security provider, who protects sites from malicious activity. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. She sees his election as long overdue in progressive Multnomah CountyDAs in Chicago and Philadelphia and other blue cities have lapped us on criminal justice for years. Schmidt says those eight attorneys would share office space with local community groups and forge relationships that help the DAs office better understand neighborhood-level issues impacting crime and, ideally, find solutions that go beyond police and prosecution. For example, shed like him to move faster on one of his centerpiece initiatives: the new Justice Integrity Unit, which is charged with reviewing past cases where there might have been excessive sentencing, racial bias, or decisions made by nonunanimous juries. Portland, Multnomah County plan aggressive crackdown on out-of-control car and retail theft. The remaining 30 percent is things like, the victim doesnt want to prosecute, or we dont have good evidence, or theres a legal impediment. Obviously, when someones committed a very serious crime, thats different. Washington lawmakers budgeted about $2 billion to boost the adoption of electric bikes, cars and heat pumps, build solar power projects, turn , Gov. Schmidt, whose progressive proposals have often attracted criticism from local law enforcement, has garnered their support for MAAP. Others would like him to pump the brakes: Your job isn't to destroy the system. Spend any amount of time with Schmidt at all, and hell invariably steer the conversation to the eye-watering number of dashboards his staff maintains to publicly track everything from the demographics of the office to how many cases of those referred it actually prosecutes. The announcement was coupled with a plan for collaboration between public health and public safety agencies, "The old war on crime approach to public safety, which leans almost exclusively on law enforcement, prosecution and punishment is both ineffective and causes profound long term harm especially on communities of color,"[25] County Chair Deborah Kafoury said at the press conference in reference to the County's 21st-century approach to addressing gun violence. County and city leaders are expected to crack down on perpetrators of these persistent property crimes by funding new deputy district attorney and investigator positions focused exclusively on building and prosecuting these cases, five people with knowledge of the proposals told The Oregonian/OregonLive last week. Nzg5ZjlkYzYyNjMxMzEzN2ZkZTM1MmM2OGRkZjk4MTJlNWIxZDUyYzc0ZTVh The billboard, located at 2nd and Washington Street, reads PORTLAND IS A SCHMIDT SHOW next to a large picture of Schmidt. YWZlMTcwYzI2NjljYjM3YzRkYTczN2NiZDY1MmQ3YzFhZTRkMjY1NTJkNjlj The access attorney frame is interesting to me, because DAs don't represent individuals impacted by crime, they represent the State of Oregon in every case they work on, Simon said. Newly-elected District Attorney Mike Schmidt, who refuses to prosecute Portland rioters, admits he is "old buddies" with an Antifa militant campaigning to defund the police, abolish prisons, and demand reparations. Simon also said she was uncomfortable with Schmidts framing of prosecutors as a social service. [8][4][9] Mike Schmidt took office on August 10, 2020. We'll send you a newsletter with what you need to know every week. S chmidt, 41, is midway through a tenure that began early and abruptly, when his predecessor resigned unexpectedly during Portland's summer of full-throated social justice protests. This page is not available in other languages. If it works the way Schmidt hopes it will, the end result will be to build back some trust with communities of color that have been hollowed out by high rates of incarceration over the years. characterized by Schrunk as quality-of-life crimes, UPDATE: Portlander Shot By Security Guard With Alleged White Nationalist Ties Calls on DA to Convict, PPB Changes Policy On When It Releases Officers' Names After Shootings. Haque added that BROs support of the program hinges on Schmidts involvement. In addition to the open letter from PPA's Turner telling Schmidt to "do your job", Turner also stated Schmidt he was "George Soros-backed", though the union denied he said that. And what were mainly talking about was a crime called interfering with a police officer, which was essentially a situation where police officers would say Go home, and then people would say No, Im not going to go home, Schmidt explained. He called the program a democratization of power.. The most serious cases he prosecuted were robberies, burglaries, and one deadly car accident. This is a test for our national movement to end mass incarceration. NmRlNjJlNmI1ZjBhZDVhYjMyNGNkMzU0ZTRiMDA1ZmUwNzY4MmYyODM2Nzlh It follows on the heels of last weeks data dump showing that his office is prosecuting property crime at a similar rate to his predecessor. Originally set to begin his term on January 1, 2021, Governor Kate Brown appointed him to the job early, in August of 2020, to replace Rod Underhill, who retired in July. Taking The Stress Out Of Legal Matters Michael A. Schmidt Practice Areas Wills Trusts Probate Conservatorships Guardianships Powers of Attorney Medicaid Planning Education Lewis and Clark College Northwestern School of Law, Portland, Oregon J.D. Ernest Warren, who founded the first Black-owned defense law firm in Oregon, will lead the unit. In that role, Mike oversaw a $90 million budget and spearheads community-based efforts to reform our state's approach to criminal justice. University of Portland. But on the hot-button topic of charges against the police, Schmidt seems damned if he does and damned if he doesnt. That earlier program, which dedicated particular prosecutors to individual neighborhood police precincts, was inspired by the tough-on-crime style of law enforcement that Schmidt has pledged to move the office away fromand thus he envisions something very different with his newest version. Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 18:08, "Opinion: A system in crisis puts safety at risk", https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21180898-kinney-resignation-letter, "Portland's New DA, Thrust into Center of City's 100 Days of Unrest, Grew up in CNY", "Meet Multnomah County's new District Attorney Mike Schmidt", "Meet Multnomah County DA candidate Mike Schmidt", "Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill To Step Down", "Portland gets first outsider district attorney in Mike Schmidt, part of national wave of progressive prosecutors", "Multnomah County Elections - Update 12 - Final Summary", "Mike Schmidt wins Multnomah County district attorney race", "Multnomah County DA Underhill is Resigning", "New Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt Must Decide Who Faces Criminal Charges Amid Portland's Protests", "Multnomah County DA Mike Schmidt hires criminal defense lawyer to review past convictions, sentences", "Multnomah County Sheriff Mike Reese lowers jail booking criteria", "Longtime Multnomah County prosecutor quits, cites DA Mike Schmidt's leadership, high workload", "RE: Riots in East Portland | Mayor Wheeler and District Attorney Schmidt", "Liberal prosecutors face backlash over lenient charges following civil unrest and looting", "Portland DA Declines to Prosecute Host of Riot-Related Offenses, Citing 'Depth of Emotion' Surrounding Racial Justice | National Review", "A Progressive Prosecutor Faces Off With Portland's Aggressive Police", "Portland protester's charges dropped under new district attorney's policy", "District Attorney Mike Schmidt Will Drop Most Charges Against Portland Protesters", "Hundreds of Portland protesters will see their criminal cases dropped as DA announces plan to 'recognize the right to speak', "Portland protest arrests top out at nearly 1,000 -- for now", "Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson sues Multnomah County DA Mike Schmidt in federal court", "Multnomah County announces new gun-violence efforts, including mobile mental health team", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mike_Schmidt_(lawyer)&oldid=1140348590, Multnomah County prosecutor resigned over what she described as the failed leadership of District Attorney Mike Schmidt, This page was last edited on 19 February 2023, at 18:08. And on and on. His first assistant, attorney Jeff Howes, served the exact same role under the previous two Multnomah County DAs, and chief deputy Don Rees was promoted to the position in 2013. NDEzNjYxMmI0YzYwYWE3ZmI3YTZhYTA2MjlmZjMyNzRjYjJhNDdjNTM4MDFl Michael Schmidt is an American attorney and prosecutor. Thats a hard conversation to have with the victim or witness as theyre frustrated because they want accountability and justice. Underhill noted the changing environment with police violence, Black Lives Matter, and George Floyd protests. Schmidt, 41, is midway through a tenure that began early and abruptly, when his predecessor resigned unexpectedly during Portlands summer of full-throated social justice protests. But even she faults Schmidt on execution. Announced formation of a "Justice Integrity Unit" on 1 September 2021, and dedicated $524,387 to staff the effort to examine wrongful convictions and review prison sentences for people serving time. City officials including Schmidt have blamed the violence in Portland on dwindling police ranks and a severe lack of public defenders. ADVERTISEMENT Mia Cathell Aug 15, 2020 6 minute read ADVERTISEMENT Go Wish New Orleans a Happy 300th Birthday. PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) In an exclusive one-on-one interview with KOIN 6 News, Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt answered questions about hot topics, including another round of . Brown, who is on her way out the door, has flooded DAs across the state with a time-consuming wave of sentence reductions and pardons that need processing. And when the legislature reconvenes in January, Schmidts office plans to push for legislation that would require the state Department of Justice to investigate any officer-involved shootings, taking the responsibilityand any appearance of improprietyfrom local DAs offices that have to partner with police forces day in and day out. They get to ask those questions that they cant ask in the criminal justice system, says Adrienne Anderson, the deputy district attorney heading up the program for the DAs office. Thomas Teal As a result, they say, murders are overcharged, all the better to prevent a grieving family member showing up in a 2024 campaign ad for a Schmidt opponent. Become a WW supporter. A 1997 story on the program published in the urban policy magazine City Journal described the process this way: Residents then watched, kept logs of traffic into houses suspected of drug activity, and contacted officers with their information.. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. For example, he is working with PPB, GPD and MCSO on new strategies for increasing vehicle theft interdiction; he implemented the neighborhood prosecution program, MAAP, to embed DDAs in communities; and hes advocating for legislative changes that will benefit community safety, like stiffer penalties for street racing and gun violence prevention., Our office will continue to focus on prosecuting cases and achieving positive outcomes, and the DA remains dedicated to a smart, collaborative approach to justice and public safety.. Portland . The move comes as stolen cars and store merchandise in Portland continue to plague residents and retailers, highlighting local law enforcements ongoing inability to curb endemic low-level crimes that have contributed to the closure and exodus of well-known businesses and deepened pessimism among people living in all corners of the city. Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and other officials plan next week to unveil the creation of two new task forces focused on car and retail theft, according to multiple sources and an email reviewed by The Oregonian. Mike Schmidt is Multnomah County's new District Attorney. At the end of the day, the program is increasing the number of prosecutors in Multnomah County and putting those prosecutors in communities that have historically been harmed by prosecution practices, Simon said. Meanwhile, the states underfunded, understaffed public defender system is going through an epic meltdown, leaving more than 1,000 people at any given time without legal representation, resulting in more cases being dismissed before they can be prosecuted. Chris OConnor, a longtime public defender currently with Multnomah Defenders Inc., worries about how the new program and messaging from the DAs office might influence defendants. But really though, what its about is having our prosecutors in the community who know what were working withand we can partner with other organizations and come up with a solution My intention is to be helpful, not more harmful.. His record on promoting women to the highest supervisory levels in his office is cloudier. In fact, our issuance rates for property crimes, including stolen car cases, and firearm cases are significantly higher than in those years and climbing., Yet, the focus of our office is not simply on prosecution rates, but rather on successful outcomes, such as serving victims, holding offenders accountable, and reducing recidivism. This fall, Schmidts office rolled out a new internal policy aimed at how lawyers in his office should handle undocumented immigrants who are accused of committing low-level crimes, with an eye toward helping them avoid deportation. And she said to me, Mike, youll understand this soon: the only decisions that you have to make are choices between bad decisions., A by-the-numbers look at crime stats and prosecution in Portland. Mike Schmidt has been Multnomah County DA since August 2020 PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN) - Overwhelmingly elected by voters, Mike Schmidt has served as Multnomah County District Attorney since. MmNkNzAzZWFhMmQ3ODgzZDliZTE1MTgxM2MzZjVmMGRmZjdiMWRlZWVlMTZh In a press conference with other Multnomah County leaders on September 23, 2021 Schmidt told victims of gun violence that "help is on the way"[24] before announcing a $1 million investment from the county for added prosecutors and investigators devoted to homicides. A circuit court judge had recently dismissed three felony cases including serious domestic violence. Whether heading on a camping trip, putting up guests or creating more sleeping space for a kids slumber party, air mattresses are useful to have. Hes a registered Democrat but not much of a Schmidt fan. 1953-1956. His defenders are tarter and more pointed. But in general, we cant arrest and imprison our way out of the problems we have in this community.. People coming out of treatment courts, its less than that, Schmidt said. In the view of at least three lawyers whove left his employ, Schmidt talked a good game about reform but left the previous senior managementthe old-fashioned, red-meat prosecutorsin place. You have let defense attorneys run this courthouse, and now our office.), Schmidt came in with good ideas, says a lawyer who departed earlier this year, has not previously spoken about the decision, and requested anonymity because of concerns about future employment. [5][4][8], Days after the election results, on June 16, 2020, Rod Underhill resigned his position immediately, to the surprise of Schmidt. PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - A billboard criticizing Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt went up Tuesday morning in downtown Portland. At least three former lawyers say that some of the new hires whove replaced those who left are inexperienced and it shows in court. NTk2N2JjZjY3NmVlMGEyMDNjMmU5M2QzNzFjNzY0ZmIyZTY0ZDUwMmYxM2Fl If you actually truly care about public safetywhich is what we all say we care aboutthen you have to ask, Is the intervention that Im advocating for the one that is most likely to cut down on future crime? he asks during an interview at his office. In addition to the 2020 protests, the district attorney is now seeing a public defender shortage. If were going to keep our criminal justice reform movement going strong, Chesa needs your help, Schmidt wrote to the network of donors that had helped propel him to victory in May 2020, when he won his race with support from a resounding 77 percent of voters. Dashboards are all very well, but they dont typically win hearts and minds. Keep Portland weird! The in-house deputy DAs union had endorsed Schmidts more by-the-book opponent in 2020 and while some of those whove left did so out of burnout, a few departed in burn-it-down fashion. Most. Main Office Phone Number (503)-988-3162 (8:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., Monday - Friday) Physical Addresses