PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty is suing the Portland police union, its former president and a Portland police officer for $5 million, saying they leaked information last spring that erroneously identified Hardesty as the suspect in a hit-and-run.
According to court documents obtained by KOIN 6 News, the lawsuit seeks $3 million from the Portland Police Association and $1 million each from the union’s former president, Brian Hunzeker, and Police Bureau officer Kerri Ottoman. The defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the newspaper.
In a statement, Hardesty’s attorneys Matthew Ellis and Stephen Brischetto said city employees leaked the information to punish Hardesty for her opposition to “discrimination by the Portland Police against communities of color.”
KOIN 6 News contributed to this story by The Associated Press.