PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Jeremy Christian’s problems with law enforcement didn’t start with the attack on the MAX and the murder of two people on May 26, 2017. It didn’t end there either.
Christian had been accused and convicted of serious crimes that date back at least 15 years before he was arrested and charged with killing Ricky Best and Talisian Namkai-Meche and charged with trying to kill Micah Fletcher.
Other examples of Christian’s hate-filled history include confronting peaceful protesters at a right-wing free speech rally and verbally attacking passengers on the MAX just the day before he allegedly went on a racist tirade aimed at two teenagers on a MAX train and stabbed the three men who tried to put a stop to it.
Here is a quick look back at the relevant, at times violent, criminal past of Jeremy Christian.
Convenience Store Robbery – May 12, 2002
A little after 10 p.m. on Sunday, May 12, 2002, a customer at Ed’s Market, located in the Kenton Neighborhood just south of Farragut City Park, called 911 to report a masked man, armed with a revolver, had just robbed the store of cash and cigarettes and took off.
One Portland police officer arrived at the store to find the cashier handcuffed to a pole inside along with the customer who had called 911. They both told the officer the robber had left the store heading east on a bike, carrying a black bag.
Acting on that information, a second officer stopped a man riding a bike a few blocks from the crime scene. According to the police report on the incident, the man matched the description of the robber and was carrying a black bag.
It was Jeremy Christain.
As the officer was attempting to question Christian about the robbery, Christian got off his bike and began to walk away. At some point, the officer said Christian pulled a gun out of the bag. The officer fired three shots, one of which hit Christian in the cheek and knocked him to the ground.
When the second officer got there, Christian was placed under arrest and then in an ambulance. When they searched the bag, the officers found the stolen cash, the stolen cigarettes and a pair of gloves that resembled the ones the store clerk said the robber had been wearing.
While he was in the hospital, Christian was indicted on robbery, kidnapping and three separate firearms charges.
Six months later, Christian pleaded guilty to first-degree robbery and second-degree kidnapping. At just 20-years-old, Christian was sentenced to more than seven years in prison and three years of supervised probation
As part of his guilty plea, the judge signed off on a provision that Christian would not be sentenced as a “dangerous offender” – a designation that would have required a mandatory sentence of 15 years which could have kept him behind bars until after the May 2017 MAX attack.
Theft and felon in possession of firearms – November 2010
Christian would find himself in legal trouble again in November 2010 after he allegedly stole a firearm.
According to court documents, Christian, who was still on probation for a previous felony, snuck into a house in Northeast Portland and took a revolver.
The victim told Portland police investigators he knew Christian had stolen it because Christian himself had called the victim, admitting to the theft.
The charges would be dropped the next year.
Incident at halfway house – October 2013
Almost three years later, Christian found himself in trouble again.
According to reporting done by The Oregonian, Christian verbally attacked and threatened a half-way house worker where he had been using the computers.
In that case, Christian was reportedly using the computers to research the resale price of comic books he had been selling on the sidewalk outside the downtown Portland Powell’s Bookstore location.
The computers are only supposed to be used for searching for employment. The worker at the half-way house said he caught Christian in the act and ordered him to leave. That’s when, according to the report, Christian “bullied and intimidated” the worker.
A judge determined this to be a violation of Christian’s parole and sent him back to prison for nine months.
Montavilla Park Rally – April 29, 2017
Christian appeared to become more and more radicalized after his release in prison following the incident at the half-way house.
At one point, Christian used Facebook to threaten to travel to Texas to hurt a woman who had called him a Nazi on the site and he threatened to kill then-U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
After seeing a posting about a free-speech rally at Montavilla Park, Christian attended it and was scene on video arguing with other attendees.
According to a video obtained by KOIN 6 News following the deadly attack on the MAX, Christian can be seen at the rally wearing a 1776 flag draped over his shoulders, spouting hate-speech and inviting people to check out his Facebook page.
Later that same day, video shot by a reporter from the Portland Mercury shows Christian confronting Micah Fletcher, the same man he would try to kill on the MAX one month later, according to prosecutors.
Ten days later, Christian is alleged to have used his Facebook page to challenge Nuremberg prosecutor Ben Ferencz to an open debate on the tenets of National Socialism and posted that he would, “Defend the Nazi’s.”
TriMet MAX Attack – May 27, 2017
The afternoon of May 27, 2017, Jeremy Christian allegedly started a racist tirade directed at two teenage girls while on a MAX train, when three men — Micah Fletcher, Ricky Best and Taliesin Namkai-Meche — intervened. Best and Namkai-Meche would die from their stabbing injuries, while Fletcher survived. Christian was apprehended not long after fleeing the scene at the Hollywood Transit Center.
Jail Assault – July 29, 2018
Following his arraignment for the attack on the MAX, another allegedly racially charged incident landed Christian back in a Multnomah County Courtroom.
According to prosecutors, on July 29, 2018, a disagreement between Christian and a black inmate, Andre Dupree Mills, escalated into a physical fight.
At the time, both Chrisitan and Mills were in solitary confinement at the Multnomah County Jail. According to law enforcement sources who spoke to KOIN 6 News, it isn’t clear how Christian wound up in Mills’ cell, where he allegedly punched Mills.
Jail authorities told KOIN 6 News, “neither man had any physical signs of a fight.” However, Mills filed assault charges and Christian was arraigned on July 30.
One year later, the assault charge was dropped after the judge ruled justice would be best served by dismissing the charge. Following the assault, Christian and Mills have been kept apart at all times inside the Multnomah County Jail.