PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Over the past month, KOIN 6 News has followed several cases of people arrested for a crime, released during a court hearing and arrested again for a similar crime. On Thursday, KOIN 6 News asked Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt about the string of cases.
The latest involves several business windows being smashed. First, were several businesses along Salmon Street in downtown Portland. Tyler Jaramillo, 28, was arrested on September 27 and charged with three counts of felony criminal mischief. He was released after a public defender could not be found for the case.
Then on October 12 at 8:20 a.m., he was arrested again after police claim he smashed the windows of the store Spartacus, off of SW 12th and Burnside.
“You could say it’s frustrating, but I bet a lot of people say that’s how it is now,” store manager Rob Delevere said.
Surveillance video captured both of the incidents, and the September 27 incident sparked calls from business owners and prominent businessman Jordan Schnitzer to “do more.”
Delevere says the past eight months of vandalism have cost him around $20,000.
“It’s like anybody and everybody because they know there are no repercussions for anything,” said Delevere.
Schmidt says he and his attorneys try to earn restitution for victims in cases like this to “make them whole.”
“It’s absolutely unacceptable that people are smashing windows and when that happens, and when we have the evidence to prosecute somebody for that, we’re going to prosecute that type of case,” Schmidt said.
In late September, police arrested Kalil Ford for fatally stabbing a person in Old Town. Ford was released the day before the stabbing after an arrest for assaulting a woman earlier that week.
The Portland Tribune reports, Deputy District Attorney Adam Gibbs revealed in court paperwork that police had not informed prosecutors about the gruesome assault that included a woman beat by a broomstick.
In August, Jordan Locke was arrested for allegedly assaulting a coffee shop owner in Portland, and subsequently punching police officers who tried to arrest him. Locke was released and arrested again for missing a court-ordered meeting, then released again.
The District Attorney’s office had pushed for him to be held in custody, but decisions are made by judges who are often operating off of state law and presiding judge orders for release guidelines.
“They are confined within the law of the state, the presiding judge order, all of the other systems of the state. So [Judges] do their job and when [Deputy District Attorneys] think there’s interest of public safety for someone to be held, they make that argument.”
For Delevere, he hopes there are changes that support businesses who are trying to bring people to downtown Portland again.
Delevere adds “it’s unfortunate because it’s a really good city.”