Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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because ACLU representatives had participated in the discussion on Tasers. He did not believe there had been a public hearing. Mr. Vishanoff asked the council to google “U of O arena red tape.” He averred that the Chronicle of Higher Education had reported that the arena project would face a year or more in delays. He provided a packet of information for the council. th Fred Metzler , 559 East 16 Avenue, said as near as he could tell the City had “some thugs” in the Police Department. He felt that the least the community could do would be to weed them out of the EPD so that they would not have the full weight of the law behind them. th Mary Stephens , 430 15 Avenue, asked the council to imagine her “horror” as she had witnessed the May 30 event. She related that she had been close to the young man who had been tasered. She said she had asked the officer to stop tasering him and the officer allegedly responded that the Taser was not a gun and had used the Taser two more times. She alleged that the young man was on the ground with an officer’s knee in his back at the time. She also believed that the EPD press release was inaccurate, noting that it had indicated that organizers had wanted to get the attention of law enforcement and this had not been true. She added that she had spoken with a man who indicated he was with Homeland Security at the rally. Jack Radey , 2230 Garfield Street, averred that everyone should recognize that police work was difficult, dangerous, and needed. He said it was necessary for police officers to face dangerous situations and to be able to use their judgment in confidence that they would be supported. He said it was also necessary to have a police force that was armed, supported by the laws, the district attorney and courts, and that was part of the community and respected all of the citizens of the community. He asserted that the EPD had members who had contempt for government and believed that it was part of their job to inflict pain on people who dissent. He felt that the only way to deal with this culture would be to “root it out” and remove the individuals who carry that culture and have contempt for the law. Lisa Ponder , 2780 Potter Street, averred that she was speaking in defense of the constitution and freedom of speech. She believed that the recent actions by police officers had threatened the constitution. She related that she had attended the “pre-Taser” discussions held in the City and on campus. She recalled that Taser use was supposed to be limited. She opined that the abusive use of Tasers had a chilling affect on free speech. She said she was a member of the Daughters of the Revolution and advised the council that it was important to remember the foundation of government. Chuck Roehrich , 2780 Potter Street, stated that he had worked as a City employee for 30 years. He said he sometimes attended demonstrations. He felt he could be mistaken for “lawless riffraff.” He sometimes believed that he would be more likely to be harmed by the police than helped. He had been raised to think that officers were his friends, hired to protect everyone. He was sad because he did not believe this was happening. He thought the police considered the Taser a tool that officers could use how they pleased. He would not support a public safety ballot measure when police officers were “not on [his] side.” He said the City Council should consider this when working on guidelines for Taser use. Mayor Piercy closed the Public Forum. She appreciated the testimony of everyone who attended. She said the council took this incident seriously and that it had raised a lot of questions about the use of Tasers. She felt that everyone needed to let the auditor process and the CRB process proceed. She appreciated the comments about Eugene aspiring to be a human rights city. MINUTES—Eugene City Council June 9, 2008 Page 6 Regular Meeting