Police Accountability and Oversight Board Threatened by Proposed Initiative
The League of Women Voters of Portland and Portland Forward, with the assistance of ACLU Oregon, filed an amici curiae brief with the Multnomah County Circuit Court on April 24, 2024. The brief supports the ballot title challenge which the Dr. Rev. LeRoy Haynes, Jr. filed to a Portland Police Association initiative petition (PDX24OL-03). Dr. Rev. Haynes chairs the Albina Ministerial Alliance Coalition for Justice and Police Reform.
The initiative seeks to eliminate the police oversight board’s ability to discipline officers and reduces the board’s scope of jurisdiction over police misconduct cases. This authority was given to the yet-to-be-implemented board when voters passed Measure 26-217 in 2020. The court filings from the Dr. Rev. Haynes, the League, and Portland Forward make the point that the ballot title is not an accurate summary of the impact the measure would have if passed.
The League has a long history of involvement with police oversight in Portland, endorsed Measure 26-217, and we base our action on the Portland Police Bureau: Oversight and Accountability position.