With more questions than answers thus far in the case of the death of James Chasse, the Police Bureau has been evasive at coming up with the facts in the case. Tonight the Portland Tribune posted an article on LocalNewsDaily.com that details the numerous factual differences that have developed in the case. Complicating the matter is the fact that the police bureau is stalling at releasing public documents which would help straighten out the various stories floating around as to how Mr. Chasse was tackled and restrained.

As I said a couple days ago, a bit of accountability and responsibility in the police bureau would really be something neat to have for a change. There are a bunch of good police officers on the force risking their lives every day to keep us safe. But it’s becoming apparent that there might be a few bad apples, and some bad apples in management doing their best to cover their asses. The time has come when this needs to end.

Ms. Sizer, you need to come clean. Release the public documents, now. The victim’s family (and the public) demands to know the truth. If the police bureau is being honest and has nothing to hide, then it will become evident. If someone screwed up, the public relations damage will be minimized by coming clean and letting folks know what happened.

Mr. Potter, you’re the Mayor, which in Portland means you’re the head of the police bureau. Do your job and order your subordinates to do theirs. You’ll have a far bigger public relations mess if folks were to launch a recall campaign…