Multnomah County — The team creating Multnomah County’s drug deflection program has settled on an initial framework, one of the least restrictive in the state. The county's current plan does not limit the number of times someone can use deflection to avoid arrest and does not charge the person for failed deflection.
As reported by Willamette Week, the plan only limits the frequency with which a person may engage in deflection.
People caught with illegal drugs for personal use can avoid arrest and enter the deflection program if they are not caught committing any other crimes and they have not failed deflection within the previous 30 days.
A successful engagement in the deflection program requires participants to engage in screening, receive a service referral, and follow through on the referral within 30 days.
An actual arrest will happen only if someone re-offends within 30 days.
Records obtained and analyzed in a previous KATU News investigation revealed deflection plans Multnomah County submitted to the state for funding are among the most lenient statewide.
Not all county officials are on board with the plan as it stands, two out of the county's five commissioners say they want to see more accountability for people who do not engage with the program.
"We shouldn't just have a continuous revolving door that isn't actually helping the person who is supposed to be in deflection nor is it good for community safety and livability," said Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards.
She said she is also concerned that the plans so far leave a lot of unanswered questions such as "What specific services will be offered? What will be required of people who chose deflection versus arrest?"
Last week the board of commissioners approved millions of dollars in funding for the deflection center but also voted in favor of an amendment, Brim-Edwards proposed, that requires County Chair, Vega Pederson, to present a more detailed plan for approval by the board on Aug 15.
Sharon Meieran feels the county's plans for the program have been hasty in an attempt to be operational by the time the state's new criminal charges for drug possession, enacted during the 2024 legislative session, take effect Sept 1.
Multnomah County and 27 other counties in the state are in the process of creating deflection programs. Though counties are not required to have deflection programs running by then, Multnomah County has committed to doing so.
"From what I've seen so far, the only plan the County has is to spend money first and fast then figure out why. The only things we know for certain are that police will be dropping people off who are using drugs at a facility that's 450 feet from a preschool," Meieran said in a written statement. "The County is spending millions of dollars, at taxpayer expense, to refurbish a building they don't own, and that they still don't have a plan for how to use. We should put the plan to open the facility by September 1 on pause and come up with a real plan. In the meantime, we should be prioritizing work on the real sobering center that in fact has a plan and is the one thing we desperately need."
The Leadership Team who agreed to the framework includes Vega Pederson, Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O'Donnell, Portland Police Chief Bob Day, Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, public defenders, judges, health officials, Representatives from the Portland mayor’s office, among others.
Vega Pederson declined multiple requests for an interview that KATU has been making since August 25th. On Monday her team said in an email that she would provide an interview, "another time this week."
In a press release announcing the plan's preliminary framework, the team noted that "DA-Elect (Nathan Vasquez) did not attend the meeting though his concerns were considered."
Vasquez, who takes office in January sent a written statement to KATU vowing to make changes to the plan if it's not up to par when he takes office.
"As the District Attorney -elect I remain dedicated to working on the deflection program, however I believe that the current plan does not meet the needs of this community or reflect what I believe to be the intent of HB 4002. I am not in agreement with this current plan and in January of 2025 when I take office, the deflection program will be fully reviewed and I will decide how the District Attorney's office will proceed going forward," the statement reads.
Portland Police Association president Aaron Schmautz also feels the plan as it stands is undercooked and will negatively impact police officers trying to implement it.
"My major concern for law enforcement is, in the absence of a mandate or clear direction, you run the risk of significant problem," he said.
Schmautz says the biggest issue is the plan so far calls on police to offer to take people caught with drugs to deflection before writing them a citation or arresting them. Most counties will cite the offender and then offer deflection in lieu of charges though charges would be held in abeyance and filed if the offender does not complete deflection.
"At what point are they in custody at what point are they not in custody if we are transporting them from one place to another are they in handcuffs do we search them there are so many things because this is a lower level violation," he said.
Under current Oregon law, if someone is found to be a danger to themselves or others police can put them in handcuffs and take them to a healthcare provider. No charges need to be filed for that to take place but those conditions don't always apply to someone caught with drugs.
"My frustration is in the absence of clear mandate we are having to work our way through it where the negative outcomes the bad outcomes are always going to be on the shoulders of patrol officers if somebody dies in the back seat of a patrol car it is societally hugely destructive to trust in law enforcement even though the root cause of that death is addiction," Schmautz said.
The Multnomah County team agreed to review the deflection program every 30 days and make changes if necessary.