Door-smashing East Precinct vandal arrested

How much time this wilding drifter from Arkansas – clearly not the smartest vandal in outer East Portland – will spend in jail for his crimes is not yet known …

In an area shared by both the Hazelwood and Mill Park neighborhoods, glass doors and panels are smashed by a man who drifted into our neighborhoods from Arkansas. PPB image

By David F. Ashton

It’s usually quiet around the Portland Police Bureau East Precinct building, at 737 SE 106th Avenue, especially after midnight.

But, early on Saturday, September 16, at 12:09 a.m., two East Precinct sergeants heard banging noises from the front of the building. They went to check, and found a man using a large rock to shatter the glass doors and entry panels.

Officials aren’t saying what repairing the damage to East Precinct will cost, but it probably won’t be cheap. PPB image

While challenging the man, the sergeants radioed for help from additional officers – both inside the East Precinct building, and those on patrol nearby.

The suspect ran across the street, toward the Floyd Light Middle School Park – but he was no match for the two pursuing sergeants, who employed what officials called “apprehension strategies” when they caught up with him. The suspect surrendered when he realized he wasn’t going to get away.

East Precinct sergeants caught the suspect, red-handed, with this rock. PPB image

Officers arrested 39-year-old Keith Ryan Morris, who was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center (MCDC) an hour later on a Class C Felony charge of Criminal Mischief in the First Degree; and, the Misdemeanor charges of Interfering with a Peace Officer, and Escape in the Third Degree – as well as for a probation detainer they’d discovered for him, apparently in Arkansas.

Morris told officials that he had “no known address” here in Portland; but he did have identification from the State of Arkansas.

-4 You aren’t allowed to see a booking photo of 39-year-old Keith Ryan Morris who is in the MCDC. Why? CLICK HERE for details. East Portland News artist’s conception

At his arraignment, a kindly judge dismissed all of the original charges. However, Morris was held on an additional charge of Attempted Assault in the Second Degree, a Class C Felony. He’s still in jail, and may still have to deal with that out-of-state probation detainer.

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