PROTESTERS: GRAND JURY DECISION 'RACIST'

Victim's Friends, Family Say They Were Treated Poorly

PORTLAND Posted 12:40 p.m. June 17, 1998 -- More than two dozen protesters
gathered at the Portland Justice Center today to accuse representatives of
the media, police, hospitals and the justice system of racism, in the wake
of the stabbing death of a friend and loved one.

KOIN 6 News reports Anthony Nnoli was 16 years old when he was stabbed to
death in a parking lot outside the Rose Festival Fun Center June 6. (Full
Story below).

Police said 20-year-old Borlande Robertson, a white man, allegedly stabbed
Nnoli, a black youth. But a Grand Jury failed to indict Robertson after
hearing contradictory stories from both white and black witnesses, KOIN said.

Friends and family question whether charges would have been dropped if Nnoli
had been white, KOIN reported.

"If this were a white youth and you had white youth coming, giving a story
and black youth coming and giving a story, would you come to the same
conclusion?" asked Nnoli's friend Greg Montague.

Others said they were labeled as "gang members" by the press, hassled by
police and arrested on the accusation of trespassing when they entered a
hospital to see their injured friend. The protesters said those incidents
took place for the same reason the Grand Jury failed to make an indictment
in Robertson's case, KOIN said.

"Racism," said Kelli Jarrell, pictured. "I'm not afraid to die for what I
believe, and I believe we've taken the back seat too long... We're all
people and we need to be treated equally."

Compiled by Channel 6000 Staff

Update: Parking-Lot Stabbing Kills 1

Incident Ends 'No Homicide' Streak

PORTLAND, Updated 5:38 p.m. June 06, 1998 -- A stabbing early today in a
downtown parking lot (pictured) ended an eight-week stretch in which no
homicides were reported in Portland.

The city has been averaging nearly one homicide a week, according to The
Associated Press.

A 16-year-old boy was killed and two other teens were wounded during an
argument, KOIN 6 News reports. The two injured teens are expected to recover
from their wounds.

Two suspects were found shortly after the incident. Police say the two men
are in custody. KOIN says police have not released the names of the victims
or the suspects.

Police told KOIN there is no immediate indication of what started the
argument, but it does not appear to be gang-related.

So far this year, 13 homicides have been recorded in Portland, compared to
19 during the same period a year ago. The drop has mirrored a decline in
aggravated assaults, robberies and burglaries, AP says.

Police are unsure what has spurred the trend.

"Is it something we're doing? I don't know," Lt. Ron Schwartz, who
supervises the Portland Police Bureau's 10 homicide detectives, told the AP.
"It's really difficult to put a finger on why. But in the last eight years,
that's probably the longest we've gone without any homicides."

Northeast Precinct Cmdr. Derrick Foxworth says police - and the community -
are doing more to curtail significant crime by targeting minor crimes and
neighborhood annoyances.

"I've heard others talking about the drop in homicides, and I keep knocking
on wood when they say that," Foxworth told AP.

Compiled by Channel 6000 Staff

Checked-by: Melodi Cornett