PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The mayor of Portland, Oregon pepper-sprayed a man during a confrontation over mask-wearing outside a restaurant on Sunday evening, a police report details.
Mayor Ted Wheeler and former Mayor Sam Adams were leaving the Hillsdale McMenamin’s pub around 8 p.m. when they said they were approached by a middle-aged white man who appeared to be recording video with his phone. He told them he had taken photos of Wheeler while he was inside the restaurant’s tent, according to the Portland Police Bureau report.
Adams said Wheeler explained to the man that the current COVID-19 rules allowed for people to not wear masks while eating and drinking and the man then reportedly said they weren’t six feet apart, the police report said.
Wheeler told police he didn’t recognize the man, who he said in the report wasn’t wearing a mask.
When the man allegedly followed Wheeler to the mayor’s car, Wheeler said he “became immediately concerned for [his] personal safety” and was “concerned about contracting Covid,” he said to police in a statement.
Wheeler said he told the man “to back off,” warning that he had pepper spray and that he would use it. When the man didn’t back away, Wheeler then sprayed the man with pepper spray in the eyes, the police report says.
“He seemed surprised, and backed off,” Wheeler’s statement to police in the report said. “He made a comment like ‘I can’t believe you just pepper sprayed me.'”
The report describes the man as being in his 40s, shorter than 6 feet tall, with a medium build, wearing a dark-colored and heavy jacket, and was possibly wearing glasses.
The incident came to light Monday morning during Wheeler’s press conference when he was asked by Portland Mercury’s Alex Zielinski whether he had pepper-sprayed a person the evening before.
“I can tell you there was an incident,” Wheeler said. “I filed a police report. And that’s all I can tell you right now.”
Ted Wheeler’s office has released a statement after the Portland mayor confirmed he filed a police report for an “incident” that allegedly happened Sunday night.
Wheeler’s office did not elaborate on the specific incident immediately after the press conference but acknowledged a police report had been filed.
“Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler filed a police report relating to an incident that occurred Sunday evening. The mayor is cooperating with the police investigation and encourages others involved to do the same,” the statement read.
Wheeler has been confronted by members of the public in the past, including earlier this year when he was approached in a restaurant.
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Someone should pepper spray his next restaurant meal.
“Wheeler has been confronted by members of the public in the past, including earlier this year when he was approached in a restaurant.”
Apparently being confronted (approached) by a “member of the public” is bad enough. If the guy had been as tall as Wheeler the mayor would have fainted.
You can bet, had the roles been reversed, and that man had SPRAYED wheeler, he’d already BE IN jail.
Ted, you filed a police report? You want to defund the police. Secondly, pepper spray is not allowed against the “peaceful protesters”, so why do you carry and why did you use pepper spray, against a person from your community of anarchy?
Good point. I thought Wheeler and co, thought pepper spray was INHUMANE.. So why then DO YOU carry it!?
How very brave to stand up to someone over a mask, where was he when armed mobs rioted, caused destruction, attacked citizens, seized control of a portion of the city? What would have happened if the person was known to consort with BLM ot Antifa?
163.212 Unlawful use of an electrical stun gun, tear gas or mace in the second degree. (1) A person commits the crime of unlawful use of an electrical stun gun, tear gas or mace in the second degree if the person recklessly discharges an electrical stun gun, tear gas weapon, mace, tear gas, pepper mace or any similar deleterious agent against another person.
(2) Unlawful use of an electrical stun gun, tear gas or mace in the second degree is a Class A misdemeanor. [1995 c.651 §2]
A person who has no weapon other than a phone and who is simply asking questions about being in a restaurant without a mask and less than six feet from the person he is with hardly seems like a major threat given the riots and anarchy of the last six months in Portland. The reason of ‘I was afraid I’d get COVID’ doesn’t ring true…why was the mayor NOT afraid of catching COVID while he sat in the restaurant and while entering and leaving unmasked?
Unfortunately, pepper spray is not listed.
pepper spray is a form of mace
Well, yes, they are both a spray deterrent.
Pepper spray is available for the public. Mace is not. Mace is much more potent and is much harder to neutralize.
AND where was his concern about ‘getting covid’, when he ATTENDED MANY of those mass BLM protests, often without a mask??
Pencil-neck, pinhead, Wheeler is at it again! A typical Portlander.
Apparently they have not heard the good news, covid is about to be cured, business are going to reopen, Captain Dementia to the rescue. Now that Captain Dementia has been inaugurated , all of a sudden cases will drop, businesses will reopen, ALL of which could have been done MONTHS AGO using the very same methods being used today. The sick part for all of you who lost your business, lost your life savings and saw all of your hard work wasted, YOUR REPRESENATIVES AND GOVENORS HAVE KNOW ABOUT THIS ALL ALONG. Watch the news, the WHO is lowering the “cycle rate” on the useless PCR test, something real professionals have been begging for, for many months, cases will drop. Leftist/communist/democrat mayors will suddenly allow business to reopen, business will boom and Captain Dementia will get the credit. Amazing what a date on the calendar will do to cure a disease when you think about it.
100%, the Great ScamDemic!! Of course it will return in 2024 for an election (COVID-23) mail in ballots, the sky is falling, put on your mask, OHHH Nooooo! Pathetic!! Mean while in China the machines are rolling out their junk to ship to the U.S. and laughing all the way to the bank with no lockdowns and/or mandates!!
JUst only so long as it takes, to ensure the dems win again..
One word for this guy … LOSER! Portland, aren’t you tired of him yet?!!