Eugene police issue first request for exclusion
By Molly BlancettEUGENE, Ore. - Eugene Police have handed out their first request for exclusion as enforcement of the city's Downtown Exclusion Zone is underway. A local transient received the first exclusion order. The first incident took place Friday night at the Lane Transit District station. Douglas Benjamin Saxe allegedly scratched the face of a security guard. That's a crime that makes him eligible for exclusion, which could result in Saxe being banned from downtown for 90 days. Saxe was taken to jail but because of a shortage of jail beds he was given a capacity-based release Saturday morning. A few hours later, police arrested him again, allegedly for doing the very same thing: trespassing at LTD and assaulting an officer. The case raises questions about whether the city's plan will actually stop those excluded from coming back downtown. "I think this particular fellow was a special case," said Eugene Police Sergeant Kevin McCormick. "I think he's more likely to ignore that kind of thing." McCormick isn't convinced the ordinance will work. "To me the ordinance is tangential," said McCormick. "The ordinance is there. It's a tool that we can use, and we'll see whether it works." But McCormick said he's sure of one thing: the ordinance will help by having more officers patrol downtown streets. "The presence of having several officers down there to disrupt criminal behavior I think is going to be more effective than whatever ordinances they're going to put into place," said McCormick. Despite being arrested twice in about 12 hours, Saxe hasn't been excluded from downtown yet. A municipal court judge will review the case and determine if he qualifies for exclusion. The judge has three to five days to make their decision. "If he's not going to be excluded, than I don't know who will," said McCormick. |
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