Spotlight finds high-risk sex offender, forcing him to flee the state
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PORTLAND, Ore. – A high-risk sex offender said he's leaving Oregon after KATU News put the spotlight on his whereabouts.
Gordon Michael Strauss was convicted of four rapes since the 1980s and spent a decade in prison. He's known for snatching teenage girls off the streets.
He spent 14 years at an institution in Washington that treats sexual psychopaths, but he wasn't on supervision when he came to Portland last week.
Strauss headed into the Portland Police Bureau's Central Precinct in downtown Portland Thursday afternoon and deregistered as a sex offender living in Portland.
He'd most recently listed his address as "homeless" living in the area of Northwest 9th and Lovejoy in the Pearl District.
"You people runned me out of the state, you should be proud of yourself," he told KATU News after he deregistered. He said he hadn’t been treated fairly.
A computer query by Portland Police Bureau Officer Bridget Sickon returned a list several pages long of sex offenders like Strauss who don’t have a permanent address.
There are 250 to 300 homeless sex offenders in Portland.
Sickon said the rules in Oregon for homeless sex offenders are more lenient than in neighboring states, making it a draw for rapists like Strauss.
"And which ones are the other type, like Mr. Strauss, who’s using his right to register as homeless in Oregon as a way to circumvent being monitored," she said.
As for Strauss, he told KATU News he's dying from lung disease.
"I can't walk fast, and I can't deal with this," he said. "So just do me a favor and let me go."
Strauss' lung disease hasn't been confirmed, but he was observed lighting a cigarette while talking about his condition.
Sickon said Strauss is headed back to Washington, specifically Seattle, where he has family and friends and more of a support network.
The On Your Side Investigators want to hear from you. Email them at investigators@katu.com.
Good riddance you piece of filth.
BANG!
Don't let the door hit you in the arse on the way out. Trying to act like a victim when the true victims were the ones you hurt in the past. The only one you can blame for this is yourself and the dumb choices you made. You dug your grave, now lay in it.
I'm shocked by this entire thing, and by some of the comments. You think he should still be in prison? That's fine. Most prison sentences should be stiffer. But the fact is he is out, has "paid his debt to society," and the sex offender registry is not there so media can use it for a story and harass people. Shame on KATU, shame on KVAL, and shame on all of you. He should sue the bejeezus out of KATU. State of Oregon Sex Offender Inquiry System - Legal and Illegal Uses - Under the provisions of state law this information is provided for general public safety. A person is authorized to use this information only to protect him/herself or a child who may be at risk. The release of this information to the public is meant to assure public protection, not to punish the offender. IT IS ILLEGAL TO USE INFORMATION OBTAINED THROUGH THIS WEB SITE TO COMMIT A CRIME AGAINST A REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER OR TO ENGAGE IN DISCRIMINATION OR HARASSMENT AGAINST A REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER. Anyone who uses this information to commit a criminal act against another person is subject to criminal prosecution and/or civil action.Â
@PleaseBeSmart You know I agree with you on some things, but not on this one. You say he paid his debt to society. I wonder if the four women he raped, and probably a bunch that never got reported feel that he has paid his debt. He is a felon. Once you cross the threshhold of being a free, honest citizen to being a predator and a danger to all that are around you, you lose your rights as far as I am concerned. As soon as this animal was released from prison there should have been billboards put up with his photo on them to warn everyone, especially young girls. You and I agree that the media over steps it's boundaries on occasion, but in this case they did the general public a service as far as I am concerned. I like my freedom, so I obey the laws. If he had valued his freedom he would have obeyed the laws. I do not advocate that anyone break any laws over this or any other sex offender, but outing them is just fine with me.Â
 @souptonuts Outing them? The information is readily available for purposes of general public safety. Of course he can never pay the debt to the women he raped, but as far as our justice system goes he has paid his debt to our public. I'm sure when we were mulling over creating these registries this is just the sort of thing that wasn't supposed to happen, thus the legal disclaimer that I quoted. Every individual has the right to judge this person and keep away from him, and rightfully so. But I do not support harassment, especially by our media. If KATU wanted to put out a bulletin that a high risk sex offender moved into the area and show the picture on his registration, that's fine. That is a public service. What they did was far beyond that though, and abuses of the registry do nothing but create an argument for there not being one at all.
 @SwiftlyJust If you think he should have life in prison, that's fine. But in no way can we say that harassment is fine if someone "deserves" it. Our legal system has to hold itself to a higher standard than that.
 @PleaseBeSmart  @souptonuts Sometimes our "justice system" just isn't "just enough". An individual predator like this should NEVER be freed to live in society. He should die in prison or be executed. If he is freed, he should be harassed to the end of his days and made to suffer like he has caused others to suffer. His victims will NEVER live without suffering.:( Sorry PBS, I just can't agree with you on this one.
@PleaseBeSmart: Sexual predators can never pay their debt to their victims, most of whom suffer for the remainder of their lives. Shame on you for defending the lowest form of life on earth.
 @mackenzie0158 Do not put words in my mouth. I am defending a civil society that operates by laws and standards. If we are to maintain a database of these people after their time has been served, it needs to be used properly, NOT for media to harass someone.Â
If you are a registered sex offender, you shouldn't be allowed to look like Santa Claus.Â
the real question is if he is out why is he alive?
"You people runned me out of the state, you should be proud of yourself," he told KATU News after he deregistered. He said he hadnât been treated fairly. YES I think any decent Oregonian would be proud of getting this piece of garbage out of our cities. He's a psychopathic-serial-rapist who had not only been allowed to be free, but to take advantage of Oregon's more lenient laws and register as homeless..and he thinks he's been treated unfairly??? I think what many of us would consider even more fair (say...castration, the death penalty??) would even be less to his liking. Good riddance you animal..may every city you land in treat you as the scum you are.
He states he was not treated fairly? Neither were his victims - duh. IMO He is a good example of why the RFID chip should be used on released sex offenders! Implant before release and where abouts is always known. Suggestion on where to implant? The scrotum - where else? The offender is less likely to try to dig it out LOL
It could be implanted without knowledge of where - The chip is so small now it can fit into a syringe. Added attraction would be a shock factor, they are detected in a school area, shock em..This is how to use new technology.
Although I still feel that someone like him should NEVER be realeased, I like the micro-chip idea.
"Sickon said Strauss is headed back to Washington, specifically Seattle, where he has family and friends and more of a support network."
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HE HAS FRIENDS ?
Good riddance to garbage! I hope you ROT like the disgusting trash that you are.
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your photo is all over and bad luck to you scum bag.
The scary thing is now we don't where he is or where's he's (really) going. Having daughters of my own I don't want this person near ANYONE'S home, maybe this is one of those real issues the state should be worrying about?
Adios scumbag. Good to know Oregon is lenient and is a draw for these creeps... brilliant.
Hooray for KATU!!!!!! Â He should have died of lead poisoning years ago.
This is what the media could do that would actually be productive!! Make a point to advertise who these scumbags are and where, and what they've done. Plaster their photos all over so everyone knows what they look like and to look out for them. They should NOT be allowed to fade into the shadows and live an anonymous life. EVERYONE should be aware of who and what they are.