Although the Portland Police Bureau is "excellent," according to the most recent report analyzing officer-involved shootings, the report's authors say the bureau still needs to undergo some changes.
Compiled by the Police Assessment Resource Center (PARC), the 2006 "Officer-Involved Shootings and In-Custody Deaths" report, contracted by City Auditor Gary Blackmer's office, is the third city-commissioned look at police policy and procedure for officer-involved shootings since 2002.
The report issued a total of 16 new recommendations to the police bureau – compared with 89 from the 2003 report – all related to policy changes.
Police Chief Rosie Sizer said she saw the recommendations as a positive step forward.
"I concur with almost all the recommendations," Sizer said at a City Council meeting on Jan. 24.

Unseen. Invisible. Underreported. These are just a few of the words Meghann Darne uses to describe the homeless youth problem in North Portland. To say the problem of homeless youth is invisible would be a joke to some; so-called "street kids" crowd the sidewalks downtown, begging for change and causing some in government to call for laws further restricting vagrancy.

Lt. Harry Jackson is presented a retirement badge by Portland Police Chief Rosie Sizer during his retirement celebration at Emmanuel Temple Church Jan. 9. Jackson, who also received Distinguished Service Medal at the event,  served 26 years and five months for the Portland Bureau of Police. He said he never fired his gun in the line of duty.

Black History Month  will be celebrated at Portland City Hall on Feb. 1 with art, song and an appreciation of the African American community.
The free event from 5 to 7 p.m. is open to the public and sponsored by United Way Art of Change Gallery, the World Arts Foundation Inc. and the Zimbabwe Artists Project.
The events at Portland City Hall, 1221 S.W. Fourth Ave., will be followed by a gathering from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Art of Change Gallery, 619 S.W. 11th Ave.

Lewis & Clark College will host four nationally known leaders in their respective fields for Black History Month.
Rebecca Walker, Robin D.G. Kelley, Kwame Anthony Appiah and Jamie Washington all have international reputations for their leadership, activism and their thought-provoking writing and speaking.

Black History Month will be celebrated with art, music and discussion at Reed College throughout February.
Visitors to the college include civil rights leader Julian Bond, musician Randy Weston, musical scholar Robin D.G. Kelley and local musicians from the Portland Jazz Festival.
Included in the schedule are:

Hawthorne Elementary School kindergarteners: middle row, Rittina Dy, left, and Truth Carradine, and front row, Ishawna Thompson, left, and Shania Williams, sing at an assembly called "We Are The Dream: A Celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. and the Pursuit of Social Justice." Forced to postpone their Jan. 15 celebration because of bad weather, Hawthorne Elementary School held an assembly for parents and students on Jan. 24.

SEATTLE – A toll-free application telephone number and on-line registration for federal emergency aid are operational for residents who suffered property damage or losses from the floods last November.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's help is targeted for Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, King, Lewis, Pierce, Skagit, Skamania, Snohomish, Thurston and Wahkiakum counties.
In response to a request from Gov. Christine Gregoire, President George W. Bush signed a major disaster declaration designating these counties eligible for aid from the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency to help meet the recovery needs of stricken residents and business owners.
State and federal officials encourage those affected by the disaster to apply for assistance immediately by going online to www.fema.gov or calling toll-free, 1-800-621-FEMA (3362), from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (local time) Monday through Saturday until further notice. Those with speech or hearing impairments can call TTY 1-800-462-7585.

SEATTLE — If you're driving on Interstate 5 near Marysville and you see a road worker in a green tractor on the median, you may want to check your speedometer. The "road worker" may be part of a Washington State Patrol undercover speed trap.
In two hours Wednesday, about a dozen speeding drivers were pulled over at the speed trap in this area north of Marysville that has been ranked third by the state Transportation Department for the number of cars driving faster than 90 mph.

Black history is so vast and complex that a lot of research and study continues today. Researchers will present findings from their individual research papers at the fourth annual Black History Conference from 8:30 a.m. to 7:40 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 3 at Seattle University, 901 12th Ave.
Hosted by the Association for African American Historical Research and Preservation, the nonprofit organization locates, collects, preserves and disseminates historical and genealogical information related to the African American community.
This year's theme is "The Black Experience: Presenting History's Hidden Pages (Previously Avoided, Dismissed, Forgotten, Submerged or Unknown)."