Oregon Public Broadcasting

Portland Police Chief, Rosie Sizer, has asked her Internal Affairs Division to review all statements made by officers about the 2006 death of James Chasse.

As Kristian Foden-Vencil reports, a newly released video of one officer appears to contradict his official statement.

The video was obtained by the Chasse family’s lawyer and was taken in a Portland Police booking area on the night he died.

The sound quality is very poor, but after being enhanced by former FBI agents, the tape seems to capture Humphries saying to fellow officers: “We tackled him.”

Christopher Humphries: “We tackled him. Doofh”

While ‘tackle’ doesn’t have a firm definition, it contradicts what Humphreys told criminal detectives. In his official testimony, Humphreys said he ‘shoved’ Chasse and then fell over him – landing on the sidewalk.

Chasse suffered mental illness. He died of blunt force trauma and suffered at least 26 broken bones during the arrest.

Chief Sizer says she’s looking into whether it would be appropriate to open a new investigation.

The Portland City Attorney’s office says it’s looking into enhancing the video for itself.