Admitted Liar is “Cleared”
Attorney General Dismisses Idea of Prosecution -
Portland, OR Residents Mobilize for Mayor Removal
"Birds of a feather..." Portland Mayors Sam Adams and Neil Goldschmidt
By Ron Lee
Investigative JournalistPortland, Oregon - One has to wonder if it is a prerequisite that a Portland, Oregon mayor has to be involved in some kind of under-age sexual scandal? Like Neil Goldschmidt before him, current Mayor Sam Adams apparently has a penchant for youth.
Goldschmidt served as mayor of Portland from 1973 to 1979 and had a long sexual relationship with a 14-year-old girl - a relationship he sought to cover-up for several decades. Adams has been accused of sexual relations with a 17 year-old boy, Beau Breedlove - something Adams denied prior to the election and later admitted to, adding that it was only after Breedlove had turned 18.
According to Wikipedia, "Sam Adams (born 1963) is an American politician and currently serves as the mayor of Portland, Oregon. He dropped out of college to enter politics and after serving on several campaigns, worked on Vera Katz's mayoral campaign in Portland and eventually served eleven years as her Chief of Staff.[1][2]
Sam Adams: " I Lied....Because I was afraid..."
John Kroger: "...We have concluded there is insufficient evidence to charge, let alone convict, Adams with illegal sexual contact with a minor."In 2004 he was elected to the Portland City Council, serving four years on the council earning a reputation as a "policy-driven advocate for sustainability, the arts, and gay rights."[2] He was elected Mayor of Portland in May 2008 with 58% of the vote.[2][3][4] He came out in 1993 and is the first openly gay mayor of a top 30 U.S. city.[2][5]
In 2009, Adams admitted to lying about his relationship with a young gay man, who he first met in 2005, who was interning for Representative Kim Thatcher. Adams and the man said they had a sexual relationship around the time when he reached the age of consent.[6] Adams felt the deception was warranted in light of how the public sex scandal would likely disrupt his mayoral campaign.[7]”
According to a Portland, Oregon NewsChannel 8 (KGW) report on January 23, 2009, "Portland Police Chief Rosie Sizer and Multnomah County District Attorney Michael Schrunk requested that Oregon Attorney General John Kroger determine whether any laws were broken or crimes committed in the scandal."
Evidently, Kroger's determination was that Adams was not guilty of any criminal illegalities. Reported by the Portland Progressive Examiner, "Attorney General John Kroger found Portland Mayor Sam Adams guilty of no criminal wrongdoing. Yet with a looming recall, Mayor Adams' political troubles are far from over. Though he has cleared a criminal hurdle, Adams still faces a recall campaign critics describe as his 'civil trial.'
The finding ends a saga that began in January, but is no guarantee that Adams will survive as Mayor. The effort to recall Portland Mayor Sam Adams will continue.
Campaign chairman Jason Wurster said Oregon Attorney General John Kroger’s decision to not press criminal charges against Adams 'doesn’t effect the recall whatsoever.' He's leading the recall effort against Adams, vowing to collect 50,000 signatures in 90 days. The Recall Sam Adams campaign plans to file its official petition with the Secretary of State’s office July 7. Signature-gathering could begin as early as July 9.
The campaign needs 32,183 signatures within 90 days, but Wurster said the campaign’s goal is 50,000. If the campaign gathers enough signatures, Adams has five days to respond. If he refuses to resign, a special election must be held within 35 days."
Residents and veterans of the Portland area have gathered to muster support for the recall with one veteran, Patrick J. Mulcahy, saying, "We served honorably to uphold the U.S. Constitution so politicians could hold public offices throughout America. The Constitution requires truth, honor and respect. Unfortunately, Adams has none of these qualities. I didn't serve to hand-over my granddaughters' America to the likes of Adams, or any other liar."
Are there no laws in Oregon that prevent fraud in elections?
Veteran P.J. Mulcahy with his GranddaughtersMulcahy, who sought clarification on Oregon Election Law and potential violation of that law by Adams, received a response from the Oregon Attorney General's office on March 12, 2009 after contacting the AG's office regarding being defrauded by the lies Adams told.
The context of that response is as follows:
Your letter to the Attorney General makes a specific complaint of undue influence under ORS 260.665.
The current statute defines undue influence as threat of it, inflicting injury, damage, harm. Loss of employment, promising to give money, employment or other thing of value.
Until 2001, this definition also included 'fraud'. Under the previous version of the statute, a person could commit undue influence in some circumstances by making a false statement. However, in 2001, the legislature removed the word 'fraud' from the definition of 'undue influence'. Since the legislative change, we have interpreted ORS 260.665 to mean that undue influence cannot consist of a false statement made in context of a campaign. Accordingly, the false statements by Adams are not the kind of conduct that is prohibited by statute.
Evidently, anyone running for any public office can say anything fraudulent and they would not violate Oregon law, seeing as though that ‘wording’ was removed from the language of the Oregon Revised Statutes.
Sam Adams and Beau BreedloveIn Oregon Attorney General John Kroger's report on Adams' potential criminal misconduct, Kroger found no solid evidence of wrong-doing by Adams, and he cited Breedlove's lack of credibility and criminal record as a primary reason to not pursue charges in the case. Kroger also stated in his report that Adams “appeared to fully answer each of the questions posed by this investigation.” Perhaps Kroger forgot that Adams is an admitted liar when he is "afraid". It stands to reason that Adams would be more fearful of potential criminal prosecution than he was of losing his mayoral campaign.
As reported by Willamette Week, "Breedlove was actually pretty consistent in his position about the underage kisses. He told the same story in each of his six interviews with DOJ investigators. And he said the same things to The Oregonian, KGW and CBS News. Nevertheless, Kroger said Breedlove’s credibility was at issue in part because when Breedlove gave a statement to Adams’ lawyers, he denied the kisses. The report points out that on Jan. 21 and 22, 2009 (right after WW published the story), Adams’ attorney, Sam Kauffman, and investigator Kara Beus interviewed Breedlove, arriving at his apartment at 11 pm on Jan. 21. Breedlove told them he and Adams did not engage in any sexual contact or kissing prior to his 18th birthday. 'This statement flatly contradicts Breedlove’s statements to DOJ,' investigators wrote.
Sam Adams taking oath of officeIt seemed odd to have Adams’ lawyers grill Breedlove for two days before Kroger’s investigation got rolling—at a time when Breedlove had no lawyer. Nevertheless, DOJ investigators used this inconsistent testimony as evidence Breedlove was not credible. The final report also pointed to his 2006 felony conviction for shoplifting in Hawaii as evidence that he was not believable.”
One note of interest, the Attorney General's interviews were not sworn testimony as would be the case if it were brought in front of a grand jury - something citizens like Mulcahy would like to see convened.
For an in-depth article on Kroger's report please read Willamette Weekly's “The Adams Report - 14 fascinating things we learned from Attorney General John Kroger’s investigation” at: wweek.com/editorial/3533/12744/.
Editor's Note: The US~Observer will be watching this recall effort with interest. It is imperative that we have people in office that, even when they are scared, tell their constituents the truth.
Wikipedia references:
1. "Who are you, Sam I Am?". The Oregonian. http://blog.oregonlive.com/oregonianextra/2008/03/who_are_you_sam_i_am.html
2. "The Leader, His Lover, and the Scandal That Split Gay America". Out magazine 17 (8): 47-51. http://www.out.com/detail.asp?id=24984
3. "Adams wins Portland mayor race". The Oregonian. May 21, 2008. http://www.oregonlive.com/special/index.ssf/2008/05/mayor.html.
4. Multnomah County: May 20, 2008 primary election results. http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/dbcs/elections/2008-05/results.shtml
5. "Portland Hardly Noticed, But The Rest Of The Nation Did". OPB News. http://news.opb.org/article/2144-portland-hardly-noticed-rest-nation-did/
6. "Mayor to respond to reports of sexual relationship with teen". The Oregonian. http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/mayor_sam_adams_on_monday.html
7. "Sam Adams Issues Statement on Sex Scandal Admission". Portland Mercury. http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/BlogtownPDX/archives/2009/01/19/sam_adams_issues_statement_on
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