The estate of Aaron "Jay" Danielson is suing the city government of Portland, along with its progressive district attorney and its mayor, over claims that the city's negligence contributed to the Trump supporter's death at the hands of an admitted Antifa shooter during a pro-Trump rally in downtown Portland last year.
The suit seeks an eye-popping $13 million in damages, all told, of which $10 million are punitive damages, as per the relevant statutes.
According to Oregon Live, the suit filed Friday in federal court includes the mayor and the district attorney, claiming city leadership created an environment where violence and death were likely or perhaps even probable. Danielson was shot dead after participating in a pro-Trump caravan which drove through Portland.
Oregon Live reports that the Danielson estate accused Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt of playing a role by broadcasting last summer that he had adopted a new policy and wouldn't pursue what he considered public order crimes such as criminal mischief, interfering with an officer or a stand-alone riot charge, and instead would focus on deliberate property damage and threats of force or actual force against others.
Christopher Cauble, the attorney filing the lawsuit, commented via press statement: "We are seeking justice for the preventable death of a young man, gunned down in a city with a dangerous and deadly hands-off approach to public safety. Time and time again, City leadership and law enforcement have failed to find an effective response to clashing groups of protesters."
"Given the enormity of the press coverage over the past several years regarding clashes between left- and right-leaning protest groups in the downtown core of Portland, Defendants knew or should have known that violent clashes would occur," Cauble wrote in the lawsuit.
Surveillance video released by the Portland police show that Danielson was killed by self-identified Antifa militant Michael Reinoehl who fired shots at the Trump supporter as he was walking downtown.
Danielson retaliated with bear spray, but one of his wounds proved fatal, and he was pronounced dead at the scene 10 minutes later. He died from a single bullet to the upper right chest, an autopsy later found.
There even exists evidence that Reinoehl, who provided "security" for pro-Black Lives Matter rioters in Portland, had targeted Danielson and stalked him at the time before the shooting occurred. The emergence of footage in September 2020 ran contrary to Reinoehl's claims that he killed Danielson in self-defense. Speaking to Vice, Reinoehl had stated that he killed Danielson to stop the Trump supporter from killing an unnamed "person of color." Reinoehl could be seen stalking Danielson and his friend from an alcove of a parking garage before he opened fire.
A homicide detective wrote in the affidavit that Reinoehl "conceals himself, waits and watches" for the men to pass him before he follows them and shoots them.
Reinoehl himself was killed days later when US Marshals tried to arrest him and he resisted, shooting first in the fatal shootout, according to investigators.
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