PORTLAND, Ore — A Portland man faces serious charges after an apparent mental health crisis earlier this month that led to him harassing and shooting at drivers passing by near Southeast 90th Avenue and Flavel Street, according to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office.
Shortly before 5:30 p.m. on May 11, officers from the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) went out to the 9000 block of Southeast Flavel Street for a report of an armed and suicidal man. Police soon left "due to the risk of force" and tried to get in contact with him by phone, the D.A.'s office said.
Someone who knew Kalin Anthony Duffee, 29, told police that he'd been on a "multi-day alcohol bender," had expressed suicidal thoughts and talked about shooting and killing people at random.
"Duffee allegedly said that he felt others were out to get him and that in the event he was contacted by police he would shoot at them," the D.A.'s office said.
The shooting started a few hours later. The rest of the incident unfolded largely without police involvement.
Multiple witnesses reported seeing Duffee shooting at passing vehicles, yelling and screaming, blocking traffic and striking the hoods of passing cars. Several drivers called police to report that their vehicles had been hit by bullets, but no one was directly hit.
Sometime during the ordeal, Duffee was shot in the leg. Portland police still don't know how this happened — if he shot himself accidently or purposely, or if someone else shot him.
Regardless, Duffee allegedly stowed his own gun in a fanny pack. A witness took the fanny pack from him, removing the gun from Duffee's possession. At that point, the PPB Special Emergency Reaction Team (SERT) moved in and took Duffee into custody.
The D.A.'s office said that shell casings collected from the scene were consistent with the gun found in Duffee's fanny pack. He was treated for the gunshot wound, then booked into jail where he is being held without bail.
When police interviewed Duffee at the hospital, the man said that he didn't remember anything except "laying on the pavement, having a few drags of a cigarette," according to a probable cause affidavit.
Duffee told police that he did not know who had shot him, but he didn't think that he'd shot himself, the affidavit says. He also denied having a gun.
When a detective told Duffee that they'd learned he had been drinking for several days, Duffee said, "That probably sounds about right," according to the affidavit.
Duffee was arraigned on Tuesday for seven charges, including first-degree attempted assault with a firearm, second-degree assault with a firearm, four counts of unlawful use of a weapon and one count of coercion with a firearm.
