PORTLAND, Ore. — The Portland man who plowed past blockades, nearly hitting several people including small children along the Rose Festival’s Grand Floral Parade route, was sentenced to five years in prison on Tuesday. Sidney Mecham, 43, of Portland pleaded guilty to two felony counts of unlawful use of a weapon and 16 misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person and reckless driving.
Appearing in court Tuesday, Mecham said that the incident "was not a planned attack" and that he "acted on impulse."
“I’m taking responsibility for my actions," Mecham said.
Dashcam video taken from inside Mecham’s Chevy Avalanche captured the June 10, 2023, incident in Northeast Portland.
The 30-minute recording shows three different angles, including front-facing, rear-view and inside the truck’s cab. In the video, Mecham becomes increasingly frustrated by heavy traffic while on the I-84 ramp toward northbound I-5 near the Rose Quarter. State road crews had blocked off numerous exits with dump trucks, signs and barricades to help keep traffic away from the Grand Floral Parade route.
The video showed Mecham swerving around a car and driving through a row of cones blocking off the exit at Broadway-Weidler Street in North Portland. He raced past a reader board flashing "Event in Progress" and drove up onto the ivy-covered shoulder to avoid Oregon Department of Transportation dump trucks blocking the exit ramp.
Mecham drove around another ODOT crew and their vehicles before turning onto Weidler Street. He came within a few feet of several people waiting for the parade, including several small children playing in the closed roadway.
Portland police motorcycle officer David Baer chased after Mecham’s truck before pulling up beside him. Baer shouted for Mecham to pull over, but he refused.
The truck suddenly turned at Northeast Wasco and exited the parade route, driving through wooden barricades, nearly hitting several people.
An unmarked police SUV attempted to stop Mecham at a red light in Portland’s Lloyd District, but he drove off. The video showed Mecham continuing to drive for several blocks, until he eventually stopped near other officers at Northeast 24th and Clackamas Street. He was arrested and taken to jail. Mecham was driving on a suspended license and didn’t have insurance, police report.
In addition to his conviction for the June 2023 parade incident, Mecham also agreed to pay a $5,000 fine for an unrelated crash on April 4, 2023. According to court documents, Mecham intentionally crashed into a woman’s vehicle. No other details were provided. Prosecutors did not pursue charges for the hit and run incident.