The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office on Monday released transcripts from the grand jury proceedings in the death investigation of Patrick Kimmons, the 27-year-old Portland man who was shot and killed by two Portland police officers on Sept. 30.
The grand jury determined Sgt. Garry Britt and Officer Jeffrey Livingston were justified in their use of deadly force, a decision that has led to protests by some community members.
Read the transcripts
According to Portland police, Sgt. Britt and Officer Livingston were providing extra patrol coverage in a part of downtown Portland where there had been gang-related violence when they heard gunshots. Two men had been fighting, and Kimmons shot them, seriously injuring both, police said.
During their testimony, both officers said they saw Kimmons pull his revolver back out of his pants and point it at them after shooting a rival gang member.
"He opens fire at point blank range of the individuals in that group. And the reason I remember that so well is, one, it was loud, and two he was holding it quite high, shoulder height, and maybe even higher as he was firing the gun at the group,” Livingston told the grand jury.
Both officers said they immediately started watching the gunman as he ran directly at them. They said that Kimmons had tucked the gun away but pulled it out as he approached them.
"And with his right hand, he was taking the revolver back out from his waistband. And I could see the barrel coming out, and it got to about belly button out of his waistband, so I could see the whole firearm,” Sgt. Britt testified.
Both officers testified they yelled at Kimmons. One ordered him to drop the gun, the other to raise his hands, but he did not do either, they said in their testimony.
"And so at that point, I thought I was going to get shot, too, and so I began to fire my firearm while kind of twisting my body away from him to the right. It was just instinct because I was preparing myself to get shot,” Britt said.
Kimmons' mother, Letha, has been critical of the grand jury decision and has said that she believed her son was wrongly killed by police.
The Portland Police Bureau released surveillance videos of the shooting shortly after the grand jury's decision was revealed.
WARNING: The content in the videos may be disturbing to viewers