Former Portland Police Officer Scott Groshong has been criminally charged with official misconduct, Assault III, and failing to perform the duties of a driver. Assault III is a felony, failing to perform the duties of a driver is a misdemeanor, and official misconduct could be a felony depending on what degree he is charged with. The charges stem from a June 15, 2020 incident in which Groshong was caught on camera striking a pedestrian with his SUV. In the video below you can see that the pedestrian was struck so hard he flipped through the air and hit a pole, but was able to get right up and run away.
We do not know the identity of the black male victim in this case. We do know that there was a Black Lives Matter protest in the area because the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has a long and disgraceful history of systematically targeting people of color in the historically black neighborhoods of North Portland. Unfortunately, some people appear to have gotten a little caught up in the moment and may have misappropriated some assets from local businesses. That did not give Officer Groshong the right to use his vehicle as a weapon. We feel that Groshong should be charged with Assault II for assaulting the man with a deadly weapon. We believe that had the black man struck Groshong with a SUV that he would be charged with Assault II and a whole lot more. Assault III requires a showing that someone recklessly caused someone physical injury with a dangerous weapon. We believe that Groshong intentionally caused the victim physical injury with a dangerous weapon.
Groshong has not commented on the charges beyond saying that he is aware of them and not permitted to speak about them. Portland Police Association (PPA) President Daryl Turner has been very vocal with his defense of Groshong. He disputes claims made by the store manager that Groshong, "gassed it and kind of clipped the guy." Turner blames the victim saying that Groshong only approached him to document criminal acts and that the victim should be the one being charged. As PPA President it is Turner's job to advocate for officers no matter what they do. Turner has not integrity and cannot be believed. He simply regurgitates whatever excuses his fellow officers and their lawyers feed him.
Groshong was allowed to retire back in August, so he will likely receive a full pension no matter what happens with his case. Groshong probably knew he was under investigation and figured he'd be best off retiring before charges could be brought. He was with the PPB for 27 years, worked for the Lane County Sheriff's Office before that, his DPSST number is 27445, and his full name is Scott Christopher Groshong.
This is not the first time that Groshong has been accused of misconduct. In 2015 Groshong was caught on camera harassing a photographer for recording his license plate as he left the Central Precinct (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGnULIBkqOk). His effort only made himself look bad and gave people a reason to take notice that his license plate was 035EQQ.
UPDATE: According to public records, Groshong co-owns a residence with Eileen Groshong. We believe that the two of them are married. We previously covered how Eileen Groshong supervised efforts by the United States Probation Office (USPO) to shut down this website. Those efforts included signing off on court documents written by Senior USPO Matthew Preuitt as "Eileen Groshong, Supervising U.S. Probation Officer." You can read the original article about Scott Groshong's wife at https://copblaster.com/blast/63/eileen-groshong-the-ball-gag-of-u-s-probation-in-oregon
UPDATE: Scott Groshong was booked on 9 charges this morning. They include three felonies. The charges are as follows:
FAIL PERF DOD INJ (C Felony)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
ASSAULT III (C Felony)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND I (A Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND II (C Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND I (A Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND II (C Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
FAIL PERF DOD INJ (C Felony)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND I (A Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released
OFFCL MISCOND II (C Misdemeanor)
Bail: $0
Status: Released