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Court Referee Faces Complaints After Escape
Multnomah County court referee Monica Herranz faces further fallout from her alleged role in helping an undocumented immigrant avoid detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents ("The Great Escape," WW, March 1, 2017). This week, the Oregon State Bar received at least one complaint against Herranz based on the allegation that she allowed Diddier Pacheco Salazar to escape waiting ICE agents by leaving court through an employee door. The complaint, filed by Bonita Seubert, a Vancouver nurse practitioner, is riddled with surplus exclamation points and misspells Herranz's name. Radio talk-show host Lars Larson had earlier filed a complaint against Herranz with the Oregon Commission on Judicial Fitness and Disability. Federal law enforcement officials who previously examined the incident declined to file a complaint against her. Herranz did not respond to requests for comment.
Class Action Suit Claims Airbnb Discriminates
A class action lawsuit filed March 6 in Multnomah County Circuit Court alleges Airbnb discriminates against black Oregonians seeking to rent rooms. The company's policies allow hosts to refuse to rent to anyone who doesn't provide a photo or name. They also allow hosts to screen based on those names and photos. Lawyers asked Airbnb on behalf of the plaintiff, Patricia Harrington, to change its policies and were rebuffed, according to legal filings. "If the public learned that a major hotel chain would not allow guests to book rooms online without the hotel first looking at the guest's photograph and full name, there would be outrage," says Josh Ross, a lawyer with Portland firm Stoll Berne. "In many ways, the new shared economy allows discrimination to continue in a somewhat hidden manner, but the same rules apply." Airbnb spokeswoman Laura Rillos says the lawsuit has no merit.
OLCC Chairman Lands Weed-Consulting Gig
Rob Patridge resigned this week as chairman of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. That's not a huge surprise because Patridge, who is also the Klamath County district attorney, applied for the job of Medford city manager last year. What's notable is where he's headed—Salem sources say it's Deloitte, the large accounting and consulting firm that has built a practice of advising government on marijuana legalization. Patridge has overseen a generally smooth and financially successful rule-making and regulatory process for Oregon's marijuana industry. That he's now becoming part of the industry is a remarkable transformation for the district attorney and former GOP legislator who opposed pot legalization and initially expressed doubts after its passage. It's a sign of how far attitudes have shifted in the state that Patridge will now go to work in the industry. Patridge did not respond to requests for comment.