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James Atkinson, a little-known candidate for Portland mayor, was booked into jail on Sept. 3 on charges of theft, robbery and criminal trespass.
The charges stem from an incident at a tea shop in downtown Portland on the afternoon of Aug. 9. At that time, says Na Yin, the owner of Tea Artist, Atkinson stole products from the tea shop and repeatedly entered the store despite being asked to leave.
Prosecutors declined to press charges related to the tea shop incident last week, but Atkinson was recently arrested on charges of criminal trespass again after an incident on Aug. 21 in North Portland. That charge is still pending, and Atkinson’s arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 19.
Atkinson, 39, has no prior misdemeanor or felony convictions. Until recently, Atkinson lived in a Southwest Portland apartment. When he was arrested on Aug. 21, however, the responding police officer wrote that he was a transient. Court documents now suggest that he’s being aided by a local nonprofit.
Atkinson’s name will appear on the November ballot as one of 19 candidates running for mayor. Atkinson is not a serious contender—he has no political action committee, nor did he participate in the city’s Small Donor Elections program. But what makes the incident noteworthy is how the Aug. 9 incident at Tea Artist unfolded and who was involved.
At 3 pm on Aug. 9, a Portland police officer went to a downtown tea shop to respond to concerns about a man trespassing and attempting to steal items. While the Portland Police Bureau declined to confirm either the identity of the responding officer or the name of the suspect, WW has learned that the officer was Eli Arnold, a downtown bike cop who’s running for one of the three available City Council seats in District 4, which covers all of Portland west of the Willamette River and a sliver of Southeast Portland.
According to Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sgt. Kevin Allen, the officer responded to “a report of a call at a tea shop in the 1400 block of Southwest 6th Avenue. The officer reported that he had received a telephone call that a suspect had tried to steal items and was repeatedly trespassing.
The bureau says that the officer “located a person matching the suspect’s description on Southwest 5th Avenue across from City Hall. He spoke to the suspect and identified him. He conducted additional investigation, but no arrests were made.”
In an interview on the day of the incident, Yin told WW that the man entered the shop, grabbed a teaspoon by the tea kits, and walked to the door to leave. She says when she asked him if she could help him, he was nonverbal and continued to exit. She says that about 10 minutes later, Atkinson came back and tried to enter the shop’s basement, which was locked. He then approached a shelf with canvas bags on it and attempted to take them. Yin says she picked up a baseball bat and instructed the man to leave, which she says he did.
Yin says she and her staff called the security number provided to businesses who are members of Downtown Portland Clean & Safe, the nonprofit that provides additional security and sanitary services to paying members downtown. Two security officers came to the shop and asked questions of her and her staff. About 20 minutes after they left, Yin says, a male police officer arrived to ask questions. That officer was Arnold.
Arnold, when reached in August about the incident, declined to comment.
Arnold is one of 36 candidates so far who have unlocked $40,000 in taxpayer funds for his campaign through the city’s Small Donor Elections program. He’s seen as a top contender for one of the four seats in his district.
It appears Atkinson wasn’t charged with the alleged crimes until Sept. 3, when he was picked up for the Aug. 21 trespassing incident—nearly a month after the tea shop scuffle. Court documents provide little information about the second trespassing incident except for the location: near the Expo Center along North Marine Drive.
In his candidate filing paperwork, Atkinson lists his occupation as “inventor.” A campaign flyer spotted downtown last week lists other occupations and suggests voting for Atkinson in tandem with Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who recently suspended his presidential bid.
Court records show that Atkinson had another recent run-in with the law; he was charged with harassment, a misdemeanor, on July 29 in Multnomah County. The charges were later dropped.
Atkinson did not respond to a request for comment.
Clarification: This story was updated to reflect that prosecutors declined to press charges against Atkinson. Atkinson was arrested on Sept. 3 and booked into jail on charges of trespass, theft and robbery, but prosecutors declined to press charges.