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The Portland Police Bureau discovered in November 2017 that its Reserve Unit had, for nearly five years, lacked training required by a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice.
WW reported this month that the lack of training led to the dissolution of the reserves.
Now, two former reserve officers, Bob Ball and Tim Bailey, tell WW that Cmdr. Steve Jones, who was head of the professional standards division at the time, told them he had not been "entirely forthright" with the DOJ about the Reserve Unit's training status in early December 2017.
Jones is currently on paid administrative leave after crashing a city vehicle into a utility pole while driving intoxicated. The Police Bureau did not return multiple requests for comment on Jones' alleged remarks about intentionally withholding information from the DOJ.
Related: The Portland Police Bureau needs officers. It squandered two dozen of them.
Last week, The Oregonian reported the bureau hadn't informed the DOJ or the U.S. attorney for the District of Oregon about the lack of compliance.
A spokesman for the U.S. attorney says the city is not required to voluntarily report noncompliance. A spokeswoman for Mayor Ted Wheeler says the feds understood compliance "would occur over an extended period."
