Officer Kills Mentally Ill Woman

from The Oregonian, by Sarah Hunsberger and Niki Sullivan

A Clackamas County sheriff's sergeant on Friday shot and killed a mentally ill woman with a history of violent behavior after she lunged at him and another person with a knife, police said.

Joyce M. Staudenmaier, 49, died during surgery for a single gunshot wound to the chest. The sheriff's office declined to identify the sergeant who shot her, saying only that he is a well-respected supervisor who has been with the department for years. The sergeant was placed on paid administrative leave pending the investigation of the shooting.

Staudenmaier lived at Chez Ami Apartments, a 40-unit housing complex for people with mental illnesses just north of Clackamas Town Center. The building is owned and managed by Central City Concern, a Portland-based nonprofit affordable housing group.

Residents receive counseling and support from Clackamas County Mental Health Division staff, but they live independently and are free to come and go.

Deputy Joel Manley of the Clackamas County Sheriff's Office gave this account:

The shooting occurred at 10:29 a.m.

Shortly after 10 a.m., Clackamas County Mental Health Division workers called authorities for assistance with Staudenmaier, who had been deteriorating in recent days but was not in the building at the time of the call.

Mental health workers wanted to place Staudenmaier on a "mental hold," and the sergeant responding to the call was informed that Staudenmaier had a history of violent behavior and likely carried a weapon.

The sheriff's sergeant was dispatched at 10:11 a.m. A short time later, he arrived alone at the apartment building and entered the first-floor lobby. After learning more about Staudenmaier's history of violence, the sergeant called for a backup deputy.

Before the backup arrived, Staudenmaier returned to the building and entered the lobby. She pulled a knife from her purse and lunged at the sergeant. She also threatened another person who was in the lobby.

The sergeant tried to back away, but when he couldn't escape, he shot Staudenmaier once in the chest. The shooting was at 10:29 a.m., 18 minutes after the sergeant was dispatched. Staudenmaier was taken by ambulance to OHSU Hospital, where she died.

The sergeant did not use any less-lethal forms of force.

"The sergeant felt his life was threatened," sheriff's Deputy Joel Manley said.

Residents of the complex said that they heard a man yell, "Put it down. Put it down. Put it down," followed by a single gunshot.

A resident who asked not to be identified said she was awakened by the shooting and left her apartment to see Staudenmaier lying on the ground on the first floor with her head on the bottom stair.

Richard Henderson, a friend of Staudenmaier's family, described Staudenmaier as an intelligent woman who had experienced mental health problems since her early 20s and was receiving care from a psychiatrist. Henderson said he couldn't imagine that shooting was called for, even if she did have an outburst.

"I knew her well enough to know that anyone -- even if she had a knife -- could have handled her," Henderson said. "It makes me sick."

Previous incidents with officers
Before Friday's shooting, police had visited Staudenmaier's apartment at Chez Ami twice. In November 2002, she locked herself in her room and refused to take her medication. The next incident was Nov. 30, 2003, after she told people she planned to commit suicide on her birthday, the next day. When police contacted her, however, she said she didn't want to hurt herself.

Residents described Staudenmaier as behaving oddly in recent days.

More than one resident reported seeing Staudenmaier walking around the building in a bathrobe, talking to herself.

Tim and Kathy Shaw, whose 29-year-old son, Taylor, moved into the building about six months ago, said their son told them Staudenmaier rang the buzzers for all the residents' apartments Thursday morning because she had run out of cigarettes.

Kris Shaner, who has lived in the building for about a year and a half and is diagnosed with a variety of mental illnesses, said that last year that Staudenmaier started talking more openly and angrily to voices she was hearing.

"She's scary when she yells. She's a big woman," Shaner said.

In September 2000, Staudenmaier had a violent outburst at the Danielsons Fresh Marketplace in Oregon City. According to police reports, Staudenmaier was approached by an employee and accused of shoplifting. Staudenmaier hit the employee, then threatened her with a knife and was arrested, police reports said. A large kitchen knife was found in her backpack.

Staudenmaier was diverted to a special mental health court program, where she underwent mental health treatment, made monthly appearances before a judge and was monitored more carefully than with traditional probation.

Friday's request for a mental hold followed procedure. Certain mental health officials have the authority to have a person hospitalized on a mental hold if a person's illness becomes acute, said Susan Johnson, housing coordinator for the Clackamas County Mental Health Division. They are taken into custody and admitted to a psychiatric hospital, even if they refuse treatment.

The circumstances of Friday's shootings had similarities to a 2003 shooting involving Clackamas County Sheriff's Sgt. Damon Coates, who was shot in the head after responding to a report of a 15-year-old with mental problems. The teenager, Nick Teixeira, shot Coates, and then another officer shot and wounded Teixeira.

Coates, who suffered a debilitating brain injury, later sued the county, saying dispatchers should have done more to let him know that Teixeira was armed. The lawsuit also alleged that the deputies who responded to the call before Coates were not trained in how to respond to a situation involving a mentally ill person.
News researcher Margie Gultry contributed to this report.