FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

NOVEMBER 14, 2018

Man, 49, receives prison sentence following Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Elimination investigation

Today, Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill announced 49-year-old Chanh Tran received a 30 month prison sentence after he pleaded guilty in a Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Elimination Project case.

“The plea in this case was reached with all parties, including the victim, being in agreement as to the resolution of this case,” Multnomah County Deputy District Attorney Tara Gardner, who prosecuted this case, said after sentencing. “I know the victim is appreciative that this case is finally resolving, without the re-traumatization of trial, and that the defendant is taking responsibility for his actions, which had a significant impact on her life.”

The Portland Police Bureau’s Sex Crimes Unit released the following statement: “Investigators with the Portland Police Bureau are pleased with the fifth conviction related to cases identified as part of the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI). We continue to work diligently to bring more cases forward. Investigators are grateful for the willingness of the victims, their families, witnesses and others with case knowledge to help bring closure to cases where justice has been delayed.”

On November 8, 2018, Tran pleaded guilty to one count of rape in the third degree and sodomy in the third degree.

The initial investigation began on September 26, 2012, when Portland Police responded to a motel in the 2600 block of Northeast 82nd Avenue in Portland Oregon on a report of a female found hiding in a vacant motel room.

The investigation revealed that Tran and the victim did not know each other prior to September 25, 2012 when the defendant had sexual contact with the victim, who was a minor at the time, in Southeast Portland.

As part of the initial investigation, a Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) kit was collected the day the sexual assault was reported. The SAFE kit was tested in 2016 using grant funding provided by the District Attorney’s Office of New York. A profile was entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) and matched on July 10, 2017 to Tran. The Portland Police Bureau’s Sex Crimes Unit contacted the victim and conducted investigative follow up on the case, which resulted in a grand jury returning an indictment.

The victim in this case has requested privacy and does not want media contact.

Sexual Assault Kit Backlog Elimination Project

In 2015, Multnomah County District Attorney Rod Underhill, along with the Portland Police Bureau, Gresham Police Department, Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office and the Oregon State Police Forensic Laboratory collaboratively initiated a project to process thousands of untested Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence (SAFE) kits in Multnomah, Marion and Lane counties.

District Attorney Underhill and others quickly identified funding from the New York County District Attorney’s Office (DANY) and worked collectively with the Portland Police Bureau’s Sex Crimes Unit after the City of Portland received a grant from U.S. Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance’s (BJA) Sexual Assault Kit Initiative Grant Program.

DANY awarded the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office a total of $1,995,453 in September 2015. Using those funds, a coordinated effort involving local law enforcement and the Oregon State Police was launched to send SAFE kits, dated 2014 or older from Multnomah, Lane and Marion counties, to a private lab in Utah for testing.

In early 2018, an additional 302 SAFE kits from 13 other Oregon counties were sent to the lab using funds from the DANY grant. In total, nearly 3,000 SAFE kits from Oregon were sent to be tested. As of September 2018, all of the SAFE kits identified under the DANY grant, have been tested.

In Oregon, Senate Bill 1571, known as "Melissa's Law," was the Oregon Legislature's response to ensuring all sexual assault kits, except for anonymous kits, are sent to the Oregon State Crime Laboratory for timely testing.

The Portland Police Bureau implemented a full submission policy in February 2015 that mandates every SAFE kit, with the exception of anonymous kits, be sent to the OSP Forensic laboratory.

Results from the kits continue to be investigated and survivors of sexual assaults are being notified through the Rose Project. The PPB Sex Crimes Unit, a victim-centered and trauma-informed detail, encourages those who have had a SAFE kit collected prior to 2015 to contact the roseproject@portlandoregon.gov or 503-823-0125.

Current Multnomah County SAFE kit criminal cases (as of November 14, 2018)

State of Oregon vs Jihad Eldeen Moore - 18CR13996 - Convicted in November 2018; pending sentencing

State of Oregon vs Chanh Van Tran - 18CR25167 - Sentenced to 30 months in prison

State of Oregon vs Curtis Clint Williams - 17CR37474 - Convicted in June 2018; pending sentencing

State of Oregon vs Steven Guy Tubbs - 17CR08640 - Convicted in August 2018; Sentenced to 100 months in prison

State of Oregon vs Jose Oscar Rosales - 17CR29317 - Sentenced to 210 days in jail, 60 months of PPS

State of Oregon vs Ricky Alexander Harrison - 18CR59141 - Pending arraignment

#MCDA#

Contact: Brent Weisberg, Communications Director

Phone: 503.988.6567

Email: Brent.Weisberg@mcda.us