October 21, 2020

PORTLAND, Ore. – Today, Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt announced that Clayton Briggs, 24, is charged following an alleged bias crime assault that involved a machete.

Briggs is charged with one count of assault in the second degree, one count of unlawful use of a weapon, one count of menacing, and one count of bias crime in the first degree.

According to the indictment, Briggs caused physical injury to the victim because of his perception of the victim’s race and/or skin color.

This investigation started on October 12, 2020 when Portland Police responded to a stabbing in the 3600 block of Southeast 65th Avenue.

According to court documents, officers arrived and located the victim inside an apartment unit with his pant leg soaked in blood. He told officers that he had no sensation beneath the knee. The victim told police Briggs hit him four times with a machete.

During the investigation, law enforcement learned Briggs and the victim got into an argument the day prior that continued into October 12th.

No additional information can be released by the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office at this time.

A charging document is only an accusation of a crime. Briggs is innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office was an active participant of the Oregon Attorney General’s Hate Crimes Task Force and helped draft the language that was in Senate Bill 577. The law, which went into effect on July 15, 2019, renamed the crime of “intimidation” to “bias crime,” added gender identity to the list of protected categories and removed the requirement that two or more people commit the crime in order to make it a felony in certain circumstances.

All potential bias crime cases, whether they are a felony or misdemeanor, are reviewed by the Violent Crimes Unit within the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office. If a misdemeanor crime is issued, the felony-level attorney will retain the case.

If you are the victim of a bias crime assault or you are witnessing one, immediately call 9-1-1. If you are the victim of a bias crime and the suspect is no longer present or if you have information about a bias crime committed in the past, call the non-emergency line at 503-823-3333.

#MCDA#

Media Contact:

Brent Weisberg, Communications Director

Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office

Email: Brent.Weisberg@mcda.us