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Family seeks answers after police fatally shoot Eric Hurtado in downtown Portland
OregonLive.com • • nation
Key Points:
- Eric J. Hurtado, 36, was shot and killed by Portland police after allegedly stabbing two strangers with a box cutter near Hotel Vintage; police said Hurtado charged at an officer, prompting the shooting.
- Hurtado’s family, based in Southern California, had been trying to bring him home for mental health treatment, as he showed signs of serious untreated mental illness and paranoia following his release from prison two months prior.
- The stabbing victims sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries; Portland police continue to investigate the shooting, while the family seeks clarity on the use of lethal force and questions if non-lethal options were possible.
- Hurtado’s relatives described him as non-violent and struggling with mental health for about a decade, emphasizing that he deserved help and should not be defined by his final moments.
- Portland Police Chief Bob Day called Hurtado’s death “a failure” of multiple systems, and the family held a memorial near the shooting site, expressing grief and a desire for healing and understanding.
