The Multnomah County board room was standing room only as community members, dignitaries and law enforcement -- donned in full uniform -- celebrated the swearing-in of Multnomah County Sheriff Mike Reese.
The ceremony began with the posting of the colors by the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) Honor Guard, the national anthem, then a short, light-hearted biography about the new sheriff.
“He (Reese) attended Roosevelt High School, then Mount Hood Community College,” explained Multnomah County Sheriff’s Captain Steve Alexander. “Something that you might not know is Mike dropped out of that college to join a rock band, which didn’t end up working out for him,” he joked.
Speakers at Wednesday’s ceremony shared personal and professional stories about the long-time public servant, who brings 25 years of both law enforcement and paid and volunteer work for nonprofits to the sheriff’s office.
His law enforcement career began as a deputy for MCSO in 1989. Five years later, he joined the Portland Police Bureau and rose through the ranks to serve as one of the longest-standing chiefs.
Chair Deborah Kafoury recalled her first meeting with Reese, ten years ago, when he was a commander at the police bureau. Kafoury and then director, Doreen Binder, set up a meeting to convince him to join the board of directors for Transition Projects, a non-profit that moves people from homelessness to housing.
“It didn’t take much encouragement,” said Kafoury. “What struck me then, and is still true today, is that Mike Reese is the guy who wants to solve problems and get things done. Having a tough, taxing job in the police bureau didn’t dissuade him from joining a large social service agency to work on the vexing issue of homelessness from a different angle.”
Reese was sworn-in by Multnomah County Presiding Judge Nan Waller and presented his Sheriff’s badge by former County Sheriff Bob Skipper.
As interim sheriff, he will oversee an 800-person agency which is charged with, among many duties: 24-hour patrols throughout the county including the cities of Wood Village, Troutdale and Maywood Park, the county’s jails and civil enforcement.
Wednesday, he committed to improve county-wide safety; to build public trust; to address recent reports of racial and ethnic disparities; to work with community partners on health issues such as gang and gun violence, drug addiction, homelessness; and to reduce the number of mentally-ill people incarcerated in local jails.
“We were looking in on a prisoner who was in an isolation cell,” Reese recalled of a recent visit to the Multnomah County Detention Center in downtown Portland. “He was obviously mentally ill and the staff were letting him calm down before processing him, so that they wouldn’t have to use force. He was in custody because he had been running down a busy street naked in the middle of the day. He had just been released from a hospital where it was determined he wasn’t a danger to himself or others.”
In Multnomah County, he continued, “we need to stop housing the mentally ill in detention facilities because they’ve committed low-level offenses and the police have nowhere else to take them.”
Reese is the 40th sheriff to be sworn-in since the office was created in 1854. He will hold the office until November, when the public will officially vote for sheriff. Reese plans to run for the position.
In addition to his experience in law enforcement, Reese is expected to draw on his work with organizations like: Transitions Projects, the Local Public Safety Coordinating Council, the Boys and Girls Club and recently the Citizens Crime Commission.
He’s a marathon runner/triathlete, musician, avid sailor and a husband and father to three daughters.
“I grew up in Portland and my wife and I raised our family here,” Reese said as he slightly choked up. “I want my children to raise their families here, too.”
“As your Sheriff, I will do my very best to lead this agency through difficult challenges ahead and to provide exceptional service to the citizens of Multnomah County.”
Watch a video from today’s swearing-in.
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