Washington Mayor JoJo Burgess (D) remains frustrated and is issuing a message following a deadly shooting on North Main Street over the weekend. One person died, and another person remains in the hospital.
The deceased victim, Jullian Lassic, was just 20 years old.
“It just seems like every month they’re shooting,” one resident told KDKA-TV.
It’s a frustration felt among many others in Washington. The other victim, a man in his early 30s, is still in the hospital.
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The mayor says that since the shooting, rumors and misinformation have swirled, and it’s leading to people taking matters into their own hands.
Mayor Burgess is determined to find out what happened and who is responsible.
“I watched a lady cry in my arms because her grandson is gone. There are people who say they know and love this individual, who were there. If you know and love this individual, and if you were there, you need to come and tell our detectives what happened,” Mayor Burgess said.
The mayor issued a statement on Tuesday morning to the community, saying that since the incident, there has been a lot of hearsay leading to vigilantism.
“People are reacting to things that have been put out to them, mostly on social media. Social media can be a demon sometimes. They are reacting to that,” Mayor Burgess said.
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The other victim continues to fight for his life in the hospital. The family of Lassic will lay him to rest in the coming days.
Two military veterans in the Legislature introduced bills Thursday that would require elementary students in Florida to take their classes with former presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln. The bills, HB 371 and SB 420 would require portraits of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln to be hung in a “conspicuous place” in all K-5 classrooms […]
Hillsboro, Washington County set aside a combined $400,000 to help communities impacted by immigration arrests.
Oregon’s most diverse county declared a state of emergency this week because of increased immigration enforcement that has cloaked much of the community in fear over the past few weeks.
The declaration allows the county to tap into $200,000 in contingency funds it can give to community organizations helping residents impacted by the ongoing enforcement surge. It was unanimously approved by the county Board of Commissioners on Tuesday.
Community members attend a meeting at the Washington County public services building in Hillsboro, Ore., on Oct. 28, 2025. Community members made their case for the commission to declare a state of emergency over a recent increase in immigration enforcement in the area.
Holly Bartholomew / OPB
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The move follows at least 135 reported arrests by immigration enforcement in the county in October, according to the Portland Immigration Rights Coalition. This number accounts for nearly half the 329 arrests made throughout the state in October.
While the county has not yet decided which community organizations will receive emergency funds, SOAR Immigration Legal Services requested a portion of the money.
SOAR legal assistant Celeste Mora-Morales was one of a number of public commenters at Tuesday’s meeting.
“We are receiving over 100 calls every day,” she said. “There’s broken glass all over Hillsboro.”
Her comments alluded to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers regularly breaking car windows to make arrests.
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County Administrator Tanya Ange said staff would follow up with the board next week with plans on how to spend the $200,000 unlocked by the emergency declaration.
The state of emergency lasts until the end of the calendar year. It coincides with a second state of emergency declared by the commission Tuesday over a loss of access to the Supplemental Nutrition Access Program. That declaration will redirect $250,000 to the Oregon Food Bank.
Fear of the ongoing immigration arrests, which have swept up multiple people lawfully living in the US, has kept many Washington County residents from leaving their homes, meaning they have to miss work, school or doctor’s appointments.
“Fear has become a daily companion for far too many in our community,” Hillsboro United Methodist Pastor Rhett Ansley said at a Tuesday meeting of the Hillsboro City Council.
At its meeting, the Hillsboro City Council heard more than three hours of public testimony about the devastating impacts the recent enforcement actions.
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The council allocated its own $200,000 for a “low-barrier” grant program that would benefit affected residents and will continue discussing the matter at a meeting Nov. 18.
Washington County Commissioner Jason Snider compared immigration officials’ apparently intentional infliction of fear and distress in the community to acts of terror. However, he also noted the limits of the county’s authority in the face of federal law.
“We have an obligation to follow federal law,” Snider said. “I want to make sure the expectations of the community are aligned with what we are actually considering,” meaning the county was not directing the sheriff’s office to step in during ICE action, as some community members had asked.
Commissioner Nafisa Fai said she felt the declaration did not go far enough to protect Washington County residents. She said the county should consider additional measures like suspending rental evictions or utility shutoffs as families deal with the detainment of their primary income earners or fear leaving home to work.
“There are other tools in our toolbox that we can (use to) help residents,” she said. “The situation the community faces demands aggressive action to safeguard our residents.”
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Commission Chair Kathryn Harrington expressed support for all local, state and federal officials lawfully performing their duties.
“That includes supporting lawful immigration,” she said.
When the prospect of an emergency declaration related to the recent ICE activity was previously broached, Harrington was not on board with the idea, saying it was important to safeguard money the county receives from the federal government. Earlier this year, the commission altered the county’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies to avoid running afoul of the Trump administration.
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The Southwest Washington mayor won a third term Tuesday and voters appeared to be passing Proposition 5.
Incumbent Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle enjoys a performance while talking with attendees at her election night party at the Fire Union Hall in Vancouver, Wash., on Nov. 4, 2025.
Eli Imadali / OPB
Anne McEnerny-Ogle won a third term as mayor of Vancouver on Tuesday night, beating her opponent Justin Forsman by a wide margin.
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“Our work obviously isn’t done,” McEnerny-Ogle said to a crowd of supporters at the Vancouver Local 452 Fire Hall after early election results came in.
“We’ll build that I-5 bridge, we’ll build the Heights, we’ll continue working with our homeless,” she said, calling out a number of local livability issues before telling the crowd to be sure to take home extra baked potatoes.
McEnerny-Ogle has long been a face in Vancouver politics. After a 30-year career as a public school teacher, she was elected as a city councilor in 2014. She became the first woman to serve as mayor of Vancouver in 2018. Now 72 years old, her term as mayor will last through 2029.
Priorities for her next term will include development of a mixed-use neighborhood in Central Vancouver known as the Heights District, helping expand police staffing with levies like Proposition 5, which also appeared to be passing on Tuesday night, and starting construction on the Interstate Bridge Replacement, a slow-moving megaproject that has been further delayed by the federal government shutdown.
“I’m the strongest advocate for the bridge because it’s right in our living room for the city of Vancouver,” she said.
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Her last eight years as mayor were defined by a period of tremendous change in Washington state’s second fastest growing city. That growth has led to problems, like a persistent housing shortage and growing homelessness.
McEnerny-Ogle served as mayor throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. “Every day I came to work,” she said.
As mayor, she is often found holding together fractious coalitions in Southwest Washington. She’s heavily involved with Oregon and Washington state officials, the board of the local transit agency, C-TRAN, and the two states’ congressional delegations on matters related to the I-5 bridge.
At the local level, McEnerny-Ogle contributes to the relationship between Vancouver and Clark County’s smaller cities’ response to a regional homelessness crisis.
Her opponent, Justin Forsman, earned nearly 30% of the vote as of 9 p.m. Tuesday.
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Forsman runs a small telecom business in Vancouver. His defeat in the mayoral race adds to a series of failed bids for Vancouver City Council and the Washington state Legislature. In campaign statements, Forsman said he is an advocate against the herbicide glyphosate, 5G cellular towers and water fluoridation. His platform included a range of conservative interests, such as rejecting sanctuary city policies, enhanced 2nd Amendment protections, and what he described as medical freedom.
Voters approve Proposition 5
Voters in Vancouver appeared to be approving Proposition 5, based on early results in Tuesday’s general election. It will fund approximately 13 new officers in the Vancouver Police Department. The tax levy’s passage would mark a small step forward in the city’s effort to shore up police staffing levels.
Proposition 5 will increase taxes by $0.15 per $1,000 of assessed value on property in Vancouver. That translates to an increase of about $75 annually on a $500,000 home, according to the city.
The 13 new officers funded by the levy amount to fewer new hires than in past funding proposals. A similar 2024 levy aimed to hire 80 new police officers and 36 non-officer positions. That levy’s failure led to the scaled-back request this year.
Vancouver ranks low when it comes to officers per capita compared to other Washington cities of comparable size. Vancouver had 11.4 officers per 10,000 people, according to 2024 FBI data. Other cities with populations of 90,000 or more include Tacoma, with 15.31 officers, and Everett, with 17.79 officers per 10,000 people.
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The city is also planning to hire additional officers with state funding for law enforcement approved during the last legislative session. According to City Manager Lon Pluckhahn, Vancouver is expecting to hire another dozen officers beyond the levy with a share of $100 million allocated for police departments around the state by the legislature and Gov. Bob Ferguson.
Additional officers hired with Proposition 5 funds would be fully trained in early 2027, according to VPD spokesperson Kim Kapp.
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