A 45-year-old Portland man told police he shot and killed two people on the third floor of an Old Town apartment building Sunday when he was under the influence of methamphetamine and heard voices inside his head telling him to shoot people, court documents show.
Michael S. VanDomelen pleaded not guilty to two counts of first degree murder during a brief arraignment in Multnomah County Circuit Court on Monday. He is being held without bail at the Multnomah County Detention Center.
Police have not identified the victims, but court documents indicate that a man and woman were found dead inside an apartment at 310 N.W. Sixth Avenue shortly after 6:25 a.m. The deaths mark the 70th and 71st homicides in Portland in 2021, breaking the city’s record of 70 set in 1987.
A resident of the apartment building told police he went into the hallway after hearing shots fired on the third floor and saw a male and female who had been shot inside an open apartment, according to a probable cause affidavit filed Monday. The witness said he heard the male victim make noises, but the man was unresponsive when he went to check on him, court documents show.
The witness told police that he encountered VanDomelen in the hallway and asked if he knew who shot the victims, court documents show. VanDomelen responded by saying, “I did,” according to court documents.
The witness told police that VanDomelen was carrying a gun and indicated he wanted to put the male victim out of his misery, court documents show. The witness told police he heard another gunshot as he left the apartment, according to the affidavit.
Security footage from the apartment hallway showed VanDomelen pointing a firearm into the apartment where the two victims were found, court documents show. After an exchange with the other apartment resident, footage shows VanDomelen pointing the gun back into the apartment, according to the affidavit.
Police arrested VanDomelen at the scene and found a 9mm handgun in his pocket, according to the affidavit. Officers said when he was in the squad car VanDomelen admitted to shooting two people, court documents said.
VanDomelen’s court appointed attorney, Jonathan Sarre, declined to comment Monday.
VanDomelen has not been previously convicted of any violent crimes, but was convicted for heroin possession, a felony, and a trespassing charge in 2008, according to court records.
He told investigators that he had been using amphetamines on a weekly basis, court records show. VanDomelen told investigators that he has not been diagnosed with any mental illnesses, but is suffering from anxiety, according to court documents.
VanDomelen told police he has lived in the Portland metro area his whole life and currently lives at the Biltmore Hotel, the three-story brick building where the shooting took place, according to court documents. The building is run as a single-resident occupancy hotel by Central City Concern, with most residents receiving rent subsidies through Section 8, according to the organization’s website.
Police told Central City Concern that the shooting involved two residents and one guest, said Juliana Lukasik, CCC’s senior director of public affairs. Lukasik declined to answer follow up questions from The Oregonian/OregonLive Monday afternoon citing the ongoing police investigation.
The killings pushed the city to a record 71 homicides so far this year, according to an analysis by The Oregonian/OregonLive. It’s the deadliest year since 1987, when homicides claimed the lives of 70 people in Portland. The Oregonian/OregonLive chronicled the dozens of homicides leading up to the weekend’s in its recent project, “Under the Gun.”
Six shootings have now accounted for 14 deaths this year, an unusual number of multiple killings, police say. Sunday’s was the fifth double homicide. Four men also died in a gunfight at a Southeast Portland house in June.
“This weekend Portland made the worst kind of history,” City Commissioner Mingus Mapps said in a statement. He called on members of the City Council, Multnomah County commissioners and District Attorney Mike Schmidt “to advocate for and embrace our police department, and all local law enforcement, in stopping the killings. Most importantly, I urge public support for the new Focused Intervention Team and Community Oversight Group.”
The Police Bureau is working to staff a new team of uniformed officers to identify and go after frequent shooters — with a community group selected to track the team’s performance. The bureau has had a difficult time filling the jobs. Some officers worry about community acceptance, police officials have said, but the team is expected to launch by the end of next month.
VanDomelen is scheduled to next appear in court on Nov. 2 at 9:30 a.m.
Kale Williams of The Oregonian/OregonLive contributed to this report.
-- Alexandra Skores
askores@oregonian.com; 503-221-8073; @AlexandraSkores
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