The man shot and killed by law enforcement officers in Clackamas County last week was a member of a nonprofit organization that worked with adults and youth in prison.
Derrick D. Clark, 24, of Tigard was shot and killed by police near the intersection of Southeast Wood and Railroad Avenues Saturday, according to the Clackamas District Attorney’s Office.
He was a volunteer teacher-in-training at The Insight Alliance, according to a press release from the organization and their website. Clark went through its program while at MacLaren Youth Correctional Facility, the nonprofit said.
“From mentoring other youth who’d been impacted by the carceral system to speaking at global conferences, Derrick was a huge advocate for mental health support, mutual aid, and racial justice,” a press release from Insight Alliance read. “He was a powerful presence and never shied away from standing up for those who needed it.”
Insight Alliance shared a video of Clark from December of last year where he spoke about how he was introduced to the organization when he was serving a sentence for a 2015 second-degree robbery. Court records show Clark was 17 at the time of the conviction and was turned over to the Oregon Youth Authority.
“It taught me a lot about just understanding my emotions,” he said in the video. “It’s OK to have certain emotions whether they’re good or whether they’re bad, but you don’t have to act on them.”
Before he found the organization, he said he was “really angry because of my situation.” Clark said the way he was expressing the anger was the problem, but Insight Alliance taught him how to channel that anger into a constructive activity.
Once he was released, Clark said in the video that his family saw he was much more mature.
“Even my mom takes tips from me now about handling her emotions because of Insight,” he said.
The organization and Clark’s family say they have several questions for law enforcement following his death. Among them, they ask why Clackamas County sheriff’s deputies appeared to go against recently enacted policies.
In September, Clackamas County Sheriff Angela Brandenburg told deputies in a memo to engage in vehicle pursuits only “when there is a reasonable suspicion to believe the suspect committed a felony person crime or where the suspect’s driving conduct, prior to the initiation of a stop, displays a willful disregard for the safety of others that reasonably places the public in immediate danger of serious bodily harm or death.”
According to the Clackamas County District Attorney’s office, authorities suspected Clark was driving under the influence and attempted to stop him. He did not pull over, and officers followed him, according to a news release from the district attorney. When he got out of his car he had a handgun, the office said. Clark’s family, in the release, questioned why police pulled him over since suspicion of DUI is a misdemeanor.
A memorial to honor Clark will be held Saturday at the Clackamas Aquatic Park, according to the release.
--Zaeem Shaikh; mshaikh@oregonian.com; 503-221-8111; @zaeemshake
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