A 38-year-old was indicted on manslaughter as a suspect in a 2021 homicide in Portland’s Goose Hollow neighborhood, and his wife – a Portland Police Bureau administrative supervisor – is also facing criminal charges.
Bruce and Karen Chirre were booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on Friday.
The arrest stems from the April 2021 homicide of Jack Dekker in the Goose Hollow neighborhood.
Dekker’s cause of death was ruled “homicidal violence.” His relatives have been notified of the Chirre’s arrests.
A grand jury indicted Bruce Chirre, 38, on first-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault, and tampering with physical evidence.
His wife, 53-year-old Karen Chirre, was indicted on three counts of hindering prosecution, first-degree official misconduct, and tampering with physical evidence.
Karen is a non-sworn PPB employee and has worked with the bureau for 28 years. She has been on administrative leave since April 2021 pending an internal investigation.
Investigators ask anyone with helpful information to contact Detective Jennifer Hertzler Jennifer.Hertzler@police.portlandoregon.gov 503-823-1040 or Detective Rico Beniga Rico.Beniga@police.portlandoregon.gov 503-823-0457. Please reference case number 21-90461.
"Police personnel are held to a higher standard," said Chief Chuck Lovell. "Any time it is alleged that a member of the Police Bureau has acted improperly, we owe it to our community to conduct a complete and thorough investigation. I want to thank the hard work of officers, detectives, criminalists, and other Bureau members for their work investigating this case.”