LeBron James

LeBron James has faced some scrutiny for his lack of remarks surrounding the Tamir Rice shooting death in 2014.

(John Minchillo/AP)

Chris Haynes, a former Trail Blazers reporter with Comcast SportsNet Northwest, published a personal essay Friday alleging racial profiling by the Portland Police Bureau in connection with a never disclosed 2013 arrest and acquittal.

Haynes now covers the Cleveland Cavaliers for The Plain Dealer/Northeast Ohio Media Group. The Northeast Ohio Media Group and Oregonian Media Group are sister companies.

The personal essay comes as Cavaliers superstar LeBron James faces scrutiny from some for not weighing in on the 2014 Cleveland shooting death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice.

Haynes, who is African-American, said he felt compelled to "dive into my own shortcomings" in light of the attention surrounding James' relative silence.

The 34-year-old reporter said he missed an opportunity to file a lawsuit against the city of Portland. "I missed an opportunity to make change. It's something I'm not proud of," he wrote.

Haynes was arrested July 2, 2013 near his Northeast Portland home and charged with interfering with public transportation. He was acquitted, according to court records.

According to Haynes, he frequently paces while having lengthy phone conversations. On that night, he walked outside his home near a light rail track and called co-worker Peter Socotch at around 11 p.m. to discuss the latest happenings on the Blazers beat. Here's what happened next:

As I was on the phone, I saw a police car on the opposite side of the road slow down as it came my way, and then speed up to catch the green light at the intersection. I knew the cop was going to make a U-turn and come toward me, but I didn't know why.

As I suspected, the cop pulled up to me and flashed the high beams in my face. The male officer, who was white, stepped out of the car and informed me that I was on private property and asked what I was doing over here. I explained that my house was right across the street, as I pointed in its direction. I told him I had come out there to talk to my co-worker so I wouldn't disturb my kids, who were asleep.

I told Socotch I would call him back, but he replied "no" and said to keep him on the phone. That was smart. The officer approached me and asked to see my identification, to which I said, "Officer, is this really necessary? My house is right here."

He demanded I show some form of I.D., and I wanted to know why he was going down this path. He said it was because I was trespassing, and he needed to look up who I was. That's when he asked, "Do you have a warrant I should know about?"

I was baffled. I knew where this was going. I'm 6-foot-2, 195 pounds and dark as they come. My attire was a white tank top, black shorts and basketball shoes. I believed I was being racially profiled.

I said, "Officer, I'm not that dude you think I am." At this point, another cop arrived for backup and the situation escalated.

Haynes said the arrest left him feeling "degraded, humiliated, embarrassed." He is sharing his story now, because he regrets not doing so two years ago.

Now, when it comes to those advocating that James miss games for a cause, would you have the guts to take off from your job and risk putting your family in jeopardy of struggling?

Of course, James would be fine financially if he did act on it, but if we're going to ask a high-caliber celebrity to make a huge sacrifice, we have to be willing to do the same thing. So, while I was surprised by James' comment about not being educated on the Rice incident, I can't call him on it, because a few years ago, I stayed silent. Some would argue that I did the right thing; some would argue I missed an opportunity.



-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@cityhallwatch