slid a trapped woman to safety Wednesday morning, nearly four hours after she fell into an 8-inch gap between the exterior walls of two downtown Portland buildings.

Anita Mann was taken to OHSU Hospital afterward, the hospital confirmed. Mann's age and condition were unavailable, but she appeared alert and gave out a cheer when freed around 7:30 a.m.

The saga began shortly before 3:45 a.m., when Portland Fire Bureau crews responded to the garage of the Gretchen Kafoury Commons in the 1200-block of Southwest Columbia Street. Witnesses reported hearing a woman scream for help. The sounds seemed to come from the cinder block wall of the Commons' street-level parking garage.

The woman's cries woke up Joseph Ryan, who lives in a fourth floor unit of the Commons, a low-income apartment building adjacent to Interstate 405.

"I heard her voice, 'Help me, help me, help me, I'm slipping,'" Ryan recalled later.

"I thought she was being attacked. The terror in her voice, I've never heard anything like that before. It was pretty intense."

A defense lawyer for Mohamed Mohamud grilled an undercover FBI agent in her client's Portland terrorism trial, suggesting that he and another agent -- posing as al-Qaida terrorists -- treated Mohamud like a child.

Lisa Hay, cross-examining an FBI agent identified only as "Youssef," pointed out in her questions that the two undercover agents bought Mohamud meals, gave him money to rent an apartment for the first time and helped him calculate his utility bills.

Youssef, posing as an Al-Qaida recruiter, told Mohamud to be safe -- "Don't get into trouble" and fellow undercover agent "Hussein," posing as an older bomb expert, treated Mohamud like a son, often telling him he loved him, evidence showed.

The men went so far as to console Mohamud as he wept about a friend who had gone off to Afghanistan to join his Islamic brothers in the struggle against the United States.

The where-will-he-land speculation about former Portland Mayor Sam Adams didn't last long.

Wednesday, 16 days after leaving public office, Adams was named executive director of the City Club of Portland, the nonprofit civic organization best known for its Friday Forums and policy analyses.

The news generated so much interest that the organization's website temporarily crashed Wednesday morning.

"Sam has learned and grown through his experiences and matured into a more thoughtful and collaborative leader," City Club President Pat McCormick said Wednesday, while also acknowledging that Adams comes to the job with some personal baggage. "His attributes were so exceptional that the opportunity for the club seemed clear."

Adams left office Dec. 31 after four years as mayor and four as a city commissioner -- becoming just the third mayor in a century not to seek a second term. His decision to bow out came amid polling that showed many voters carried negative feelings toward Adams, who admitted lying in 2009 about a relationship with a teenager.

Tom Hurley, who returned to work at Portland's Fire Bureau two years ago after collecting disability benefits for more than a decade, has submitted papers to retire.

But Hurley and city officials are still haggling over whether Hurley is eligible to collect a pension.

An analysis by the Portland Fire and Police Disability and Retirement Fund says Hurley won't be vested until Sept. 10, the day after he turns 55.

The fund calculated his service time at 23 years, 7 months. To retire with a pension, a fund member must complete 25 years of service or be 55 years old.

If eligible, Hurley would receive a monthly pension of $4,913, based on his final annual salary of $85,337 as a fire inspector, fund figures show.

The city, though, may have to pay out "additional retirement service credits" to Hurley, City Attorney James Van Dyke said. That's based on a state labor board ruling that the city must make him whole for the three years or more that the fund had cut off his disability benefits.

Occupy St. Johns has at least temporarily prevented a 7-Eleven from selling alcohol in the neighborhood after arguing that the store -- the national chain's third in St. Johns -- damages the area's character.

The Oregon Liquor Control Commission has been divided about the group's testimony and has twice tied when voting to deciding whether to grant a liquor license to the 3-month-old store. The commission will vote again likely next month, but the 7-Eleven's temporary license expired Sunday.

The chain has been on an accelerated growth plan for three years in larger markets, said 7-Eleven spokeswoman Margaret Chabris, including building eight Portland stores in 2012. Even with that rapid growth, 7-Eleven hasn't seen this kind of pushback from a liquor commission, she said.

The brother of a man shot to death by a gun-toting party-goer in downtown Portland on New Year's morning 2011 told a judge Wednesday that an 11-year prison sentence for the killer sends the wrong message to society.

"This is not a deterrent," said Angel Mata, the brother of the late Ruben Mata. "...You're telling people you can get away with something like this."

Multnomah County Circuit Judge Eric Bergstrom offered strong words in sympathy, but approved the plea deal forged by the prosecution and defense.

"We live in a gun culture," the judge said. "And this is what happens weekly here when young people and guns and alcohol mix.

"The criminal justice system can only do so much," Bergstrom added.

By next year, three pieces of property on Southeast Division Street between 30th and 33rd avenues will boast new restaurants, offices and nearly 85 new apartments.

But the $20 million project -- known as D Street Village -- has earned the support of neighbors because it will also include nearly four dozen new parking spaces.

After fighting an apartment building with no parking on Southeast 37th Avenue, the Richmond neighborhood has welcomed Mark Desbrow, a co-developer of D Street Village. Desbrow lives nearby and has also put together a residential project on Southeast Woodward Street.

"He's a guy who lives in the neighborhood and has attended a lot of (neighborhood association) meetings and has been very open about his plans," said Judah Gold-Markel, a member of the Richmond neighborhood board and Richmond Neighbors for Responsible Growth, which formed in opposition to the 37th Avenue project.

"That has made a big difference in terms of community feelings and support for his project."

--The Oregonian