Police ID Lounge Security Guard Who Shot Unruly Customer

PORTLAND, OR — Police on Tuesday identified the Southeast Portland lounge security guard who shot an unruly customer last week, sending him to hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, according to Portland police authorities.

Jacowski Bissereth, 33, has reportedly cooperated with the investigation and turned over his firearm as evidence. No arrests have been made and no criminal charges have been filed at this time, though all information obtained during the investigation will be forwarded to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office for review, authorities said.

The shooting victim remains at hospital.

Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sgt. Chris Burley said East Precinct officers were dispatched to the reported shooting at Speakeasy Lounge, 545 S.E. 162nd Ave., just after 1:30 a.m. Feb. 23.

Witnesses to the shooting told officers the man who'd been shot was causing a ruckus, reportedly breaking the front door to the lounge and yelling threats, all after being told to leave.

While the rowdy reveler was confronting another patron at the lounge, the security guard opened fire, striking the unidentified man. His current condition is unknown.

The shooting at Speakeasy Lounge is the third vigilante shooting incident in Portland just this year.

The first shooting occurred Jan. 3 at a U-Haul dealer on Southeast Powell Boulevard. In that incident, U-Haul employee Tyson Bradley Pfau, 27, shot and killed 53-year-old Newberg resident Robert Roger Porter.

Police said Porter came into the store armed with a handgun, intending to commit a robbery. Pfau was cleared of any wrongdoing.

On Feb. 10, Portland tattoo artist Joseph Dymond Vinci, 48, shot and killed 38-year-old transient Richard Ryan Hanley during an altercation on Southeast Seventh Avenue. A Multnomah County grand jury on Feb. 22 refused to indict Vinci when it determined the use of force was justified.

When asked about the Portland Police Bureau's stance on apparent vigilanteism in the city, Burley told Patch in an email, "The Police Bureau does not provide legal advice regarding when or how a person should protect themselves in different situations, as these situations are extremely complex."

"The Police Bureau encourages community members to be good witnesses, whenever it is safe to do so," Burley explained. "The Police Bureau respects human life and will respond and thoroughly investigate (instances of citizen-delivered justice). Anyone who observes a crime in progress should contact 911 for police services. Additionally, community members are encouraged to call for police if they believe an event is escalating and the situation may become dangerous."

Patch has reached out to the Multnomah County District Attorney's Office to get a better understanding of how the law interprets these kinds of situations. This post will be updated if and when it responds.

Anyone with additional information about the lounge shooting is asked to contact Portland Detective Christopher Traynor at 503-823-0889, or email Christopher.Traynor@portlandoregon.gov.

This post has been updated with comments from Portland Police Bureau spokesman Sgt. Christopher Burley, as well as the shooter's identity.

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