Multnomah County prosecutor charges suspected park shooter with murder

“(Smith) approached the demonstration and confronted several of its participants, yelling at them and demanding they leave the area,” prosecutors wrote.

The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office filed murder and attempted murder charges Tuesday for the man suspected of shooting five people at a park in Northeast Portland on Saturday night.

Benjamin Jeffrey Smith, 43, allegedly confronted participants at a racial justice demonstration Saturday night before pulling out a handgun and shooting multiple people in the crowd, according to witnesses and prosecutors. Brandy “June” Knightly, 60, was killed and four others were injured.

A member of the crowd shot Smith, who remains hospitalized and in critical care.

In seeking an arrest warrant, prosecutors have charged Smith with one count of second degree murder, four counts of attempted first degree murder with a firearm, as well as four counts of assault with a firearm.

Court records filed Tuesday also state that one victim was “paralyzed from the neck down” and is hospitalized in critical condition. Three other victims were also shot in multiple places, and one of them remains hospitalized. The two others have been treated and released.