Paulette Martin stood near a temporary memorial for her brother, Robert Douglas Delgado, who shot dead police in Lents Park on Friday night.
Martin was moved by the outpouring of support for her 46-year-old brother, who she said suffered from mental illness and drug abuse.
“He had a rough life,” Martin said. “We tried to help him.”
Portland police identified Zachary DeLong, the eastern officer, on Saturday as the officer who fatally shot Delgado. The shooting came after Delgado, according to two sources with knowledge of the investigation, pulled out a gun. Investigators found a replica firearm with an orange dot at the scene, sources said.
DeLong has been working for the bureau for eight years and has been placed on administrative leave, a standard procedure following a shooting.
Shortly after 9:30 a.m. Friday, police received several calls about a man in Southeast Portland Park with a gun. One witness apparently got a video of Delgado throwing a tent at police shortly before the shooting. Juan Chavez, who works at the nearby AM / PM convenience store, said he heard two gunshots.
Police fired less lethal 40-millimeter ammunition at Delgado before the fatal shooting.
Emergency physicians tried to resuscitate him, but he was pronounced dead next to a fence by the park’s ball field outside Southeast 92nd Avenue. He died on the scene.
Martin said that her brother had lived up and down the street for years and that his headache had aggravated his struggle about seven years ago. She last saw him a month ago when he showed up at her home in Gladstone in need of medical attention. She said she took him to the hospital and said he should go off the streets and get treatment.
Martin said her brother’s encounters with police were usually negative. She said she was struggling with guilt because she was not there Friday to help him.
“He was always scared of them,” she said. “They never helped him.”
According to court records, Delgado had 14 convictions, one offense and ten probation offenses, dating back to 1993 and 2016. The convictions were for reckless driving, assault, driving under the influence of drugs, theft, harassment, evading police and the violation of the trial.
A small improvised memorial with candles, flowers and messages sprouted along a chain fence at Lents Park for Robert Delgado. Portland police fatally shot Delgado in the park on Friday morning. Mark Graves / The Oregonian
In a Washington County report on April 19, 2016, his probation officer Dominic Del Bosque wrote that Delgado was struggling over the court order with homelessness. He wrote that Delgado had not reported to him or started treatment programs ordered by the court.
Delgado was convicted in December 2015 of assault on domestic violence in the fourth degree and of harassment in 2014. He was ordered under two years of supervision, ordered to complete a program of intervention in domestic violence, subjected to drug abuse tests and recommended treatment, and complete 50 hours of community service.
“Mr Delgado is extremely victimized, has drug abuse and mental health issues, but if he does not get attention, he will still be in the criminal justice system,” Del Bosque wrote.
The probation officer wrote that Delgado wants to move to Nevada, where an uncle lives, or California for ‘more support and stability’.
The uncle warned court officials in April 2016 that Delgado was having a ‘very difficult time with housing and some mental health issues’, the report said.
The probation officer advised that Delgado’s court oversight could not be transferred to Nevada if he did not report to his probation officer.
Delgado reported in 2016 that he was “surfing the couch, staying with friends in SE Portland and sleeping in parks,” the report said.
The probation officer finally recommended that Delgado’s probation period be revoked due to non-compliance and that he should remain in custody for another six months, according to the records. He was ordered on April 26, 2016 to serve another six months in prison, according to the records.
“It is hoped that after release he will be able to live where he has social support that will help him where his needs are,” the probation officer wrote.
Delgado’s most recent arrest was in Portland at the end of December 2020 due to a threatening allegation. He was camping in a car shop along Southeast Powell Boulevard and 71st Avenue when he was accused of pulling a knife and saying to an employee, “I’m going to kill you,” according to court reports.
During an interview with the court, Delgado was described as ‘upset, interrupted and cursed’ about the alleged victim. Prosecutors did not pursue the case and according to the court statements, the charge was dismissed the same day.
Martin said her brother grew up in Southeast Portland and that he had anxiety, depression and other mental health problems. He stopped taking medication for his mental illness about a year ago.
On Saturday night, she stood with her daughter, Savannah Dennis (10), and said that Delgado always said nice things to her when she saw him. Nearby, the growing memorial of Delgado contained candles, flowers and messages such as “We remember you, brother. We will fight for justice in your name. ”
“It shows how many people on the street care for him,” Martin said. “Everyone who knew him loved him.”
– Noelle Crombie; [email protected]; 503-276-7184; @noellecrombie