Dozens rally to back Prineville PD, ‘take back’ park
It’s been eight days since Prineville police officer used a Taser on a teenage boy at Ochoco Creek Park. Since then, it’s sparked much discussion throughout the community and online.
On Saturday, a group of about 60 people held a demonstration in front of the police station to show support for the police. A number of participants said they believe last week’s altercation was a microcosm of what’s been going on for a while.
Prineville Interim Police Chief Les Stiles also said it’s not an isolated incident.
“What I’m seeing from the parents;’side is a sense of frustration that’s been building for some time,” Stiles said.
Michelle Vail is one of those frustrated parents who helped organize Saturday’s rally and walk to the nearby park. She said it’s been so bad, in terms of unruly young people, that she doesn’t go to the park without her husband.
“It seems every time we go there’s an altercation,” Vail said. “Something happens, and it’s just that overall feeling that it’s not safe.”
Which can be problematic, if some teens allegedly have thrown caution to the wind.
“They want the freedom to gather and associate and act however they want to act,” Stiles said.
One person we spoke with at the demonstration hopes someone in the group of teens can step up and stop the group from doing wrong.
“I hope we can come together, and I hope the peers of the children in the park that are causing these issues that are coming to light will find their voices and tell them, ‘Hey bud, that’s not cool,'” the citizen said.
Vail said when people stopped going to the park, it empowered the teens, which has contributed to the issue.
“Enough is enough,” Vail said. “You can’t have that. That was built for the entire community. The entire community needs to be able to use it and not be run off by the few that think they own something that they don’t.”
Vail said parents in the community are working on creating more adult presence at the park by possibly having a daily “park watch” program, where they’d call in any suspicious activity to the police.
