By Linda Whitmore
Andrew “AJ” Hanlon’s family was left unsettled when the Marion County grand jury determined the use of lethal force by Police Officer Tony Gonzalez was justified.
“There are things about the justification of Officer Gonzalez’s shooting that simply do not add up to me,” Nathan Heise, Hanlon’s brother-in-law, said after the grand jury’s report was released. “I have even more questions than answers,” he said, listing thoughts including, “why was the taser not drawn instead of a weapon?”
Heise and his wife, Melanie, who is Hanlon’s sister, and their attorneys, met with the Marion County District Attorney on the afternoon of July 24 to review the report before it was released to the public. The Heises released written statements through their attorneys, O’Donnell, Clark and Crew LLP of Portland, whom they, and Hanlon’s mother, Dorthea Hanlon Carroll, retained July 11 to assist them during the criminal inquiry.
A press conference was conducted the morning of July 25 at the attorneys’ office. Following the conference, Tyler Vandermark, an associate of the firm, said, “The message from the family is they are disappointed with the outcome of the process. They feel this is not the end of the road. They’re not through fighting – I say fighting in the sense of continuing to look for answers.”
“While I continue to mourn the loss of my brother and continue to try to put together the pieces of what we are learning about what happened that night, I find myself curiously interested in the larger problem throughout the United States and Oregon of law enforcement continuing to use excessive force on the mentally ill…” Melanie Heise’s prepared statement said.
“In Andrew’s name, I will commit myself to finding ways to solve this problem. I do not intend to let go of these questions and we intend to continue to press to understand what happened.”
Hanlon’s mother, who came to Silverton July 10 to meet with the district attorney, retrieve her son’s body and take it back to Ireland, told Irish press following the release of the grand jury report that the family was not surprised with the decision and the results “just added salt to the wounds.” While in the United States she had said, “We trust that this process will result in justice and accountability for what seems to us to be a clear case of unreasonable and excessive force.”
On the day after the report’s release, the family had not decided whether to pursue a civil case.
“The family is weighing options; a decision hasn’t been made,” said Vandermark. “They are going to take their time. The family will be conducting their own investigation. There are a lot more questions related to the report of the grand jury.”
Attorney Steve Crew said it will take a while for the family to determine its next step.
“We’ll review the material, the witness statements, 9-1-1 tapes, toxicology reports. We won’t make any decisions until we do. There’s a lot of material.”
