OPB’s First Look: Another tear gas twist

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Good morning, Northwest.

The long legal back-and-forth over use of tear gas and other crowd control weapons at the ICE building in Portland took another sharp turn yesterday.

OPB’s Conrad Wilson and Troy Brynelson report on appeals court decisions that grant federal officers unrestricted use of such munitions.

In other news, data centers are making planning for the Northwest power grid of the future a nightmare, according to a new analysis.

Here’s your First Look at Tuesday’s news.

— Bradley W. Parks

Federal appeals court grants unrestricted use of crowd control weapons at Portland ICE building

A federal appeals court ruled yesterday that officers can use crowd control weapons outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Portland without restrictions — a legal victory for the Trump administration.

Separate lawsuits argued the use of tear gas and other chemical munitions by Homeland Security officers violated people’s constitutional rights.

In a case brought by residents of an apartment complex near the ICE building, appeals court judges ruled there’s no constitutional right to be free from exposure to tear gas.

The judges ruled in a separate case brought by protesters and independent journalists that they had not shown federal agents were retaliating or that there was an unwritten policy targeting demonstrators. (Conrad Wilson and Troy Brynelson)

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3 things to know

• The proliferation of power-hungry data centers is making it difficult to predict the future of the Pacific Northwest’s energy needs. That has implications for renewable energy development and may affect the cost of electricity for consumers in the years ahead. (Monica Samayoa)
• Clark County is preparing to hire 22 new sheriff’s deputies over the next six years and to fill a host of other public safety-related positions. The Southwest Washington county ranks among the lowest per capita law enforcement staffing in the state. (Erik Neumann)
• It’s been four years since Republican Christine Drazan lost her bid to become Oregon governor. Here’s why she thinks 2026 can be different. (Dirk VanderHart)

Northwest headlines

• Today is the deadline to register for Oregon’s May 19 primary election (Dirk VanderHart)
• More Washington drug users are smoking rather than injecting, UW study finds (Ayeda Masood, KUOW)
• Nearly 100 Democrats vie for party’s nomination in Oregon legislative races ahead of May primary (Alex Baumhardt, Oregon Capital Chronicle)
• In race to represent West Lane on County Commission, candidates focus on housing, transparency (Rebecca Hansen-White, KLCC)
• Google to feature Seattle teen’s painting inspired by Black hair (Freddy Monares, KNKX)

Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation

“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):

• Eugene launches peer navigation program one year after CAHOOTS shutdown
• Unethical AI use in legal filings are on the rise in Oregon and the US

We could use a little bit more Blazer Bill right now

Portland Trail Blazers fan Bill Scott was known for leading cheers and hyping up the crowd for the Blazers in the ’80s.

He was a mainstay at games, encouraging audience participation and rallying fans.

OPB’s “Front Street Weekly” featured Scott in this story from 1987, learning what drove his passion for the Trail Blazers.

Fans are channeling Blazer Bill’s energy as Portland takes on San Antonio in a close-out game tonight in Texas.

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