Tim Lewis (right) talks to local media about why he shared EPD bodycam footage from officer Martin Siller in Eugene's Scobert Park. He was joined by Blair Hickok (behind Lewis) and Jetty Etty (left) on May 15, 2026.
Brian Bull/KLCC
Several activists held a press conference Friday in Eugene’s Scobert Park, following last weekend’s release of bodycam footage that showed a Eugene Police officer making racist remarks, and joking about domestic violence and gassed protesters.
Tim Lewis’ attorney obtained the footage as part of the discovery process following Lewis’ arrest on Jan. 30, the night that Eugene Police declared a “riot” was underway during protests at the Eugene Federal Building.
Lewis and another activist say they were using traffic cones to divert traffic from protesters fleeing crowd control measures–including tear gas–at the federal building, and have pleaded not guilty to theft.
The footage shows then-EPD officer Martin Siller talking to a colleague in Utah while monitoring the protests. The two make disparaging remarks about protesters and Black people, and casually joke about violent coworkers and incidents of domestic violence.
Just a few hours after Lewis shared a four-minute clip on his YouTube channel on May 9, Siller came into the Eugene PD headquarters and promptly turned in his badge, gun and proxy card, according to a timeline provided by Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner. The person he was talking to, reportedly a current Utah police officer, is under investigation as well by the Grantsville Police Department.
At the Scobert Park conference, Lewis said he wrestled with sharing the video for a week, but did so for marginalized communities he says are unfairly harassed and targeted by local police.
“I had this little bomb that was going to create a stir, right? It was important for me to let the community know, start the dialogue and awareness of this culture that all these people who are poor, who’ve just felt the brunt of the cops, it was my responsibility to do that,” he told the crowd of roughly 30 locals and reporters.
A crowd of roughly 30 activists, local residents and reporters gathered for the press conference in Scobert Park, on May 15, 2026.
Brian Bull/KLCC
Another activist, Blair Hickok, said the clip from Siller’s bodycam was especially triggering to her because of the casual humor he apparently had in discussing incidents of domestic violence. She said as a former homeless person with addiction issues, sexual assault was common, so it was upsetting to hear a police officer treat it as a joke. She also contested the idea that Siller’s resignation would remove a “bad apple” from the EPD, when the rest of the proverb goes “spoils the whole bunch.”
“Truthfully, I think the bad apple is Skinner,” said Hickok. “I think the bad apple is the system.”
Another activist, who uses the name Jetty Etty, said her father was a police officer who abused his authority and she’s used that to help others resist law enforcement and understand how they cover for each other. She said many people in Eugene’s unhoused community are afraid to trust officers.
One activist who would only identify herself as “Jane” said as the granddaughter of Mexican immigrants and a survivor of domestic abuse, Siller’s remarks in the bodycam footage was devastating. She said people shouldn’t consider the issue resolved simply because he resigned.
“No one believes the behavior of one person shapes the reputation of an entire group,” she said. “But we do all know that police culture as a whole attracts those types of people and ultimately enhances the bigotry of the individuals within it.”
The activists present said the EPD should be defunded, and the money used to restore CAHOOTS services. They also said EPD Chief Chris Skinner should resign without a pension. They said that while Siller resigned, they do not consider this accountability.
“The community demands to have input on the changes implemented to ensure this culture does not persist within the department,” they said in a statement issued before the conference.
Following the release of the footage and Siller’s resignation, Skinner said Monday that “all we can do at this point is own our role in this. And that’s what we’re doing. And yet, you don’t want the entirety of the reputation of the Eugene Police Department to be shaped by one officer’s actions.”
A number of people also criticized Skinner and his oversight of the police force at Monday’s Eugene city council meeting. But the chief also had his backers over the past week. The volunteer Police Commission met with Skinner Thursday and after some discussion, expressed their intent to present a resolution to councilors affirming their support for the EPD.
“Misogyny, racism, and violence are as American as apple pie, deeply ingrained in our culture,” said commission member Jack Radey. “And there is not an organization in town that can claim it has no examples of it among its ranks, all of which may not be visible.”
“I understand the anger, and I understand the frustration with everything in life right now and the scariness that happens, and people are fearful they should be,” said commission chair Emeilia Foulkes, reflecting on the outrage caused by the bodycam footage. “It’s scary, but we do have a really amazing police department that actually cares about this community.”
The activists said residents need to have more say in how policing is carried out in Eugene, and that officials need to be held to greater accountability. Lewis suggested that more videos could be released as they’re acquired through the discovery process of his case, which is scheduled for a trial in mid-July.
Copyright 2026, KLCC.
Brian Bull is a reporter with KLCC. This story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
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