Colin M. Smith (Smith photo from Portland Police Bureau; Crime scene screenshot from KPTV FOX 12 Oregon)
A man was arrested in the fatal stabbing of a man who reportedly had been defending someone outside a bar in Portland, Oregon.
Rahnique U. Jackson, 24, was arrested by U.S. Marshals in the death of Colin M. Smith, officials said. Jackson was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on charges of murder in the second degree and unlawful use of a weapon, police said in a news release.
It all went down on Sunday. Officers were dispatched to a report that someone was stabbed in the 1400 block of Southeast 12th Avenue. Once there, police found a man dead.
The suspect targeted an LGBTQ+ person in Smith’s group of friends, The Oregonian reported, citing Smith’s ex-girlfriend Paulina Solis.
“He was a protector,” Solis said, the paper reported. “He died being the person that we all knew him to be.”
Family and friends remembered Smith as humble. His cat, Smokey, meant the world to him.
“He wouldn’t want flowers or the limelight,” said his mother, Julie Smith, on a fundraising site. “The best way to remember him, she said, is to be kind to others.
“There’s nothing any of us can do now except to honor his legacy. Make a commitment to do something nice for somebody, even if that means just smiling as you’re walking down the street.”
Greg Denton, the owner and chef of Ox Restaurant, where Smith worked, said employees were in shock.
“It’s a little better each day, but I think it’s like a rollercoaster,” he told local Fox affiliate KPTV. “For a lot of staff, coming back in has triggered some emotions, but we are just trying to stay strong together and try to communicate. Just be open to the process of grieving as much as we can. It’s hard because our job is to take care of others, so it’s difficult.”
“Colin was one of the good ones,” added Denton. “He really defined the word hospitality. Not only to guests but to coworkers. He was somebody who took care of things, whether it was the back of house for small things or front of house covering a shift, or to me personally saying, ‘I got you, chef,’ ‘yeah I’ll take care of that shift,’ ‘no I’ll work five days or six days if you need it.’ He was a caretaker. He was the life of the party. He was a funny guy. He was a protector. He should be here right now.”
Have a tip we should know? [email protected]
