A Portland jury on Wednesday cleared 47-year-old Angella Lynn Davis of all charges following a three-day trial centered on a chaotic October confrontation with independent journalist Nick Sortor. Davis, a resident of Vernonia, Oregon, had been charged with second-degree disorderly conduct and offensive physical contact.
The case stemmed from a skirmish near an activist encampment adjacent to the city’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility. Prosecutors alleged that Davis, identified in video footage wearing a black bird costume, aggressively pursued Sortor after he used a fire extinguisher to put out an American flag that had been set on fire.
Senior Deputy District Attorney Kevin Demer told jurors that Davis brandished a stick and helped a group of individuals in black clothing surround the reporter.
Footage played during the trial showed Davis moving with the crowd and shouting, “Get the f*ck out of here,” moments before Sortor fell to the ground. Taking the stand, Sortor testified that he felt he was the victim of mob violence but chose not to fight back because he was “way outnumbered.”
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The defense team, led by attorneys Anthony Chavez and Benjamin Scissors, argued that Sortor was an “out-of-state provocateur” who traveled from Washington, D.C., to “harass” and “doxx” local protesters.
Scissors challenged Sortor’s credibility by showing videos of him at other protests in cities like New Orleans, suggesting that the activists reacted because Sortor was filming them without masks, which could lead to online harassment.
The incident has seen other legal fallout. Another person involved in the scuffle, Son Mi Yi, pleaded guilty in November to hitting Sortor with an umbrella and was ordered to stay away from the ICE facility. Sortor himself was briefly arrested that night, though those charges were later dropped; he has since indicated plans to sue the City of Portland for wrongful arrest.
Following the “not guilty” verdict, Davis celebrated the decision outside the courtroom. When asked for comment by reporters, she replied, “Um, you two know what I want to say, f*ck ICE.”
Sortor expressed his frustration with the outcome in a statement to The Post Millennial. “This verdict is basically a green light for leftists to attack conservative reporters with complete impunity in Portland. Truly messed up,” he said.
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