Thirty-year-old Eugene native and former University of Oregon student Charles Frederick Landeros was killed in an altercation on Friday outside of Eugene’s Cascade Middle School, Oregon State Police announced on Saturday.
According to the Eugene Police Department’s post about the shooting, as Eugene Police officers escorted Landeros from the school, “he produced a firearm and a struggle ensued.” In a press release, EPD spokeswoman Melinda McLaughlin said that the incident was related to a custody dispute.
No students, faculty members or police officers were injured in the incident. Cascade Middle School, Malabon Elementary and Willamette High School were put in brief lockdowns, according to the Bethel School District’s website.
Landeros, who used they/them/theirs pronouns, led a student protest in October 2017 that disrupted UO President Michael Schill’s state of the university address. Landeros and other protestors characterized Schill as a CEO and said that the purpose of the protest was to “empower marginalized students on campus.”
Landeros was a member of Community Armed Self Defense, a group that was created as a “new liberatory and inclusive space for all oppressed peoples to learn about armed self-defense,” according to the group’s Facebook page, which is no longer publicly available on Facebook as of 4 p.m. Saturday.
Community Armed Self Defense’s Facebook page said that they could not count on the police to protect marginalized people, and that firearms help marginalized groups protect themselves.
“The police are not here to protect us. They are more likely to harm us themselves than they are to ‘serve or protect’ us,” the group wrote on their Facebook page description.
In a Facebook post that did not mention Landeros by name, the Civil Liberties Defense Center posted that its community is “shocked and grieving” over the death of a CLDC volunteer who was shot by police on Friday. The CLDC is a Eugene organization that provides legal assistance and support for those affected by social inequality and environmental destruction, according to its Facebook page.
“This person, a veteran, former University of Oregon student leader, parent of two and valued community member was at the school to pick up their daughter and was shot by police in front of the entrance,“ the CLDC wrote.
The Emerald has not yet confirmed if Landeros has a daughter attending Cascade Middle School.
“CLDC will be investigating this officer-involved shooting and is deeply saddened by the murder of another person of color by law enforcement,” the post stated.
Before coming to UO, Landeros served as a helicopter mechanic in the U.S. army and completed tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. They received support from the G.I. Bill to attend UO, according to the Register-Guard.
UO spokeswoman Molly Blancett confirmed via email that Landeros is no longer a student at UO.
“We offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends,” Blancett wrote.
As of Saturday, EPD said that the Interagency Deadly Force Investigation Team will review the altercation. The team includes the Lane County district attorney and members of up to 10 nearby police forces, such as Lane County Sheriff’s department and Springfield Police, according to a Lane County Interagency facts sheet.
According to the post on EPD’s Facebook page, Lane County’s district attorney will review the team’s findings and determine if any crimes were committed during the altercation and during EPD’s response.
