Good Morning, News: Taylor Swift’s Super Bowl Win, Portland Wrestler Arrested for Murder, and Gonzalez Wildly Exaggerated TriMet Incident

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GOOD MORNING, PORTLAND! Hey love birds! (And other species who enjoy “love.”) V-Day is only two days away, but there’s still time to submit your FREE Mercury Reader Valentine that will run online for the entire world to see! And if you need even more amorous inspo, pick up our sweet ‘n’ hilarious Mercury Valentine’s Issue (in print available at more than 500 spots around the city) or online here. And now, let’s show some love to the NEWS.

IN LOCAL NEWS:

• Video proof that Commissioner Rene Gonzalez is an exaggerating snowflake: As you recall, Gonzalez recently released a melodramatic video claiming he was “accosted” by a female fellow TriMet rider on January 27, who allegedly subjected him to “deliberate, unwanted physical contact” while also having the gall to criticize the public servant over his cruel policies. Unfortunately for him, TriMet video of the incident show he wildly exaggerated those claims, and AT MOST the woman may have brushed Gonzalez’s arm as she passed by. But even though Gonzalez has been caught in his lie, the damage he’s inflicted (and continues to inflict) on Portland’s reputation is done—which was kind of the point all along.

• A former WWE wrestler from Portland who went by the moniker Billy Jack Haynes throughout the 1980s has been arrested in connection to the shooting death of his wife Janette Becraft. Police were called to the residence following reports of a gunfire within the home, and found Haynes who, while initially uncooperative, was later apprehended. Check out more details from our Courtney Vaughn.

Janette Becraft, 85, was found dead in her Southeast Portland home Thursday. Her husband, former pro wrestler Billy Jack Haynes, is now in custody. Years ago, Haynes tried to sue the WWE for ignoring repeated head injuries sustained during matches.

— Portland Mercury 🗞 (@portlandmercury) February 11, 2024

• Also, our Taylor Griggs looks into Commissioner Carmen Rubio’s offer to use money from the Clean Energy Fund to rescue Portland Street Response (PSR) from the bumbling hands of Commissioner Rene Gonzalez and the Fire Bureau, who can’t seem to run a budget to save their lives… or maybe it’s just another ploy to sink PSR because it was a brilliant idea that the envious Gonzalez could never dream up in a million years? 🤷‍♂️ In any case, critics are mad at Rubio for perhaps floating the idea as a political maneuver in her bid to become mayor—which, yeah, would be really bad if it weren’t once again for Gonzalez who seems to think that ALL of the Clean Energy Fund’s extra money should go to the Fire Bureau’s black hole of a budget. (If the Fire Bureau could be funded with pettiness and insecurity alone, they’d be the richest bureau in the world.)