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Portland Police Say Officers Fired 13 Shots in Fatal Pursuit That Also Killed K9
Body-camera footage shows a police dog bringing armed homicide suspect Eddie Brandon Todd Campbell to the ground before officers opened fire in Southeast Portland. Campbell and the dog, Kylo, died; the shooting is under criminal and departmental review.
Portland police officers and two other law enforcement officers fired 13 rounds during a September 24 encounter in Southeast Portland that killed 39-year-old Eddie Brandon Todd Campbell and police dog Kylo, according to the Portland Police Bureau.
Body-camera footage released Thursday shows the dog gripping Campbell on the ground in a motel parking lot as officers ordered him to show his hands. Campbell had a small pistol, police said. He did not fire it. Campbell died at the scene.
Four officers fired: Portland Police Bureau K9 officers Jerry Ables and Kameron Fender discharged four and five rounds, respectively, the bureau said. A U.S. Marshal and a Clackamas County sheriff’s deputy fired the remaining four rounds between them.
Kylo was taken to an emergency veterinary hospital and euthanized that day. The bureau said the dog had been scheduled to retire after that shift. A law enforcement funeral procession was held later that evening.
The encounter followed a homicide investigation in Gresham. Police responding to a welfare-check call at about 7 a.m. found Jeff Thompson dead from a gunshot wound at a home on Market Street. Investigators identified Campbell as their primary suspect and located him near Southeast 99th Avenue and Pine Street in Portland. They sought help from the U.S. Marshals Service Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force, which includes Portland officers.
Portland police declined to say whether officers tried to recall Kylo before firing or whether department policy allows officers to shoot while a person is being held by a police dog, citing the ongoing review. Sgt. Kevin Allen said the review will examine how the incident relates to law, policy, procedure and training, and that it was too early to discuss details.
The officers involved are on administrative leave. The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing the shooting for potential criminal charges, while the city’s Police Review Board will consider whether officers followed department policy. The police chief will make the final departmental determination.
The city’s new Community Board for Police Accountability is active, but it has not hired a director or staff for its accountability office and is not yet reviewing cases.
The shooting was Portland police’s third use of deadly force in 2026 and the second recorded fatality caused by the bureau this year, according to the report. Another deadly-force incident involved a lieutenant striking a man with a knife at low speed using a police vehicle; no injuries were reported.
The release has also renewed debate over how Portland police present body-camera footage. The bureau has begun releasing footage from deadly-force incidents within weeks, often with edits and police narration. District 2 Councilor Sameer Kanal, who sits on the Community and Public Safety Committee, welcomed the release as a step toward transparency but criticized the added narration and editing.
“Incomplete footage which goes beyond objective documentation of an incident undermines trust in both local law enforcement and the City broadly,” Kanal said in a statement. “The public needs answers, not commentary.” He is advocating for a written policy governing public releases of body-camera footage.