The police department in Salem, Oregon, and former Sgt. Jeffrey Keniston still haven’t explained a 2021 phone call and text messages between him and Magen Marie Stevens, a Proud Boys supporter with a violent criminal record.
Since May 2021 the police department has charged me nearly $900 for multiple public records requests seeking all communication records between certain officers and far-right activists.
The agency released seven months of records after a legal challenge. Still, it declined to use Verizon’s Privacy Dashboard, a service that allows clients to request a year’s worth of call records at no additional charge.
In October 2021, Amy Queen, who was at the time a prosecutor for the Marion County District Attorney’s Office, denied an informal petition I filed to compel the police department to release records it said were exempt from public records law.
Queen, who is now a circuit court judge, failed to disclose that she’s married to a Salem police officer. Marion County District Attorney Paige Clarkson also did not reveal that her husband was a Salem officer before he left for another job earlier in 2021.
After numerous delays, the last fee the city charged me was $261.90 to review “possibly responsive records,” which I paid on Dec. 2, 2021.
I have not received any records since.
In July of last year, I published an article regarding my findings and efforts to obtain information. More than three weeks later, the city sent me a message about my outstanding requests saying in part:
To the extent there are public records responsive to your request, they are exempt from disclosure pursuant to ORS 192.345 (3) Investigatory information compiled for criminal law purposes, ORS 192.355 (2)(a) Information of a personal nature such as but not limited to that kept in a personal, medical or similar file and ORS 192.355 (4) Information submitted to a public body in confidence and not otherwise required by law to be submitted.
Message city of Salem sent on Aug. 2, 2022
Late last month I received an anonymous tip telling me Sgt. Keniston had been dismissed by the Salem Police Department. I then emailed Rebecca Hannon, a file maintenance specialist for Oregon’s Department of Public Safety Standards and Training (DPSST), which certifies law enforcement officers and investigates alleged misconduct.
Hannon sent me an “F4s” document saying the police department terminated Keniston’s employment on Dec. 8, 2022.
Keniston Personnel Action Separation F4s Document – Redacted by jmdglss on Scribd
In the document Salem Police Department Sgt. Jeff Wiedemann indicates that Keniston’s separation was the result of (even in part) an active or pending investigation into misconduct allegations. Wiedemann also notes that the separation was not the result of a settlement agreement.
Hannon said the DPSST is now conducting a professional standards review of Keniston’s certifications that allow him to work in Oregon as a law enforcement officer.
Because he’s no longer employed, that review may take longer than others due to the number of open cases, she explained.
Hannon would not reveal any other details about the case.
I filed a public records request with the Salem Police Department on March 1 “for all records that played a part in the termination of Sgt. Jeffrey R. Keniston … including any and all records that explain why he was terminated.”
On March 23, the city sent me a message saying in part:
The City of Salem is denying your access to requested records, pursuant to:
192.345(12) – A personnel discipline action, or materials or documents supporting that action and the Fourteenth amendment of the United States Constitution.
These exemptions from disclosure authorize the withholding of all, or specific portions, of a public record. The public record to which access was requested is exempt from disclosure. Therefore, the City is denying your request for access to the above described record.
Pursuant to ORS 192.401, 192.411, 192.415, 192.418, 192.422, 192.427 and 192.431 this decision may be appealed to the Marion County District Attorney.
Message city of Salem sent on March 23, 2023
I’m currently seeking legal help to file a formal appeal.
Keniston worked in law enforcement for nearly 25 years, starting his career as an officer at the Stayton Police Department in 1998. He then became a Salem officer in 2004.
On April 1, 2022, Hannon told me, “I didn’t see any indication of past or current professional standards matters involving Keniston in his file.”
I could find no criminal records for Keniston in Oregon.
He did not immediately respond to three online messages sent this month seeking comment about his termination.
For more on this story, which I’ve covered extensively, click here.
