On the afternoon of October 11, 2023, a 48-year-old man named Samuel Gomez stood in the lobby of the Moxy Hotel in Portland, Oregon, chatting with the concierge. Samuel had flown in from Phoenix earlier that morning to speak at a conference later in the week. But for now, he planned to explore the city and enjoy the sights. He had asked the concierge for local recommendations.
After being given a few suggestions, Samuel thanked the concierge and stepped outside onto the street. Almost immediately, he heard a loud commotion coming from down the road. Curious, he turned toward the noise and saw a crowd of people and cars gathered in what looked like a large circle around something happening in the middle.
He couldn’t quite make out what was going on, but it was chaotic—people were honking their horns, shouting, and filming the scene with their phones. At first glance, it looked like at least one police officer was on the scene, possibly attempting to control the situation and block traffic.
Naturally curious, Samuel decided to investigate. He began walking toward the commotion, pulling out his phone to take pictures and videos as he went. As he drew closer, the noise of shouting, car horns, and general chaos grew louder, but he still couldn’t tell what had actually happened.
Eventually, Samuel got close to the scene—so close, in fact, that he was standing near the man he believed to be a police officer, who appeared to be managing the situation. Samuel pointed his camera at the man and snapped a photo.
Here is the photo he took: the man is aiming a gun—directly at Samuel.
This was no police officer.
Samuel had mistaken him for an undercover cop due to the man’s positioning and behavior. In reality, the man was Jeffrey Hammond, who had just been involved in a road rage incident. Moments earlier, he had shot and killed a 47-year-old man named Ryan Martin. The scene Samuel had stumbled upon was the aftermath of that fatal encounter.
Unaware of what he had walked into, Samuel had inadvertently stepped in front of the shooter and raised his phone. Just seconds after taking that photo, Jeffrey Hammond turned his gun and shot Samuel.
Miraculously, Samuel survived the shooting.
Jeffrey Hammond was arrested shortly after the incident and charged with murder. As of now, he remains in jail awaiting trial.