Nicholas Thorn’s father filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the City of Portland and former officer Andrew Young on October 2 in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon. The complaint, as reported by KOIN, alleges Young shot Thorn without reason to believe he posed an immediate threat, violating his Fourth Amendment rights. The civil claims are separate from the grand jury’s review of whether Young committed a crime.
In June 2025, a Multnomah County grand jury issued a “Not True Bill,” finding Young’s conduct was not criminal under Oregon law, the District Attorney’s Office said. That finding addressed criminal liability; it did not decide the claims in Thorn’s father’s civil lawsuit.
What official records say
The city’s account says officers responded to a report of a man with a rifle making threats at an apartment building in the 5200 block of Southeast Lambert Street. Neighbors received a PublicAlerts shelter-in-place notice during the incident. After a standoff of roughly 50 minutes, an officer fired at 1:22 a.m. on October 4, 2024. Police later reported finding a pellet rifle and a knife near Thorn, according to the city’s account.
The complaint disputes that Thorn posed an immediate threat. According to KOIN’s account of the filing, his wife told officers he was drunk, that she had driven him home from a bar, and that they had argued without physical violence before she left with their children. She also reportedly told officers he had a pellet gun, KOIN reported.
The suit alleges Thorn had no pending charges and did not try to flee. It also says officers reported a gun inside the apartment but were unsure whether it was real; officers initially saw no disturbance and later saw Thorn asleep before he got dressed. When he appeared on the balcony, officers told him they believed he was armed, and he said he was not, according to KOIN’s account of the complaint.
The complaint further alleges that officers knew Thorn’s father was coming to help de-escalate the situation, but Young shot Thorn before his father arrived. It also accuses police of using excessive deadly force and failing to summon the city’s behavioral health unit or available officers trained in crisis intervention, KOIN reported.
Portland’s behavioral-health response
According to the Portland Police Bureau, its Behavioral Health Unit oversees a four-tier police response for people with mental illness or in behavioral crisis. The bureau says all officers receive basic Mental Health Response Training/Crisis Intervention Training and annual mental health refresher training.
Other reviews and oversight
Body-camera footage released weeks after the shooting showed an Enhanced Crisis Intervention Team negotiator speaking to Thorn over a public-address system before the shot, KGW reported. The officer who fired was identified as Andrew Young, a seven-year veteran assigned to East Precinct, according to KGW.
Portland’s police bureau has been under federal oversight following a 2012 Justice Department lawsuit over alleged excessive force. The city and federal government reached a consent decree, and a judge found this year that the city still lacked a sufficient system for reviewing alleged police misconduct, KOIN reported. The bureau declined to comment on the lawsuit, and the city did not respond to KOIN’s request for comment.
