When the Unthinkable Happened: A Naked Man, a Gun, and the Heart of Portland

Imagine, if you will, a Monday evening, just as the day begins to wind down in Portland's bustling Lloyd District. And then, quite suddenly, an almost unbelievable sight: a man, utterly unclothed, jogging down the street — not just any man, mind you, but one openly clutching a handgun. Honestly, you couldn't make this stuff up; it was a scene that etched itself into the memory of anyone who saw it.

It wasn't long, of course, before the calls started pouring into 911. Officers from the Portland Police Bureau, specifically from the North Precinct, rushed to the scene around 5:30 p.m. near NE 12th Avenue. What awaited them was indeed Daniel Scott Didear, thirty years old, who was clearly not in a state to easily comply with standard requests. Their immediate goal? To de-escalate this utterly bizarre situation, to get him to release that firearm before anyone got hurt.

But Didear, for whatever reason, was unresponsive to commands, refusing to part with the weapon he held. What choice did officers really have? Faced with a volatile and unpredictable situation, they deployed a taser. And thankfully, it worked, bringing a swift end to what could have escalated into something far, far worse. He was taken into custody then, relatively quickly, and without further major incident, a palpable relief surely felt by all involved, and perhaps even by Didear himself in the quiet aftermath.

Now, as for Didear, he faces a litany of charges: menacing, unlawful use of a weapon, and carrying a concealed weapon — quite the list, honestly, considering the circumstances. The silver lining, if you can call it that, is that despite the chaotic and unsettling nature of the event, no one, neither the public nor the officers involved, suffered serious injuries. Which, you know, is something to be profoundly grateful for, considering how these things sometimes play out. It leaves you wondering, doesn't it, what leads to such moments in our shared urban tapestry?