District Attorney

OREGON CITY, Or. -- Eliazar Martinez-Rodriguez was sentenced to 300 months in prison Tuesday for killing a man in an act motivated by jealousy and for later assaulting a jail inmate after being charged with the murder.

Martinez-Rodriguez, 35, and the victim, Jefferson Smith Cates, were romantically involved with the same woman. 

Martinez-Rodriguez had occasionally stayed with the woman, who lived at the Crown Court apartments on Southeast 97th Avenue. He was unaware that the woman also had been intimate with Cates. 

OREGON CITY, Or. -- On September 3, 2026 at approximately 10:30 p.m., Canby police officers responded to a report of a man attempting to force his way into an apartment at 259 S. Sequioa Parkway.

Officers contacted the individual, Mario Francisco Mendoza Jr., 34 (Hispanic male) and attempted to detain him in the parking lot of the Canby apartment complex.

Mr. Mendoza did not comply with verbal commands from the officers and attempted to flee on foot. During the brief pursuit, Mr. Mendoza turned toward the officers with a handgun drawn and fired at them.

OREGON CITY, Or. -- Clackamas County Deputy District Attorney Rachel Erickson has been named Domestic Violence Prosecutor of the Year by the Oregon District Attorney’s Association.

Erickson, pictured with Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth, joined the Clackamas County District Attorney’s Office in 2020 and now handles domestic violence and human trafficking cases.

You can’t be too careful these days. The stranger on the other end of a friendly phone call or email could be a scammer who wants to tap into your bank account or steal your identity. 

These criminals often target the elderly and other vulnerable adults.

The Clackamas County Vulnerable Adult Multi-Disciplinary Team wants you to know what to look out for and how to protect yourself and your money.