Dodging a Bullet

And maintaining the status quo in the Democratic Party

How appropriate that a double murderer would party with Oregon Democrats on Election Night, when there was a possibility things might go sour.

Sterling Cunio arrived early at the Democratic soiree inside the ballroom of the Hyatt Regency in Northeast Portland. I was pretty sure I recognized him, a tall, striking man in a grey suit with a “Tina” pin on his lapel, his hair in dreadlocks, but I needed to make sure.

“You look familiar. Are you a performer?” I asked.

A slight smile revealed a crooked tooth.

“Uh, yes.”

He mentioned the names of some local theatres where he had read poetry and performed.

“I bet you saw me at Powell’s, a book reading by Lauren Kessler.”

I asked him what he thought was going to happen on this Election Night.

“Tina’s going to win. So is Measure 112 that I worked on.”

Measure 112 prohibits involuntary servitude in prison as punishment, referring to it as “slavery.”

For the first time since leaving prison, Cunio got to vote.

He wished me well and merged into the ballroom crowd that was now growing.

I didn’t tell Cunio that I used to work for state Sen. Betsy Johnson, formerly a Democrat and now the unaffiliated candidate for governor. The media and pollsters had relegated her to a distant third. Supporters of Democratic challenger, former House Speaker Tina Kotek had accused Johnson of being a spoiler. They feared she would steal votes from Kotek and would allow a Republican — Christine Drazan — to win the governor’s office, which hadn’t been done in almost 40 years.

One of the issues where Johnson frequently parted company with the Democrats was on criminal justice. She took violent crime seriously and fought against weakening Measure 11, a voter-approved law requiring minimum-mandatory sentences for certain violent crimes.

Public safety was an issue in the campaign. It’s not surprising that Cunio sported a “Tina” pin.

When he was 16, Cunio and an 18-year-old friend named Wilford Hill kidnapped, robbed and murdered Bridget Camber, 18, and her fiancé, Ian Dahl, 21.

Camber, the daughter of a school teacher, was attending Chemeketa Community College and hoped to become a counselor. Dahl had just been accepted into an electrician apprenticeship. In the meantime, they were working at Pietro’s Pizza in East Salem.

Dahl was kissing Camber good night in the parking lot of his Salem, Ore., apartment when Cunio and Hill struck. They forced Camber and Dahl at gunpoint into her car and headed to a rural area outside Albany. Near Hyak Park, Cunio and Hill tied them up and forced them into a ditch, then shot them.

(For more details on the case, see “Crime, Punishment and Fellowships”)

What I really wanted to ask Cunio was: How often do you think about Ian and Bridget?

I kept an eye on him as I wandered about the ballroom. Democratic speechifying by various party functionaries and elected leaders was under way. At first, the speeches were conciliatory.

Speakers talked about the need to be “more welcoming, inclusive and compassionate.”

“This election has reminded us we can’t take anything for granted in Oregon,” said one.

Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum advised, “We must find a way to move forward. … If things are not working, we must change them … broaden our circle, lift up new voices.”

As vote tallies began trickling in, and the first rounds showed Kotek leading, the mood and speeches shifted.

Democratic Sen. Rob Wagner rattled off the names of Democrats who were headed for re-election. Of one race that was expected to be close, he happily announced, “Deb Patterson is progressing absolutely fantastic.”

People laughed, sipped drinks, snacked on chips and popcorn.

“Tonight Oregon is saying enough is enough,” said another Democratic functionary who took a turn at the microphone.

Through the crowd I could see Cunio joking with friends, doing some dance steps, checking his cell phone.

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden at the microphone declared Tina Kotek was in the driver’s seat.

“Are we moving forward?” he yelled to a cheering audience.

Still another Democratic functionary came before the microphone, this one looked like a young Tina Kotek clone.

“Nobody is free unless we are all free…,” the clone said. “It’s a long journey to justice.”

It seemed a perfect time to approach Cunio again.

“How often do you think about Ian and Bridget?” I asked.

He didn’t seem surprised by the question and started with a rote reply.

“All the time,” he said. “They are the largest part of me being the absolute best human being I could become. … it’s the loss of all their potential that made me change.”

That’s not true. What made Cunio change was a swift and severe prison sentence. He couldn’t bluff his way through a few years and then go on his way. He did significant time and had to exhibit that he changed. The length of his sentence was also intended to help rectify the loss he had caused – his freedom for the lives of the two he murdered.

Cunio said he’s a “victim surrogate” and works on “victim impacts.”

If he really wanted to make amends to victims, he would advocate for the kind of sentence he received instead of eliminating them. While still in prison, Cunio was one of the inmates who advocated for Senate Bill 1008, which passed in 2019 and allows violent juveniles to avoid serious punishment.

What would Ian Dahl and Bridget Camber make of his work?

“They would be pleased that I worked on a bill outlawing slavery … We don’t have slavery in the world … I don’t think they would have supported slavery. I don’t have any more comments,” Cunio said, turning away.

A woman approached him. “You go on in eight minutes,” she said.

Yes, Cunio got to speak to the Democratic faithful. His subject was Measure 112 outlawing “slavery” in prison.

The same audience that earlier enjoyed a potshot aimed at “Phil Knight and his friends” gave Cunio and his friends a round of applause.