Survival and Justice Funds For Jeff and Angie
Donation protected
Hi, my name is Angie. My partner Jeff and I are asking for financial help as we continue healing physically and emotionally after a very traumatic attack. Funds will go towards medical deductibles, co-pays, living expenses, and attorney fees. We hope to raise awareness, fight for justice and bring attention to the importance of keeping violent criminals behind bars or in appropriate facilities for the criminally insane. Jeff was preparing to help people in the community by doing tree removal and cleanup after a very severe ice storm. I accompanied Jeff for his tree bid on Sunday the 21st of January in Springfield, Oregon. A man unknown to us was yelling across the street. Jeff walked to the center of the road to figure out what was going on and what he was saying. The man came to the middle of the road and faced off with him. Suddenly out of nowhere he started attacking Jeff. At first it seemed like a punching or grappling style attack. A few seconds passed and Jeff yelled to call 911. I then realized Jeff had been stabbed and he was losing a lot of blood. Jeff was able to subdue the violent attacker and get him in a holding position. I tossed my phone aside and yelled for others standing outside to go inside. I didn't want them to get hurt and please get help. The police had not arrived yet so I was Jeff's only help. I was able to wrestle the knife out of the attacker's hand just as an officer arrived. I set the knife on the hood of the officer's vehicle. Jeff and the officer got the attackers hands behind his back and cuffed him. The officer got the attacker into the police vehicle. While this was happening I was assessing the wounds Jeff had sustained. He was bleeding profusely from his groin area, so the officer and I got his bloody jeans ripped and I put pressure on the wound. We continued to look for other wounds and put pressure on those as well. The EMT's arrived and helped from there on. In total Jeff had been stabbed 9 times and had some other small scrapes, abrasions and bruises. When Jeff arrived at the hospital he had a partially collapsed lung, was on 95% high flow oxygen, and had to receive a blood transfusion. I was in the waiting area covered in blood pacing around waiting to be let back in the ER to see him. We have no idea how much the medical bills are going to be yet. Jeff lost out on tens of thousands of dollars in tree work, his special order work-boots are being held as evidence. The deductibles and copays for appointments, as well as medical supplies and bandages are all adding up. Fuel for transportation to unexpected appointments and attorney fees are going to be accumulating. My lost wages to take care of Jeff are also concerning. I have applied for FMLA and Oregon Paid Leave. Neither of which have been approved yet. It could be quite some time before those funds become available. To add insult to injury we found out that this individual should never have even been out of custody. He had already committed a violent attack on two women with a sledgehammer and garden pick in 2014. If he had not been discharged prematurely from his 360 month sentence in 2017, this would have never happened. This individual is well known to local law enforcement as well as the PSRB (Psychiatric Security Review Board). Something needs to change. The very entities our tax dollars support are failing their mission statements. A new precedent needs to be set to protect the public from violent offenders. We wish to pursue legal action against the negligent parties. Helping us will hopefully lead to some positive outcomes and a safer community in the future. Any amount will help. All prayers and positive wishes for healing and recovery are appreciated as well.
Thank you,
Angie Lawson and Jeff Collins
Organizer
Angela Lawson
Organizer
Springfield, OR