Students found not guilty of sex in Stott Center

When Taylor Vineyard went out for a cigarette break in the Park Blocks last December and didn’t come back from what was supposed to be a 10-minute walk, Andrew Klaus immediately knew that something had happened to his spouse.

Six and a half hours later, Klaus and Vineyard were reunited at the Multnomah County jail. Vineyard had been arrested by Portland State’s Campus Public Safety Office (CPSO) for allegedly having sex in a restroom in the Peter W. Stott Center.

The story would have ended there, except for several factors: Vineyard is a gay man; the sole witness to the alleged act has been a witness in other similar cases in the past involving gay men; the allegedly homophobic behavior of the arresting officer and CPSO; and the fact that Vineyard is still banned from entering the Portland State campus by CPSO even after the court and the university cleared him of any wrongdoing.

The arrest
On Dec. 3, 2008, Vineyard and Klaus were at Portland State for a play rehearsal. At around 5:30 p.m., Vineyard told Klaus he was going outside for a quick cigarette break.

After five years of marriage, Klaus said he knew right away that something was wrong when Vineyard didn’t return. The next time they would actually see each other was midnight.  

“I thought he was dead,” Klaus said, referring to the seven-hour time span Vineyard was missing. “Taylor is never ever late, he’s like a German train.”

Vineyard said after smoking a cigarette in the Park Blocks he went to use the restroom in the Stott Center. On his way back, he was approached by a CPSO officer who told him and another nearby male student, Stephen Priest, to stop and soon arrested them. The other student and Vineyard did not know each other.

What Vineyard at first thought was a case of mistaken identity turned into two charges of public indecency and one count of trespassing, according to court documents.

Vineyard said the reason for his arrest changed from the time the two were initially handcuffed in the Park Blocks to the time they were brought to the Campus Public Safety Office, this time chained to a bench inside.

“The officer at first said that we were masturbating in the restroom,” Vineyard said. “When they led us to the office, they said we were having sex and accused Stephen [the other student] and I of having posted a Craigslist ad. ”

Desperate for answers
As his husband sat in handcuffs and chains, Andrew Klaus was working the phone line trying to figure out his whereabouts. According to Klaus, he left Vineyard 30 messages that night. Klaus also called Matthew Kern, a close friend of the couple. 

“Pretty much quickly, Andrew was worried that something was wrong,” Kern said. “At first, I told him that maybe he misunderstood what Taylor said before he left. We then went back to Portland State and wandering around. I was trying to think of any explanation but there isn’t any good one when someone who often stays in contact turns up missing.”

According to Kern, Klaus also called local hospitals and jails. He also made four separate phone calls to the Campus Public Safety Office that night. At 10:30 p.m., when he made the final phone call to CPSO, Klaus said he sensed something was not right in their explanation.

“They told me ‘no one matching Taylor’s description’ had been found,” Klaus said, “[even though] I never gave them Taylor’s description.”

According to Klaus, he later found out that his spouse was chained inside the same office where an officer told Klaus on the phone that they have no information of Vineyard.

“They [CPSO] lied and said the only thing that happened on campus was when they escorted two students to the car,” Klaus said.

CPSO has not released an official comment as of press time, however university communications director Scott Gallagher released a brief statement saying that the university does not comment on student matters.

See part two in tomorrow’s Vanguard.