Man, Vancouver officer involved in altercation ID’d

The man and Vancouver police officer involved in an altercation Friday night were both identified Monday.

Jamie Dean Graff, 37, was booked into the Clark County Jail and is scheduled to appear this morning in Superior Court on suspicion of first-degree assault and assaulting an officer, court documents show.

He got into an altercation with Officer James Porter, 27. Porter was hired in March 2016 and was the recipient of a Lifesaving Award for an incident in December 2016, according to the Vancouver Police Department.

Witnesses called 911 at about 8:35 p.m. Friday complaining of an aggressive panhandler at the corner of Sixth and Main streets. Other reports indicated that the panhandler was threatening patrons of a nearby bar, Vancouver police reported.

The officer arrived and contacted Graff, and a physical altercation between the two ensued, Vancouver police said.

Both were injured and transported to an area hospital but have since been released.

Detectives with the agency’s Major Crimes Unit took over the investigation. Anyone who witnessed the altercation but has not called police is asked to do so.