UPDATE: 'Extremely dangerous' escaped Oregon State Hospital patient in custody, officials say
This story was updated at 11:55 a.m. Friday
Rescue crews pulled Christopher Lee Pray from mud in a pond in Portland this morning and took him to a hospital, law enforcement authorities said.
Oregon State Police said Portland Fire & Rescue were dispatched at 8:17 a.m. to the pond at North Force Ave and and North Victory Blvd where Pray was stuck in the mud up to his armpits.
He was transported to a hospital and gave a fake name, OSP said, but a hospital employee noticed he resembled Pray.
The Portland Police Bureau was notified, confirmed his identity and he was arrested and taken into custody.
State Police said they continue to investigate the details surrounding Pray's alleged escape Wednesday night from the Oregon State Hospital and plan to provide an additional statement on Tuesday.
Original story:
An Oregon State Hospital patient described as an extreme danger to the public escaped in full restraints at about 11 p.m. Wednesday after assaulting staff and driving away in a state-owned white 2016 Dodge Caravan, Oregon State Police said.
State police identified the patient as Christopher Lee Pray, 39, who was in custody from Multnomah County on charges including attempted aggravated murder.
Pray was admitted to the psychiatric hospital Wednesday as an aid and assist commitment because he was determined unable to aid his legal counsel in his defense, the hospital confirmed.
A spokesperson said he was involved in an altercation with another patient Wednesday evening and taken to Salem Health hospital for medical care. He allegedly assaulted staff and "was able to gain control of the van and drive away" when he was being returned to the state hospital.
State police said Pray "was fully restrained with leg shackles, a belly chain, handcuffs and a restraint connecting all three together."
"Pray is extremely dangerous and should not be approached," OSP said in a statement released about 12 hours after the escape. "Law enforcement is urging the public to dial 911 and report any sightings of Pray or the vehicle he was operating."
OSP did not immediately respond to questions about why a statement about the escape had not been released earlier.
Description of 'extremely dangerous' individual
Pray was last seen heading southbound on Interstate 5 in the van with a yellow Oregon license plate, No. E265614. Police said he has ties to the greater Portland metro area.
He was last seen wearing a white t-shirt, maroon sweatpants, and black rubber slippers. Pray was described as:
A white male.
6 feet tall, 170 pounds.
Brown hair and brown eyes.
Trimmed facial hair, which may be different from his photo.
Stitches on his upper lip.
Tattoos on his right arm, forearm and neck.
Chase called off due to safety concerns
Oregon State Police said they were notified of the escape at about 10:45 p.m. Wednesday.
A call was made to Salem Police dispatch at 11:13 p.m., saying Pray had left the hospital about 11 p.m.
By 11:26 p.m., a pursuit by Salem Police ensued on southbound Interstate 5 at speeds of more than 100 mph.
At about 11:32 p.m., officers attempted to use tire spike strips to immobilize the vehicle near the Kuebler Boulevard exit, but the van already had passed that point. The chase was called off at 11:35 p.m. when the van reached the Delaney Road exit.
A history of aggressive assaults on staff at Oregon State Hospital
The Oregon State Hospital confirmed it was conducting an internal investigation into the incident.
Staff told the Statesman Journal they were not notified of the incident until 12:26 p.m. Thursday. Protocols for assaults on hospital staff include filing an online incident report, which is sent to a team responsible for investigating all injuries.
Aggressive patient assaults at Oregon State Hospital are not uncommon.
The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued three workplace safety violations against the hospital in September 2022. A lengthy investigation found there were frequent violent assaults on employees that were not being properly investigated or documented.
The hospital has since corrected these violations, but the number of assaults has not decreased, an Oregon OSHA final inspection report obtained by the Statesman Journal showed.
Sydney Wyatt covers healthcare inequities in the Mid-Willamette Valley for the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions, and tips to her atSWyatt@gannett.com, (503) 399-6613, or on Twitter@sydney_elise44
The Statesman Journal’s coverage of healthcare inequities is funded in part by the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, which seeks to strengthen the cultural, social, educational, and spiritual base of the Pacific Northwest through capacity-building investments in the nonprofit sector.
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: State Hospital patient escapee in custody, officials say
