Jazz players not considered suspects, Portland police say

Police in Portland, Ore., said they have no reason to call several Utah Jazz players "suspects" in an incident that occurred at a hotel in which the team was staying.

Investigators questioned several Jazz players on Sunday, describing them as "fully cooperative."

"We have no reason to identify them as a suspect of a crime," Portland Police Bureau Sgt. Brian Schmautz told the Deseret Morning News on Wednesday.

Officers were called to the RiverPlace Hotel on Sunday about a woman in distress. The posh hotel on the banks of the Willamette River is the same place where players for the Utah Jazz were staying before playing the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night.

Initially, reports said it was a sexual assault. However, police on Wednesday declined to specify the nature of the crime. Investigators said the woman is not cooperating.

"We have a person who appears to have gone through some type of problem but doesn't want to cooperate and tell us what it was," Schmautz said. "What we do in these situations is talk to everyone we can and gather any evidence that we can."

Those questioned by police included several players for the Jazz.

When asked for comment by the Deseret Morning News on Tuesday night, Jazz players, coach Jerry Sloan, team vice president Kevin O'Connor and staffers would not comment.

At practice in Salt Lake City on Wednesday morning, players who were in Portland were not commenting. A spokesman for the Utah Jazz later issued a statement.

"There is an ongoing investigation by the Portland police department concerning the Utah Jazz," the statement says. "The players and staff of the Utah Jazz are fully cooperating with investigators. At this time, the team has no further comment."

Portland police have not closed the case. Investigators would not characterize the level of involvement the Jazz players had in the incident, either as witnesses or in any other way, but emphasized they are not considered suspects.

"We just don't want anyone to think we're suggesting that anyone from your basketball team from down there is stonewalling us," Schmautz said. "Because that's just not true."

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