Jonathon “Johnny” Polanco was a 30-year-old Hispanic / Latino man from Portland, Oregon, and the father of a daughter. In the weeks after his death, his family resolved that he would be remembered as more than a number. “He's not gonna be number 60,” his brother, Robbie Polanco, said, referring to the city’s homicide count for the year. “He's not going to be the 60th homicide, in Portland this year; it's not going to happen.”
On the night of August 20, 2021, Polanco was in
the parking lot of a 7-Eleven convenience store at the intersection of Southeast 92nd Avenue and Holgate Boulevard. Around 9:45 p.m., a fight broke out. According to his brother, Polanco’s significant other was being assaulted, and he stepped in to break it up. During the altercation, a stranger shot him. When Portland police officers arrived, they found Polanco critically injured. He was rushed to a hospital, where he later died.
Homicide detectives investigated the shooting and soon identified Leonard L. Edwards, who was 19 at the time, as the suspect. Investigators obtained a warrant for his arrest on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon. However, Edwards eluded authorities for years. Police believed he knew he was wanted and was actively avoiding capture.
Nearly three years later, on July 31, 2024, the search for Edwards ended. Members of the U.S. Marshal’s Fugitive Task Force located and arrested him. Edwards, then 21, was booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center on the outstanding warrant, which included charges of second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon, and third-degree assault.
The case proceeded to trial. In September 2026, a Multnomah County jury found Leonard Lonell Edwards, then 23, guilty of first-degree manslaughter and unlawful use of a weapon for his role in Jonathon Polanco's death. The following month, on October 9, 2026, Circuit Court Judge David Rees sentenced Edwards to 10 years in prison, to be followed by three years of post-prison supervision.
