On a summer night in Portland, Oregon, the life of 27-year-old Black man Tyrell Nathaniel Penney was cut short by gunfire. The fatal encounter occurred on July 25, 2020, outside a club located in the 15800 block of Southeast Division Street. Penney, who was born in Portland but had grown up in Sacramento, California, was visiting family at the time. He had just celebrated his 27th birthday a few weeks prior and was a father to three children.
His family described him as a loving and caring father who was quiet but fiercely loyal. Penney had also been battling sickle cell disease.
During the incident, Penney was with his cousin, Masico Laveral Walker Jr., who was also shot and critically injured. Walker survived the shooting but was left paralyzed from the waist down. The Oregon State Medical Examiner's Office later confirmed that Penney's death was a homicide caused by a gunshot wound. At the time of the shooting, thousands of people were protesting against police brutality in downtown Portland, which reportedly stretched the resources of the Portland Police Bureau.
The investigation into the shooting led detectives to identify 32-year-old Thomas Earl Cooper Jr. as the suspect. A warrant was issued for his arrest on a charge of second-degree murder. On August 22, 2020, the U.S. Marshal's Fugitive Taskforce located Cooper in Bend, Oregon, approximately 163 miles from Portland. With the assistance of the Bend Police Department and the Central Oregon Emergency Response Team, Cooper was arrested.
Following his arrest, a Multnomah County grand jury indicted Cooper. He was charged with one count of murder in the second degree with a firearm, one count of attempted murder in the second degree with a firearm, one count of assault in the first degree with a firearm, and one count of unlawful use of a weapon with a firearm for the death of Tyrell Penney and the critical injury of Masico Walker Jr. In a subsequent trial, Cooper was acquitted of the attempted murder, assault, and unlawful use of a weapon charges related to Walker. However, in June 2024, a jury found Cooper guilty of Manslaughter in the Second Degree with a Firearm for causing Penney's death. A judge then sentenced Thomas Earl Cooper to 75 months in prison.
