Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse

10TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENING with director Brian Lindstrom Q&A

In 2006, James Chasse was apprehended by three law enforcement officers in downtown Portland, Oregon in broad daylight. A dozen eyewitnesses watched in horror as the officers punched, kicked and tased James repeatedly, then casually drank coffee with paramedics as he lay crumpled on the pavement with 16 broken ribs and a punctured lung. James had not committed a crime, so why did the officers attack him?

Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse is a feature length documentary film about one man’s struggle with schizophrenia and the extraordinary brutality that ended his life. It is the story of a city in denial that was forced to face the truth and learn, grow and change as a result. Alien Boy explores issues of impunity, police brutality, and mental illness.