PORTLAND, Ore. — Family members and friends of 32-year-old Colin Michael Smith continue to grieve his death, after he was stabbed to death early Sunday morning.
The stabbing took place in Southeast Portland's Buckman neighborhood, where family members of Colin Smith said he was at a bar with friends.
"He brought so much happiness and joy to my life," Colin Smith’s friend Paulina Solis said.
His sister, Danielle Smith, said Colin Smith was full of life. The two were just two years apart in age and born five days apart.
"We'd share birthdays, until we didn't want to share birthdays anymore," Danielle Smith said.
Colin Smith's friends, family and co-workers said he looked after people he cared about.
"He was a protector," said a man who works at Ox Restaurant, where Colin Smith had worked.
On Sunday, July 2, Colin Smith had just gotten off of work at Ox Restaurant and went to a bar with some friends, Solis said. One of his friends is a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
She said once at the bar, the group began to be harassed by a man who used homophobic slurs. Colin Smith decided to stand up for his friend, Solis said.
"I know he was probably just trying to de-escalate and get this person to move on,” Solis said. “And that's when he was killed."
There have already been 45 murders this year in Portland, according to Portland police.
On Friday, police arrested 24-year-old Rahnique U. Jackson of Portland by members of the U.S. Marshal's Service in Southeast Portland, according to police. He was transferred over to Portland Police Bureau homicide detectives, interviewed, then booked into the Multnomah County jail on charges of second-degree murder and unlawful use of a weapon.
"I just want to stress, it was a hate crime,” Danielle Smith said. “Nothing more, nothing less."
Portland police said they are investigating the case as a hate crime.
Jackson had already been arrested twice for strangling someone in 2018 and 2019. The second case was dismissed.
If you would like to help Smith’s family as they pay for funeral costs, you can find more information on GoFundMe.