37-year-old man indicted for 2011 cold case while awaiting unrelated attempted murder trial

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - A 37-year-old man was indicted by a Multnomah County grand jury on Tuesday for the 2011 murder of Leonard “LJ” Irving, according to Portland police.

Jawuan Marsean Polk is charged with shooting and killing Irving, a 34-year-old father of three young children, and injuring a second man.

On June 26, 2011 at about 12:30 a.m., police responded to Northeast 82nd Avenue and Thompson Street after reports of a fight that ended with gunfire. Police found Irving dead at the scene from multiple gunshot wounds and a second man, then 21-year-old Lamar Lovette Hill, with a gunshot wound in his neck.

A third man, Jeray Lashawn Jessie, walked into an area hospital sometime later with a gunshot wound to the forearm.

According court documents, Polk was arrested on May 22, 2022 in connection with an unrelated shooting death from Dec. 2019 and is currently in Multnomah County custody awaiting trial.

Polk was indicted Tuesday for second-degree murder and first-degree attempted murder. He was arraigned Wednesday in which he pleaded “not guilty.”

Police have not released details about the indictment at this time, but Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell said these charges were the culmination of nearly 12 years of “diligent” investigation.

“I’m thrilled to hear that this tragic murder has led to an arrest,” Lovell said. “I spoke to LJ’s mother today and she passed along her appreciation for the work of the detectives in the Homicide Unit. I agree … and I am grateful to them for their tireless efforts to achieve justice for LJ.”