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Jury rejects $10 million break-in lawsuit
What began as an early-morning break-in at a Portland stone business became a $10 million civil trial over self-defense and liability. Kenneth Voyles argued that business owner James Grant went too far when he shot him three times during the 2023 encounter.
On August 18, a Multnomah County jury sided 10-2 with Grant and found him not liable. The verdict ended Voyles’ effort to recover $5 million in compensatory damages and another $5 million in punitive damages.
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The early-morning entry
The confrontation began around 5:30 a.m. on March 6, 2023, at Touchstone Granite & Marble on Northeast Columbia Boulevard. Voyles entered through a damaged garage door after removing plywood and cutting through metal bars.
Voyles said he was cold, sleep-deprived, and looking for warmth and food. He also acknowledged entering without permission and picking up a drill bag he intended to take, facts that became part of the evidence considered during the civil trial…