Oregon | October 20, 2021
Portland legalized rioting, and you’ll never guess what happened next
Oregon | October 20, 2021
As the city of Portland has seen frequent violent riots, Oregon state legislators have identified a solution: Let them riot.
That solution was put into practice in the city recently as police officers stood by and watched rioters cause more than $500,000 worth of damages to banks, stores, coffee shops, and government buildings. Police officers weren’t caught off guard either. The riot was organized by the mother of an “Antifa anarchist” who had been struck and killed by a car in 2019. She proudly declared on Twitter that it would be a “night of rage and anger” and “not a peaceful event.”
But no amount of forewarning mattered. That’s because the Oregon Legislature passed a law that restricts the use of pepper spray, tear gas, and incapacitating projectiles. Because officers don’t have clarity on the law, they are adhering to the most restrictive interpretation. That means that officers stood by and watched as the mob of rioters tore through the city, with the most resistance coming when officers urged the rioters to disperse over a loudspeaker.
Again, this is what Portland has asked for. This bill was passed by a Democrat-run Legislature, with meager Republican opposition in the state Senate. It was passed because Democratic officials in both the city and the state care more about protecting rioters than they do about preventing riots….. (Excerpts from the Washington Examiner)
Oregon | September 13, 2021
5 Minute Plus Wait-Time for 911 Calls in Portland Amid Staff Shortages, Efforts to Defund Police
Oregon | September 13, 2021
Portland residents calling 911 to report emergencies are facing a “dramatic increase” in hold times, with officials saying that the system has become “unmanageable” and is “broken.”
According to The Oregonian, people dialing 911 are often left waiting over two minutes for their call to be answered, far longer than the national standard of 15 to 20 seconds.
People calling 911 to report a Sept. 4 shootout at a Pearl District restaurant and other emergencies in the following half-hour waited an average of more than 7.5 minutes before a dispatcher answered, The Oregonian reported, adding that this was just “the latest example of serious problems plaguing the city’s emergency dispatch system.”… (Excerpts from the Epoch Times)
Oregon | August 26, 2021
Refund the police: Cities backtrack on 2020 clarion call amid crime spikes
Oregon | August 26, 2021
Some cities that came under pressure to slash law enforcement funding last year are quietly adding money back to their police department budgets as crime increases nationwide.
“Defund the police” became a rallying cry among activists in 2020 following the murder of George Floyd — but in 2021, the movement has become politically toxic, with polls revealing low public support for the idea and violence growing in most U.S. cities.
City leaders who once embraced the idea of reducing law enforcement budgets are now considering padding them with more resources next fiscal year to address concerns such as officer shortfalls, crime statistics, and shifting public opinion.
In Portland, Oregon, Democratic Mayor Ted Wheeler said last week that he would work with Portland Police Bureau leadership on a plan to put resources behind attracting more officers to its shrinking force.
AT LEAST 44 SHOT AND SEVEN KILLED IN WEEKEND VIOLENCE ACROSS CHICAGO
The bureau was operating with 67 fewer sworn police personnel than authorized in 2020, according to a report police leaders presented to the city council last week. Portland’s police chief told city officials his force needs to hire hundreds of additional officers to meet the demands of a city with rising crime.
City councilors moved to slash $15 million from the police bureau’s budget last year.
In Seattle, violence has proliferated in the months since the city council voted to cut funding from its police department in 2020… (Excerpts from the Washington Examiner)
Oregon | June 22, 2021
Portland police union chief goes off on city officials: They ‘encouraged,’ ‘enabled’ violence during riots last summer
Oregon | June 22, 2021
Portland’s police union chief blasted city officials over the weekend, arguing they “encouraged and enabled some of the violence” that occurred in the city for more than 150 nights last year, and explaining that the recent resignation of the police unit’s riot squad was about far more than just one of their fellow officers being indicted. When asked point-blank during an interview on Fox News on Sunday, “Do you think that city officials in Portland have your backs?” Portland Police Association executive director Daryl Turner responded, “No, they do not.”…
(Excerpts from the Blaze)
Oregon | May 24, 2021
Smaller communities reap rewards of urban police exodus spurred by budget cuts and lack of respect
Oregon | May 24, 2021
Anti-police attitudes and deep cuts to law enforcement budgets in cities run by left-wing governments have driven hundreds of officers from their jobs — and small towns are reaping the benefits.
Beleaguered big-city officers around the country are being welcomed to rural forces, who are thrilled to have seasoned police and don’t share the contempt some urban leaders seem to have for the men and women in blue.
POLICE REFORM LOOMS LARGE OVER LOCAL RACES AS CRIME RATES RISE
The Portland, Oregon, police department’s assistant chief, for example, left last year amid the summer’s waves of protest to become the police chief in Boise, Idaho.
Multiple officers followed him there, according to a review of exit interview forms obtained by the Oregonian. Those forms, obtained through a public records request, showed many of the officers who quit in the past year had grown frustrated with the City Council and the public’s attitude toward them…
(Excerpts from Washinton Examiner)
Oregon | April 26, 2021
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler Vows to ‘Take Our City Back from Antifa.’
Oregon | April 26, 2021
Last summer, as antifa and BLM rioters attacked the downtown Portland federal courthouse, set fire to the police union hall, hurled IEDs, blinded cops with lasers, and destroyed the Apple store, Mayor Ted Wheeler joined them. But that’s when President Donald Trump was in office and demanded Wheeler do something about the destruction. Wheeler tried to be the Jacob Frey-like cool mayor. Trump was the problem, not the misunderstood rioters, naturally. But this time after the refurbished Apple store was again set on fire by rioters, and hours before the Derek Chauvin verdict was read, Wheeler put the city under a state of emergency and announced that, with the help of the public, he would “take back our city from antifa.”…
(Excerpts from PJ Media)