A unanimous Wednesday vote from the Portland City Council has put a new wedge between local law enforcement and the federal agents sent to guard the city’s federal courthouse from protesters.
Introduced by Portland City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly, the resolution follows up on past promises from city officials to clamp down on the Portland Police Bureau’s ability to coordinate with federal authorities.
It specifically says that the PPB “shall not provide, request, or willingly receive operational support from any agent or employee representing or constituting part of deployment under executive order from the president.”
Federal agents with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have been policing protests against police brutality around the city’s federal courthouse over the summer. The demonstrations have at times turned destructive, and some have been declared riots.
Their efforts came after President Trump’s June 26 executive order deploying federal agents to safeguard federal monuments and buildings from “left-wing extremists.”
Since the July 4th weekend, federal agents dressed in camouflage and tactical gear took to the streets with force, allegedly detaining demonstrators without cause and seriously injuring protesters with impact munitions, according to litigation from the American Civil Liberties Union, activist groups, and the Oregon Attorney General.
Despite their announced withdrawal from Portland in late July, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported last week that according to government documents, federal agents remain within the city limits.
Portland police officers stand accused of allegedly deploying tear gas and impact munitions on protesters without cause in addition to unlawfully recording protesters’ faces on live video feeds.
Portland Police Bureau Chief Chuck Lovell has said that Portland police remain in communication with federal agents.
The resolution approved by the city council on Wednesday effectively sets in stone the city’s ban on Portland police coordinating with federal agents acting under President Trump’s current executive order.
Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty made it clear in her “yes” vote that she holds local police as much as federal authorities guilty of wrongdoing.
“We cannot put the blame totally on this secret federal police force,” Hardesty said. “The blame should rest entirely on the Portland Police Bureau and their lack of de-escalation skills and their lack of desire to protect Portlanders who are under fire every single night.”
Wednesday yielded a second unanimous resolution from Eudaly affirming an active order prohibiting police officers from using tear gas, pepper spray, and excessive force against journalists and legal observers.
“The violence perpetrated against members of the media and legal observers by the Portland Police Bureau and by federal occupiers is completely unacceptable,” Eudaly said. “The press helps hold the government accountable for its actions and the lack of government accountability for police violence is what has led millions of protesters around the globe to take to the streets.”
Portland’s ongoing protests against police brutality have yielded a number of actions from the city council. It voted to disband the PPB’s Gun Violence Reduction Team back in June and approved a $15 million cut to the city’s police budget. That number is short of the $50 million cut called for by activist groups.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has alluded to reviving the team in some fashion in the wake of an uptick in Portland shootings this summer, despite pushback from Hardesty.
Both resolutions passed Wednesday warn that officers found in violation will be subject to disciplinary measures. They do not specify what that such disciplinary measures would look like.
