The 911 emergency call system in Portland, Oregon, is &#8220;broken,&#8221; officials say, and callers who need help are often waiting more than two minutes for assistance, even though emergency calls are supposed to be answered in around 15 seconds.
&#8220;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,&#8221; the Oregonian reported. &#8220;The lengthy hold time is far above the national standard of 15 to 20 seconds for 911 calls and the latest example of serious problems plaguing the city’s emergency dispatch system.&#8221;
An official with Portland’s Bureau of Emergency Communications called the situation &#8220;horrible&#8221; and &#8220;broken,&#8221; and said the agency&#8217;s own statistics show &#8220;an average hold time of a minute. But it also shows a dramatic increase of 911 calls on hold for two minutes or longer starting in late spring and summer.&#8221;
&#8220;Another striking jump of calls on hold for more than five minutes occurred in May and July, according to bureau figures released to the newsroom,&#8221; the Oregonian reported. &#8220;Compared to March, when only eight 911 calls took more than five minutes to answer, that number increased to 221 in May and more than doubled to 574 in July.&#8221;
Portland, meanwhile, is struggling with an increase in crime. Homicides are still low compared to most major cities, but they are spiking.
&#8220;Homicides in Portland increased from 28 in 2019 to 54 in 2020,&#8221; <a href="https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/portland-gun-violence-compared-other-cities/283-713662b5-8e92-4d3c-9d09-2b76c0dbff88">Portland&#8217;s KGW report</a>. &#8220;Among cities similar in size to Portland, Seattle saw an increase from 34 to 53 homicides, in Minneapolis, a spike from 48 to 82, and Milwaukee saw homicides increase from 97 to 190 from 2019 to 2020.&#8221;
As of May, <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/in-portland-shootings-and-homicides-soar-as-black-activists-take-to-the-streets-in-protest-of-the-violence/">per the Seattle Times</a>, &#8217;37 people had died in Portland homicides this year, a more-than-sevenfold increase compared with the first five months of last year, and a stark contrast to Seattle, a larger city, where 11 homicides had been recorded as of late May. So far this year, the victims have disproportionately been people of color.&#8221;
At the same time, Portland is struggling to keep police officers. Just weeks ago, dozens of Portland police officers resigned en masse from the city&#8217;s rapid response team, &#8220;citing a lack of support from city leaders. The move to disband the unit came one day after Portland Officer Cody Budworth was indicted and accused of striking a protester in the head last summer with a baton. It marked the first time a city police officer faced prosecution over striking or firing at someone during a protest,&#8221; <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/now/portland-ore-leaders-walk-tightrope-083016065.html">per Yahoo News</a>.
The city&#8217;s emergency communications department is also struggling to keep staff, with a dozen retirements or resignations over the past several months.
“We’re at a tipping point now. It’s become unmanageable,” one city official said. “The system is broken.”
Portland officials have proposed having 311, the city&#8217;s information line, handle calls that do not necessarily require an emergency response, but 311 answers calls only between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays.
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Portland Protests Continue Unabated Despite Federal Law Enforcement Presence

‘Broken’: Portland Residents Facing ‘Dramatic Increase’ In Wait Times For 911 Calls Following Efforts To Defund Police

Defund The Police

Portland

Armed private security forces, hired by local businesses, are now patrolling Portland, Oregon&#8217;s, downtown to keep the peace amid a crime spree, following a Portland city government decision to slash police funding by $16 million.
According to local news sources, Portland, like most major cities, is suffering from a spike in crime. &#8220;Homicides in Portland increased from 28 in 2019 to 54 in 2020. Among cities similar in size to Portland, Seattle saw an increase from 34 to 53 homicides, in Minneapolis, a spike from 48 to 82, and Milwaukee saw homicides increase from 97 to 190 from 2019 to 2020, &#8221; KGW reported earlier this summer.
Portland, the outlet added, is likely on track to see around a hundred homicides this year.
The city is also still reeling from an extended spate of demonstrations &#8212; a 100-day streak of protests that caused an estimated $23 million in damages, $2 million in damages to federal buildings in downtown Portland alone.
In response to the protests, which demanded that Portland &#8220;defund the police,&#8221; the city slashed law enforcement&#8217;s budget by $16 million, a move &#8220;which included stripping Portland of its Central Precinct Entertainment Detail. Nine officers used to be assigned to Portland’s nightlife scene, but now, only two officers patrol the area,&#8221; according to Fox News.
That central entertainment district has responded by hiring private security to fill the void, per Fox, particularly after dozens of officers departed the force, either by resignation or retirement. There are now around 120 fewer Portland police officers on the force than there were last summer. The Old Town entertainment area was recently the scene of a mass shooting that left seven people wounded.
&#8220;Private armed security outfits have been hired to patrol a popular section of Portland known for its bars and nightlife after the city slashed police funding and saw a year of violence in the area,&#8221; the outlet reported, citing Willamette Week. &#8220;The decreased police presence created what business owners describe as a public safety vacuum. Private security companies arrived with rifles, metal detector wands, and Kevlar vests.&#8221;
&#8220;[Portland&#8217;s] clubgoers are met by a heavily armed guard. He stands beneath the Hung Far Low sign, clad in a bulletproof vest and desert-tan tactical pants, with a 9 mm pistol strapped to his leg and an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle slung over his shoulder,&#8221; according to the <a href="https://www.wweek.com/news/courts/2021/08/11/old-town-clubs-reopen-amid-gunfireand-ex-soldiers-stationed-in-the-street/">Portland local outlet</a>. &#8220;His name is Jean-Pierre LaFont. He’s a 45-year-old veteran who lives in Gresham. He says he did a tour of duty in Bosnia with the Navy SEALS. He’s 6 feet tall, wears black gloves outlined with white bones, and is delighted to talk about his work.&#8221;
“My job is to get you home safe,” LaFont told Willamette Week. “Unless you’re the perpetrator. The only way for evil to succeed is for good men to do nothing. So I’m going to do something.”
LaFont, Willamette Week notes, works for &#8220;a private military contractor—the kind of firm that operates in war zones.&#8221; Instead of keeping the peace in foreign lands, though, LaFont and his group are keeping the peace in Portland&#8217;s Old Town district.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler recently said that he was fed up with the violence that has dogged the city since last year, but the change did little, it seems to impact violence.
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‘Broken’: Portland Residents Facing ‘Dramatic Increase’ In Wait Times For 911 Calls Following Efforts To Defund Police

Armed Private Security Now Patrolling Portland’s Downtown After City Slashes Police Funding

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