Thursday morning, crews were putting up boards around the Portland Police East Precinct building.
Luana Elliott was cleaning up the scene. “This has got to stop, this is losing the message,” she said while cleaning off a plaque dedicated to a fallen officer. “It is actually an honor of all good police officers that have died in the line of duty,” she explained. “Thomas Jeffries is a really good man.”
Wednesday night, people in the crowd started tearing off boards. There were those who tried shattering the glass doors. At one point, police say some barricaded the front doors of the precinct and tried setting the plywood on fire with an accelerant.
Portland Police Bureau Chief Chuck Lovell said, “It’s violence by rioters at our east precinct was incomprehensible. We have people who are intentionally planning to go out and attack precincts, trap people inside, set fires to these buildings. All three precincts we have here in Portland have been attacked.”
Police declared a riot and officers used tear gas and crowd control munitions to disperse the crowd.
Lovell called for the violence to stop as lives are at risk. He said, “This is not about a movement, it’s not about Black lives, it’s not about racial justice, it’s not about police reform. It’s planned coordinated attacks on police officers and I feel that like lives hang in the balance.”
Portland Fire and Rescue Lieutenant Damon Simmons said, “This is my plea to you: if you are involved in this, please stop. If you are around someone involved in this, please ask them to stop. It can’t happen like this, this is not where Portland should be.”
And they are asking for support from the community members and elected leaders. “Let people know that this needs to stop and that Portland Police Bureau needs to get back to providing live safety services Portlanders expect,” Chief Lovell said.
Portland’s mayor says he expects more planned attacks on occupied buildings in the next few days.
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