Oregon State Police are no longer on the ground in Portland, Oregon, where nightly riots continued on Thursday. The agency said the departure was based on the city’s decision not to prosecute rioters charged with crimes.
“The Oregon State Police is continually reassessing our resources and the needs of our partner agencies and at this time we are inclined to move resources back to counties where persecution of criminal conduct is still a priority,” Captain Timothy Fox, public information officer, said in a statement released on Thursday.
“Last night was our last night in Portland,” the statement said.
State Police’s move comes just days after Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt said his office would not prosecute rioters arrested unless the charges against them included property damage, theft or the use or threat of force against another person.
And Fox’s statement was updated after state authorities pushed back and said the state police were only temporarily stationed in the city.
Willamette Week reported on the mixed messages:
Fox’s statement appeared designed to draw attention to the DA’s charging policy—and potentially amplify public alarm over it. But it also raised questions about who had made the decision to withdraw police.
Gov. [Kate] Brown’s office told WW it believed Fox’s statement was “not accurate” and that OSP had been expected to leave after two weeks. Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office confirmed that such a timeline was its understanding as well.
When contacted about OSP’s departure, Fox appeared to correct the record, telling WW exactly that: “This decision was based on the fact that our two-week commitment ended last night,” Fox emailed. “Troopers are returning to the communities that they are assigned to serve and protect.”
Willamette Week reported Fox did not respond when asked to explain the discrepancy in his earlier statement.
As Breitbart News reported, the Department of Homeland Security had bolstered its presence in Portland following repeated attacks on the federal courthouse in that city and agreed to thin its ranks on the ground if local and state police could keep the peace and protect property.
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