This article contains editorial content by a staff writer for Law Enforcement Today

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PORTLAND, OR – Clearly, we at Law Enforcement Today support the police. Many in this organization ARE police. We are owned and largely staffed by current and retired law-enforcement officers.

But we have to ask our brothers and sisters in the Portland Police Bureau what they were thinking when a small, Republican gubernatorial rally literally at its doorstep, attended by the elderly and children as well as young adults, was allowed to be terrorized by violent Antifa criminals?

 

Why did it take 20 minutes for even one officer to walk out the front door and show support for our political process as well as our right to peaceably assemble and exercise our freedom of speech?

What does it say about your police department?

We expect extreme disrespect for conservatives under Portlandia’s feckless Mayor Ted Wheeler and proud, cop-hating City Commissioner JoAnn Hardesty. We understand that your department is severely understaffed but we are troubled that it took officers 20 minutes to show up, only to take statements and leave.

The incident in question made national news and contributes to many Americans’ perception that Portland is lawless and dangerous.

Black bloc-clad Antifa criminals descended on and attacked participants of the Saturday noontime rally, throwing smoke canisters, mortar fireworks, paint-filled balloons and other objects at the families.

They also used noisemakers to drown out the group, thus canceling their freedom of speech, attendees said.

 

 

 

The attack happened in a park on the corner of SW Third Avenue and SW Main Street during a rally for Republican Mayor Stan Pulliam of Sandy, Oregon, who is running for governor.

Attendees said they were put on hold when they called 911 for help.

Police officers from the understaffed Portland agency reportedly took more than 20 minutes to respond. By the time they had “sufficient resources” to establish a crime scene, authorities said, the Antifa members had already wreaked their havoc and dispersed.

After police finally arrived, Pulliam spoke to reporters about the experience. The candidate, who is running on a platform to “re-fund” the police, said:

“We called the police, we called 911. In fact, at the Justice of Peace Center, we were just outside of their headquarters, sat on hold for over 20 minutes. No police officers ever arrive until the very end, just to take our statement.”

At least two people sustained injuries during the Antifa attack, authorities said.

According to the Portland Police Bureau, one adult male reported an injury to a hand and an adult female complained of hearing loss. Police also reported property damage from Antifa lobbing paint-filled balloons at vehicles.

Pulliam shared video of the incident and tweeted:

“This is what happens when a Republican dares to hold an event in Portland to talk about funding our police. Antifa shows up. Well, we won’t be intimidated and stop speaking the truth.”

A statement from the PPB confirmed that while a sergeant began monitoring the situation and gathering available resources, there “were only a few officers available in the precinct.”

 

Pulliam contrasted the agency’s response to this frightening situation with a strong police force just a few decades ago, when Portland had 30 officers per 100,000 people to the present-day ratio of eight officers per 100,000 people. A proponent of fully funding and staffing the police force, Pulliam added:

“And then we wonder why we have all the violence and destruction happening on our streets.”

The incident came the same day that the PPB released a statement, which you can find here, describing Friday night into Saturday as “an extraordinarily busy evening of significant events” that strained their resources. The night included five shootings, three serious crashes and one stolen ambulance within a 12-hour span, the department said.

 

On Friday, officers responded to a call about Antifa terrorists attacking the People’s Convoy as it passed through Portland by throwing rocks, paint-filled balloons and fireworks from an Interstate 205 overpass. Traffic came to a halt on the high-speed freeway as the attack from above continued, video from a motorist shows.

The sound of one gunshot can be heard near the end of the video. No one appears to have been injured by either the items dropped from the overpass by Antifa or a trucker’s response to the dangerous incident.

The People’s Convoy truckers and supporters were attacked by known Antifa members who dropped projectiles, paintballs, eggs, and other objects at passing motorists in hopes of injuring drivers and stopping the convoy.

The attack, which could have turned deadly, was openly organized on Twitter, according to PJ Media.

 

Police said evidence was removed from the scene before they arrived and no arrests were made.

The lack of arrests for such openly hostile and dangerous incidents against fellow citizens is something Portland residents are slowly learning they have to tolerate. In fact, just getting to speak with an officer seems to be a rarity.

Given limited staffing, Portland residents calling 911 are often left on hold for hours during evening spikes in calls.  Police are forced to prioritize calls based on seriousness. Pulliam addressed this issue with the press:

“[This is what] neighbors throughout the Portland community have to experience on almost a daily basis.”

PPB Public Information Officer Sgt. Kevin Allen explained to KATU that the department is strained but that it attempts to answer all calls for assistance. He said:

“We’re pretty good, generally, at deploying resources to the area of the highest need. It’s been a while since I could say that I feel like we have enough cops to do everything that we want to do to keep the public safe.”

Still, there were no arrests made after the Antifa attack on the peaceful campaign rally in a downtown Portland park.