Portland is getting police backup after a weekend of deadly protests, but not the kind President Trump wanted.
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced Sunday night that she’s calling in state troopers and police officers from local departments to help “protect free speech (and) bring violence to an end in Portland.”
The six-point plan, which Brown called Unified Law Enforcement Plan, includes aid in prosecutions from the Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office and personnel from the Oregon State Police, Clackamas and Washington County Sheriff’s Offices and the City of Gresham Police Department.
The United States Attorney and the Federal Bureau of Investigation will also help with the “investigation of criminal activity.”
Brown’s announcement came less than 24 hours after a man, later identified as Aaron Danielson, was fatally shot downtown during a clash between a pro-Trump car parade and the anti-police brutality, Black Lives Matter protesters Saturday night.
Joey Gibson, the leader of the far-right group Patriot Prayer that has frequently drawn members of Proud Boys and other white nationalist groups to its rallies in the Pacific Northwest, called Danielson a “friend and supporter”
“The right-wing group Patriot Prayer and self-proclaimed militia members drove into downtown Portland last night, armed and looking for a fight,” Brown said in a statement.
“Every Oregonian has the right to freely express their views without fear of deadly violence. I will not allow Patriot Prayer and armed white supremacists to bring more bloodshed to our streets.”
Brown also said she was scheduling a community forum with Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Black protest organizers and community leaders “to discuss racial justice and police reform.”
President Trump has threatened to send in the National Guard, but local and state officials have rejected the offer and told him to stay out of Portland.
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