oregonlive Portland police quickly surrounded a North Portland protest against police violence late Saturday and arrested several demonstrators who had converged outside a police building.
Sgt. Kevin Allen, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau, said officers made the arrests after protesters blocked some lanes of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard south of Killingsworth Avenue.
Allen said police believed the protesters were going to engage in “direct action” aimed at the North Precinct, a frequent target of anti-police protests since May. Allen said previous gatherings there have resulted in fires, riot declarations and assaults on officers.
“We were also concerned about the safety of the protesters, who were clad in black and difficult to see, on a major thoroughfare that was open to vehicular traffic. Tonight we had resources in place to make arrests.”
Police warned demonstrators to move out of the road multiple times, Allen said. Many people in the crowd appeared to be on the sidewalk when officers ran in from several directions, surrounding protesters, according to multiple videos recorded at the scene.
Oregon Public Broadcasting journalist Sergio Olmos reported officers appeared to detain most people in the crowd. The demonstration and arrests unfolded in less than 30 minutes, starting around 10 p.m.
Police said 26 people were arrested and booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center.
Demonstrators have gathered most nights since late May to protest police killings of Black Americans and demand systemic reforms. Police frequently allow crowds to march and gather in the street, without making any arrests.
