By Beth Slovic and David Nuñez
oregonlive.com
PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland police say their coordinated effort to thwart street racing and street takeovers this weekend has so far been “highly successful.”
According to a letter sent by the union president, member officers have raised concerns that new recruitment efforts will inadvertently endanger other officers
“Our entire police family is heartbroken by this line of duty death, and our collective arms are around his family, friends, and teammates…” the department stated
The man turned and fired at the officer as he was fleeing on foot; the officer returned fire, striking the suspect in the arm
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Working with law enforcement officials from Gresham, Vancouver, Multnomah County, Oregon State Police and the Port of Portland, officers quickly shut down six attempted street takeovers and made 47 traffic stops and 11 arrests, Portland police said Sunday. They also towed 10 cars, including some through the civil forfeiture process, which means the owners won’t get the cars back.
The first attempt at a street takeover happened Sunday just after midnight at Southeast 10th Avenue and Ash Street. Police said they were able to break up the takeover in less than 15 minutes.
A second intersection takeover was attempted just 30 minutes later at Northeast 82nd Avenue and Fremont Street but was broken up within 10 minutes, police said.
Four more street takeover attempts happened between 1 a.m. and 3:30 a.m., at Southeast Milwaukie Avenue and Powell Boulevard, Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Columbia Boulevard, Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Lombard Street and near the Lloyd Center. All takeovers were thwarted, police said.
Five of the people arrested were between the ages of 16 and 19, police said. The 16-year-old, who is from Milwaukie , was fingerprinted and released to his parents but will face charges of reckless driving and unlawful street takeover, police said.
The weekend crackdown was also deadly.
On Friday night, two people died and a third was seriously injured when a driver suspected of being a part of a planned street racing and takeover event fled a traffic stop by Gresham police in Northeast Portland. The car crashed into a utility pole at Northeast 122nd Avenue and Marx Street.
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