A wave of violent crime, which started in Portland after the murder of George Floyd in 2020, is still disturbing the peace of the city.
Portland, a deep blue city, is paying the price for police defunding, as homicides and non-fatal shootings are breaking all the previous records.
Leftist Policies Push Portland into Chaos
According to the data compiled by the California Partnership for Safe Communities, homicides increased by 144% in Portland from January 2019 to June 2021. Likewise, a 241% surge was observed in non-fatal shootings from January 2019 to December 2021.
This unprecedented surge in violent crimes in the city started in 2019, when 36 homicides were reported, compared to 2018, when only 26 such incidents happened.
Over the past 20 years, the average annual homicide rate stood at 28, but 2019 kicked off a new wave of crimes in the city. After 2019, this violent wave only intensified, as homicides reached 57 in 2020 and 88 in 2021.
Similarly, the city faced 98 non-fatal shootings in 2019, which drastically increased to 218 in 2020 and 334 in 2021. The liberal city is facing the same misery in 2022, as well.
As per the latest data, 39 homicides were reported from January to May this year, just one less than last year during the same time period.
Portland, the site of massive George Floyd protests, has been ravaged by violent crime since https://t.co/PLJwG1lxDB
— Fox News (@FoxNews) July 18, 2022
After the release of crime data, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler asserted this is the “unfortunate reality” of gun violence is rising in the city. The mayor also noted that only a small number of people are causing this violence.
Most shockingly, a majority of suspects involved in the homicides and non-fatal shootings were previously arrested; so, the criminal justice system had all their previous records.
Portland in Trouble, Courtesy Police Defunding Movement
Portland was at the epicenter of far-left violence in the wake of George Floyd’s protests.
Reportedly, rioters damaged $2 million of federal government properties and private businesses as they created an “autonomous zone” where police were unable to interfere.
Are you aware of how much violent crime has increased in the city? Condo-sitting from high up & working from home as a reporter will give you a skewed sense of reality. Homicides have more than tripled in Portland since 2019. https://t.co/d4XeMyxEoi pic.twitter.com/5qcyZn6J5s
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) July 9, 2022
This wave of crime was already expected after George Floyd’s protests as the city’s administration entertained far-left demands of defunding the police in 2020.
However, when the situation got out of control, Mayor Wheeler started asking for more police funding to control rising crime in the city.
Now, the mayor is again urging to incorporate the crime data into the “future efforts to address gun violence” so that law and order can be maintained in the troubled city.
Previously, experts have indicated that the prevailing police defunding movement and coronavirus pandemic were responsible for rising crimes in Portland.
According to a public safety expert at the Manhattan Institute, Hannah Meyers, the violence in the blue city of Portland is due to the “Ferguson Effect.”
This phenomenon suggests that hostility towards police is likely to reduce the presence of law enforcement in the community, which in turn empowers violent elements.
