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Portland police today released more information about an encounter with right-wing protesters atop a parking garage in the morning before a large Aug. 4 rally.
The announcement by Mayor Ted Wheeler yesterday afternoon that police found a "cache of firearms" atop the garage sent shock waves through the city. Now police are downplaying the incident, saying they found just three rifles, unloaded and still in cases.
The new details appear to be an attempted explanation for why Wheeler wasn't told about the guns for three months.
The police bureau's statement corrects previous statements by Assistant Chief Ryan Lee at a press conference Oct. 15, where he said officers seized weapons from the protesters and "redirected" them away from the garage
Officers noticed four individuals standing in the northeast corner of the top floor of the garage. They had three rifles, which they were permitted to carry because of concealed handgun licenses. The rifles were in cases and were not loaded, police now say.
"The men told the sergeant they were going to stay at the garage and act as a quick extraction team in case any of their group was injured during the demonstration," police spokesman Sgt. Chris Burley says in a statement.
Officers ordered the men to store the guns in a locked storage case in the back of their pickup truck and keep ammunition for the rifles in another part of the truck. The men were allowed to stay on the top floor of the parking structure.
"After further review it has been determined that no firearms were seized or taken as safe keeping from the individuals in the parking garage, as police did not have lawful authority to do so," the statement say. "No arrests were made as no laws were broken. Portland Police Officers continued to monitor the individuals for some time during this event. "
In the same parking structure, officers also approached between 20 and 30 protesters parking their cars in a garage in downtown. The protesters donned padded clothes, helmets, and gathered weapons including make-shift sticks and sign posts. Officers reminded the protesters that weapons were not allowed in Tom McCall Waterfront Park, where Patriot Prayer was supposed to gather.
"Police watched them place items that could be used as weapons, such as make-shift sticks and signs with sticks, into their vehicles and some of them kept these items and said they would not enter the park," a statement from police spokesman Christopher Burley says.
These new details raise even more questions about a new proposal by Mayor Ted Wheeler to expand police powers to police protests. The incident on the rooftop was listed in the proposed ordinance as an example of "pattern of escalation, injury and property damage." But at the time, police thought the incident was so minor they did not even write reports about the encounter.
Portland police say they fear the protest groups are growing more violent, although they ultimately decided the men in the parking garage did not pose a public safety risk.