Rising gun violence in the Portland area is linked to rising levels of gun trafficking, ranging from Glocks to shotguns to ghost guns. Recovered weapons and spent bullet casings indicate they have been used in multiple shootings.
Gun violence in Portland prompted Oregon lawmakers at last week’s special session to authorize $2 million for a mix of outreach, mentorship and youth programs in East Multnomah County. The City of Portland is hiring 300 more police officers, including 100 unarmed community safety specialists.
The Oregonian published a feature story this week with some staggering gun-related statistics.
- Portland Police so far this year have confiscated 768 guns in the course of arrests, while the FBI in Portland seized another 85 firearms.
- In a single raid at a Gresham home, Safe Streets Task Force members recovered hundreds of spent casings that have been linked to 10 separate shootings.
- Of the 1,080 verified shootings from January through October 31 in Portland, ballistic tests revealed 362 matches to evidence from other gun violence incidents.
- Two Portland men have been accused of legally buying 82 guns and distributing them to gang members.
- Many guns used in shootings are stolen from unlocked cars, locked glove boxes and under car seats.
- Guns have been recovered from teenagers to Boomers.
- Ghost guns are purchased without serial numbers.
“The guns are being passed around. They’re being sold. They’re being bartered. They’re being traded. They’re being stolen,” Kieran L. Ramsey, special agent in charge of Oregon’s FBI, told The Oregonian. “Now the gun is as much of a core criminality as drugs used to be.”
Guns are openly sought and obtained through social media posts. Police officials described an incident in which two men lined up a gun purchase on an app. When they made the buy, they discovered the weapon they bought was a BB gun. Infuriated, they used an existing gun they possessed and shot the seller. Police say many shootings involve people who know each other from prison.
It’s amazing we don’t see more innocent bystanders hit and killed. It’s a war zone.
The overall number of shootings in Portland rose to 1,275 this year, eclipsing 891 last year and 388 in 2019, according to The Oregonian story. More than 370 people have been injured by gunfire, compared to 215 injuries last year and 95 in 2019.
Investigators have recovered 6,153 casings from shooting scenes, indicating the use of automatic weapons and even indiscriminate firing. Some confiscated weapons have been altered to fire like “machine guns”. Up to 80 rounds at an individual shooting is not unusual, police say. At a Parkrose shooting, 107 casings were recovered. “It’s amazing we don’t see more innocent bystanders hit and killed,” Ramsey says. “It’s a war zone.”
Ghost guns represent the latest evolution of firearms. Federal law allows people to make firearms for personal use without serial numbers. California appears to be the epicenter of ghost gun acquisition, but Oregon law enforcement officers say guns are now trafficked up and down I-5 like drugs.
Ghost guns represent the latest evolution of firearms. Federal law allows people to make firearms for personal use without serial numbers. California appears to be the epicenter of ghost gun acquisition, but Oregon law enforcement officers say guns are now trafficked up and down I-5 like drugs.
