PORTLAND, Ore. — A team of 50 police officers who serve on a specialized crowd-control unit in Portland, Oregon, and respond to the city’s ongoing, often violent protests have resigned en masse after a team member was indicted on criminal charges.
During a Wednesday night meeting, officers, detectives and sergeants on the Rapid Response Team voted to resign from the team because of a perceived lack of support from City Hall and from the district attorney over the past year, according to the mayor’s office and officers.
The move by officers to disband their own team came a day after Officer Cody Budworth was indicted and accused of fourth-degree assault stemming from a baton strike against a protester last summer.
“I don’t think it is just an indictment that caused this to happen, I think it is a very long complicated history of things that have gone on over the last 14 months,” Acting Portland Police Chief Chris Davis said.
During a press availability Thursday, Davis said that while the officers on the unit have “left their voluntary positions and no longer comprise a team,” that they will continue with their regular assignments.
The Rapid Response Team is an “all-hazard incident” unit that responds to natural or man-made disasters, large-scale searches and, most recently, public order policing or riots. Members of the team are trained in advanced skills related to crowd management, crowd psychology and behavior, team formations and movements, the use of enhanced personal protective equipment, use of force, and de-escalation and arrests.
During the summer, when Portland became the epicenter of Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd, the team was on the front lines.
Many demonstrations devolved into clashes with officers late at night, and at times ended with vandalism, property damage and fires. The crowd-control team was the unit often directed to disperse crowds after police declared unlawful assemblies or riots.
“Our entire organization — has been put through something none of us have ever seen through our careers and at a level and intensity that I don’t think any other city in the United States has experienced,” Davis said.
In late October, the president of the police union, the Portland Police Association, sent the mayor and police chief a letter, urging both to “stand up and publicly support Police Bureau members who voluntarily serve on the Rapid Response Team.”
“Our RRT members do not volunteer to have Molotov cocktails, fireworks, explosives, rocks, bottles, urine, feces and other dangerous objects thrown at them,” wrote Daryl Turner, then-president of the union. He noted that the team members volunteer for the work without any specialty pay.
On Thursday, Davis acknowledged that members of the team have been exposed and subjected to “unbelievable things” in the past 14 months, including ongoing protests, increased violence and the pandemic.
“I understand that those are very complex issues, but I also understand their perspective,” Davis said about the team’s decision. “If you put a human being through what they went through, that takes a toll.”
Mayor Ted Wheeler, who has faced criticism for his handling of protests, also spoke about the hardships that Rapid Response Team members have faced the past year.
“I want to acknowledge the toll this past year has taken on them and their families — they have worked long hours under difficult conditions,” Wheeler said. “I personally heard from some of them today, and I appreciate their willingness to share their concerns about managing the many public gatherings that often were violent and destructive.”
While protests have significantly decreased in the city, there are still small protests by self-described anarchists in contained areas of Portland.
Davis said in the event there’s a declared riot in the coming days, there will still be a police response from other officers within the bureau “with as close to adequate resources as we can get.”
In addition, Wheeler said he directed police to prepare mobile field forces to respond to any public safety needs, including potential violence related to mass gatherings, and that Oregon State Police are on standby.
The team’s use of force during protests and police declared-riots has led to multiple civil lawsuits in state and federal court, sanctions from a judge and now an indictment.
From May 29 through Nov. 15, during the height of the social justice protests in Portland, Portland police used force more than 6,000 times, according to a U.S. Department of Justice report.
Budworth marked the first Rapid Response Team officer to face criminal prosecution stemming from force used during a protest. The police union has called the prosecution politically driven, and said Budworth’s baton “push” to a woman’s head was accidental.
Also this week, authorities said a Portland Police Bureau detective is under review by the Oregon Department of Justice for possible criminal charges related to use of force at last year’s racial justice protests.
“I have confidence that the (Portland Police) Bureau will continue their mission to maintain public safety,” Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt said Thursday. “In the meantime, my office will continue to focus on the fair and just prosecution of criminal matters.”
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Sara Cline is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local news
