PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) Last July, in the wake of protests surrounding the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis Police Officer, the Portland City Council made the decision to shut down the city’s Gun Violence Reduction Team (GVRT).
Within weeks of that move, shootings in the city began to spike and quickly more than doubled to almost three per day in the months since. Now, as Mayor Ted Wheeler and the City Council attempt to curb the recent rise in gun violence, there are questions about why the GVRT was disbanded and what a new effort will look like.
Wheeler’s Safety Advisor, and former Portland Police Precinct Commander, Robert King joins the KOIN Podcast Network with a look back at the decision to disband the GVRT and how a community must come together to stem the disturbing tide.
Listen to the podcast below or download from Apple Podcasts, GooglePlay, Spotify, Stitcher or Podbean.