Mayor Wheeler ‘disappointed’ by lack of enforcement of city camping ban

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The first person arrested for violating Portland’s new ordinance banning camping in the city never spent any time behind bars after the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office declined to book.

This is raising serious concerns among city leaders, with Mayor Ted Wheeler saying he’s “disappointed” at this outcome.

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KOIN 6 News visited the corner where Portland police said they tried to arrest the man on Friday. He’s now right back in the same spot.

“I was arrested but I wasn’t booked in. There was no crime,” said Alasdair MacDonald, the man whom the sheriff’s office declined to put in jail.

MacDonald told KOIN 6 News he’s been camping on the sidewalk near Northeast 28th Avenue and Northeast Alberta Street for almost five years. He and Portland police told KOIN 6 officers previously offered MacDonald shelter several times but he refused. That answer didn’t change when authorities woke him up just after 9 a.m. Friday morning.

“I woke up to the police. They had me surrounded. They offered me a tiny home,” MacDonald said. “I would like to think about that but there was no time to think about it. The option was ‘jail or tiny home.'”

The Portland Police Bureau confirmed McDonald was the first person to be arrested under the city’s new camping ordinance designed to restrict illegal camping in public spaces, which was first reported by Willamette Week.

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While enforcement was slated to start July 1, the Mayor’s office paused enforcing removals due to the heat wave. But when police took MacDonald to the Multnomah County Detention Center for violating the camping rules, the sheriff’s office declined to process him.

Wheeler released the following statement on the issue on Tuesday:

“I am disappointed by the Sheriff’s decision to refuse to book individuals arrested for violating the law.  My office met with the Sheriff and her team several times over the last year and a half to receive input on the City’s public camping laws. In August, 2023, the Sheriff declared “open booking” and in later meetings specifically discussing booking criteria, her representatives explicitly stated publicly that booking restrictions had been lifted. That is clearly not the case.

“The Sheriff has expressed in other conversations that law enforcement must respect the expectations of the community and hold people who violate the law accountable. Her decision in this situation does not align with those statements or with community expectations as we work to address the issue of the highest concern to our residents.

“I am deeply concerned by this disconnect and what it may mean for future efforts to improve public safety, including enforcement of drug possession beginning September 1 for those who decline deflection. I urge the Sheriff to reconsider her position.”

The “enforcement of drug possession beginning September 1” Wheeler talked about stems from the recently passed re-criminalization of possessing small amounts of hard drugs with the passage of HB 4002. However, HB 4002 is an Oregon state law whereas the camping ban is a city-level ordinance, which seems to be the sheriff’s sticking point.

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KOIN 6 News reached out to the sheriff’s office for comment. In the afternoon, Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell released a statement on the issue, which can be read below:

“As Sheriff, my priority is to hold people who violate the law accountable and meet the public safety expectations of the community. As the elected official charged with managing the jail, I believe we need to utilize the corrections system as a place for people who pose a genuine danger to the public, and that does not include individuals whose only offense is living unsheltered.

“Arresting and booking our way out of the housing crisis is not a constructive solution. Incarceration is a costly, short-term measure that fails to address the complex underlying issues. We need to continue to focus on creating pathways out of homelessness through evidence-based, sustainable solutions that enhance public safety for all residents.

“Accountability for individuals violating city ordinances is in place. In any instance in which a person is subject to arrest for a city ordinance, any law enforcement officer may, in lieu of taking the person into custody, issue a criminal citation to the person to appear in court. This is the case for all cities in Multnomah County. Multnomah County Courts can best speak to what the process looks like for an individual who has violated a city ordinance in the court system.

“The Portland Police Bureau’s policy specifically directs its officers in 0870.30 that “Members will only present to the Multnomah County Detention Center Intake (MCDC) those suspects determined to be bookable by the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO).”

“In August 2023, I directed the Sheriff’s Office via a Special Order to book any person arrested in Multnomah County into jail for any felony or misdemeanor offense codified in the Oregon Revised Statutes. This does not include city ordinances. PPB’s own policy defines ‘bookable offense’ as ‘any criminal act listed on the current Multnomah County Sheriff’s Special Order of charges acceptable for booking allowing for the presentation of an offender for processing within MCDC.’

“The Sheriff’s Office did not receive any request or communication from the Portland Police Bureau or City of Portland about adding the Public Camping Ordinance to its booking criteria prior to the city enforcing the ordinance. Our communications with the Mayor’s office pertaining to the Public Camping Ordinance began in Spring 2023 and clearly outlined city ordinance violations as not bookable and being eligible for citations only.

“I will not be directing the Sheriff’s Office to book any individual on city ordinance violations.

“Law enforcement alone cannot solve the problems plaguing our community. Addressing these issues is a shared responsibility and requires collaboration across all levels of government and community organizations. We must work together to develop comprehensive, evidence-based solutions.”

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