In an unusual step reflecting the city’s escalating drug crisis, Portland’s Safety Commissioner, Rene Gonzalez, directed residents on Monday to abstain from calling 911 unless faced with life-or-death emergencies or ongoing crimes.
This directive comes as the city’s emergency response system is being severely strained by a surge of drug overdose calls, according to a report from News Nation.
Taking to social media, Gonzalez voiced the crisis, saying, “Our 911 system is getting hammered this morning with a multiple person incident — multiple overdoses in northwest park blocks. Please do not call 911 except in event of life/death emergency or crime in progress (or chance of apprehending suspect). For non-emergency please use 503-823-3333.”
Engaging with “On Balance” host Leland Vittert, Gonzalez expounded on the strain on Portland’s 911 services, stating, “Our 911 systems are overwhelmed right now. So, we’ve got to confront this crisis head-on” and “We need to take a strong stand in Portland.”
Gonzalez traced part of the issue to Measure 110, endorsed by Oregon voters in 2020, which substantially decriminalized unauthorized possession of controlled substances, moving the offense from a felony or misdemeanor to a Class E violation with a maximum fine of $100.
Although this led to a downturn in incarceration, the state saw a sharp uptick in overdose fatalities.
He highlighted that Measure 110, while intended to enhance addiction services, had a rocky rollout amid the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving health services overwhelmed.
He remarked, “But that’s what voters were sold on. That we were decriminalizing addiction, that we would stand up substantial, state-level addiction services that just didn’t come about. I think that was the surprise.”
Gonzalez also expressed unease over Measure 110 luring individuals to Portland due to its lenient drug policies.
When queried about the rights of residents not involved in drug use but in need of emergency services, Gonzalez affirmed their entitlement to 911 services, yet cited legal hurdles in extending help.
“You know, the combination of Measure 110 and the 9th Circuit law on outdoor camping has really tied the city’s hands to address these issues,” he stated. “Frankly, we were probably too tolerant and accepting as a city even without those things on some of these behaviors that really destroy livability for everyone else.”
The safety commissioner underscored the necessity of a multi-pronged strategy to combat the ongoing crisis, citing past attempts at judicial reform which, though well-intentioned, led to undesirable repercussions.
He voiced a strong call for a shift in the city’s policy discussions to refocus on families, entrepreneurs, and organization builders, rather than solely on drug users and the transient homeless population.
“We need to recenter families and entrepreneurs and those who build organizations in our policy discussions,” he said. “So, that’s the big reset, that we need to center those who contribute and are just looking for a good place to live.”
This directive from the safety commissioner emerges as Oregon Governor Tina Kotek has enacted new strategies through state police to stem the flow of drugs and commissioned a task force to revitalize downtown Portland.
The U.S. took aim at the fentanyl trafficking threat on Tuesday.
The Biden administration announced a series of indictments and sanctions against Chinese companies and executives blamed for importing the chemicals used to make the deadly drug, Christian Science Monitor reports.
According to the report:
Officials described the actions, which include charges against eight Chinese companies accused of advertising, manufacturing, and distributing precursor chemicals for synthetic opioids like fentanyl, as the latest effort in their fight against the deadliest overdose crisis in United States history. The moves come one day before senior administration officials are set to visit Mexico, whose cartels are part of the global trafficking network, for meetings expected to involve discussion of the drug threat. “We know that this network includes the cartels’ leaders, their drug traffickers, their money launderers, their clandestine lab operators, their security forces, their weapons suppliers, and their chemical suppliers,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said at a news conference. “And we know that this global fentanyl supply chain, which ends with the deaths of Americans, often starts with chemical companies in China.”
