Portland, Nov 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has denounced the attack on the city commissioner's residence, saying "violence, criminal destruction and intimidation are unacceptable".
"Last night's criminal destruction and attack on Commissioner Ryan's home are reprehensible. Violence, criminal destruction and intimidation are unacceptable and will not be tolerated," Xinhua news agency quoted Wheeler as saying in a statement on Friday.
A small group of protesters for police reform gathered late Thursday in North Portland, marched to city commissioner Dan Ryan's house and damaged the property before police chased them away, according to a report by OregonLive.
The demonstration followed a City Council vote against a proposal that would have cut millions of dollars from the Portland police budget.
Ryan voted no to the proposal.
"Those responsible must be found, investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
"I condemn anyone who uses violence to attempt to silence the voices of others," Wheeler added in the statement.
Also on Friday, Oregon Governor Kate Brown again extended her executive order to create a joint incident command structure for public safety to continue to keep peace and protect free speech this weekend in Portland, which witnessed massive anti-racism protests earlier this year.
The order, which had been set to expire at 5 p.m on Friday, has been extended until 5 p.m. Sunday, unless earlier rescinded or extended.
Brown has also directed the Oregon National Guard to place its members trained in crowd control on standby in the event they are needed to support law enforcement efforts.
"As we enter the weekend, I am calling on Oregonians to express themselves peacefully," the Governor said on Friday.
"We have a long history of exercising our First Amendment rights in Oregon, but political violence, intimidation, and property destruction solve nothing."
Portland had become a flashpoint for demonstrations against police brutality and racism since the police killing of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, which triggered a wave of national and international outrage.
According to an Associated Press (AP) aggregate, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden was currently leading in Oregon by 57 per cent, while President Donald Trump was trailing by 40.6 per cent.
Source: IANS
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