Portland mayor looks to re-fund police with $2M request as homicides spike – but council support unclear

The mayor of Portland, Ore., called for nearly $2 million in additional funding for the city’s police force and other agencies Friday, citing a rise in homicides and other violent crime.

The request by second-term Mayor Ted Wheeler came Friday during his State of the City address – and three days after Wheeler condemned one of the latest killings in the city, the broad-daylight slaying of a 42-year-old man in a city park on Tuesday. "There is just too much blood on the streets." "This shooting was brazen and horrific," Wheeler wrote on Twitter. "The City and its partners are working hard to prevent and reduce gun violence. It’s a public health crisis that’s harming our entire community." Wheeler’s funding request marked a turnaround for Portland, which has been viewed as an epicenter of the "Defund the police" movement – in which liberal groups have sought to divert public cash away from traditional police departments and into efforts such as mental health treatment and community development.