Portland Gun Violence Has Dropped From 2022 Highs but Budget Cuts Could Put Progress at Risk

PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland has seen a major drop in shootings- including homicide and non-homicide shootings- but budget fights could put the significant progress made at risk.

Portland Shootings Reduce, Budgets Threaten To Jeopardize Progress

Gun violence has cast a pall over Portland for years, but the U.S. Attorney’s Office- District of Oregon confirmed yesterday that recent data shows that shootings resulting in homicides have fallen dramatically, from 30 year-to-date in 2022 to 6 in 2026.

Shootings that didn’t result in a homicide declined from 453 year-to-date in 2022 to 171 in 2026.

While these reductions rank among the largest seen in major U.S. cities over the past several years, Portland has not yet returned to the lower levels of gun violence experienced pre-COVID in 2018 and 2019. And shootings are up over the past month as the city enters the summer months, when gun violence historically increases.

The agency attributes the reduction in Portland’s gun violence to a coordinated effort across law enforcement and community groups. Key drivers of this progress include:

• The Portland Police Bureau’s Focused Intervention Team (FIT) has actively disrupted gang conflicts and removed illegal firearms from the streets.
• The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office has pivoted to a more assertive strategy specifically targeting the investigation and prosecution of gun crimes.
• Success relies heavily on preventative coalitions, combining traditional law enforcement with community-based intervention programs to stop violence before it starts.
• Federal, state, and local partners are actively collaborating to isolate and prosecute the county’s most violent repeat gun offenders.

But the Portland City Council and Multnomah County Commissioners are currently negotiating upcoming budgets.

The agency warned that asking vital institutions to do more with fewer officers and resources risks repeating past policy mistakes that sparked previous spikes in violence.