Oregon leaders say city is ‘not a training ground’

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – Oregon leaders are responding to an ongoing investigation involving federal agents shooting two people in Portland on Thursday.

A man and a woman were taken to the hospital around 2:30 p.m. after officers responded to the area of NE 146th Avenue and East Burnside to find them each with gunshot wounds.

Portland police later confirmed that the shootings involved federal agents. An investigation is ongoing and is being led by the FBI. 

The incident comes one day after a woman was shot and killed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Minneapolis.

Portland City Councilors responded to the incident as it unfolded, abruptly recessing their meeting to be briefed on the situation. Council President Elana Pirtle-Guiney shared the news when the meeting rejoined just 20 minutes later.

“Folks, I apologize that we needed to recess so abruptly. We needed to pull a couple of councilors into a conversation about the City of Portland’s response to an incident that occurred in the eastern part of our city,” Pirtle-Guiney said when the meeting resumed. “Just a day after the shooting in Minneapolis of Renee Good, there was a shooting involving two Portlanders in East Portland with federal agents. We are still waiting for more details but needed to pull councilors to get a briefing and an update so that we could ensure that we were prepared to respond.”

Within the hour, Portland Mayor Keith Wilson shared the following statement:

Just one day after the horrific violence in Minnesota at the hands of federal agents, our community here in Portland is now grappling with another deeply troubling incident. Earlier this afternoon, two people were shot and injured by federal agents in the Hazelwood neighborhood.

We cannot sit by while constitutional protections erode and bloodshed mounts. Portland is not a “training ground” for militarized agents, and the “full force” threatened by the administration has deadly consequences. As Mayor, I call on ICE to end all operations in Portland until a full investigation can be completed.

Federal militarization undermines effective, community‑based public safety, and it runs counter to the values that define our region. I will use every legal and legislative tool available to protect our residents’ civil and human rights.

I call on every Portlander to represent our values and to show up with calm and purpose during this difficult time. Portland does not respond to violence with violence. We respond with clarity, unity, and a commitment to justice. We must stand together to protect Portland.

The City of Portland will continue to provide updates as they become available. We are grateful to our first responders for their support of the victims.”

During a Thursday evening press conference, Mayor Wilson also said he is calling on ICE to remove all operations in Portland. The conference was joined by other state leaders, including Gov. Tina Kotek and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson.

Kotek shared the following statement at the conference:

“We are standing here today united as a state wanting peace and safety in all of our communities. We are all shaken and outraged by another terrible, unnecessary, violent event instigated by the reckless agenda of the Trump administration, this time in our own state in our largest city coming just one day after the tragedy in Minnesota.

“While the details remain limited, one thing is very clear: When the president endorses tearing families apart and attempts to govern through fear and hate rather than shared values, you foster an environment of lawlessness and recklessness.

“Trust is essential to maintaining community safety and the rule of law. Federal agents at the direction of the Department of Homeland Security are shattering trust. They are hurting people and they are destroying, day by day, what we hold dear. Our sense of safety and our literal safety are severely undermined by what happened this afternoon in Portland. I’m so thankful that no one died and more people weren’t hurt.

“The attorney general and other leaders have been clear about our concerns with the excessive use of force by our federal agents in Portland, and today’s incident only heightens the need for transparency and accountability. Oregonians deserve clear answers, and I’m aligned with the mayor. The priority right now is a full, completed investigation, not more detentions.

“My message to the federal government is clear: We demand transparency. We demand your cooperation with Portland police and Multnomah County DA, because we need to investigate this incident efficiently and effectively so that we know we can rebuild trust with our nation’s government.

“There are those who want to cause chaos, but Oregonians know how to stand up and speak out peacefully. We must remain united in peaceful opposition to efforts to tear our community apart. We must not turn against each other. We must stand neighbor to neighbor. We must not take the bait.”

As of 6:45 p.m., Gov. Kotek said she has not yet spoken with the federal government about this incident.

More statements from state leaders are in the live blog below: