Oregon Public Broadcasting

The city of Portland has a new police commissioner and chief today, after months of conflict between the police bureau and the city council. Rob Manning has more.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams has forced chief Rosie Sizer into retirement, and has replaced her with former East Precinct commander, Michael Reese.

Adams has also taken the police bureau away from city commissioner Dan Saltzman. The Mayor gave Saltzman the police bureau, last year.

Saltzman is now running for re-election. Adams did praise Saltzman and Sizer for making recent changes to the bureau.

Sam Adams: "Too often, though, the reforms have come after, in reaction to failures at the bureau, and I want to put the bureau on a more pro-active reform path, and I think Chief Reese is the one to do that."

Adams says Reese will improve how officers deal with people suffering from homelessness, drug addiction, and mental illness.

Adams and former chief Sizer recently clashed over the mayor’s proposed police budget – but Adams wouldn’t say whether that was a big factor in the change.