Oregon Public Broadcasting

Portland-area governments got together Friday to describe their new plan to stop a recent surge in gang violence. Kristian Foden-Vencil reports.

It’s called Operation Cool Down and involves about 18 police officers from Portland, Gresham and Multnomah County.  For the next month, they're reassigned from their regular jobs to gang enforcement teams.

Officers think more than 2000 gang members are active in the Portland Metro area. But Lieutenant Mike Leloff says this effort is focused on four key groups.

Mike Leloff: “We’re really paring down to several people who are actively violent in the community and we’re going to target those people specifically.”

The recent spate of shootings started on December 12th, when a member of the Kerby Block Crips shot Darshawn Cross at a funeral. But, says Tonya Dickens with the Gang Outreach group Brothers And Sisters, things get murky after that.

Tonya Dickens: “We really don’t know in depth why it’s happening and what’s happening. We just know the violence is there.”

She says some older gang members are getting out of prison, perhaps threatening the standing of younger members.

She says there could be some kind of turf war, or it could just be that long-running hostilities have finally spilled over.

While Operation Cool Down has the backing of Portland, Gresham and the U.S. Attorney’s office, not everybody is happy. Some say the city became complacent over the last few years because of the relative calm -- and cut gang-outreach positions.

John Canda had one of those jobs.

John Canda: “If they were serious some money would be on the table, but once again we’re left high and dry. They’re going to get what they deserve.”

There is some "money on the table" however.

Portland Commissioner Dan Saltzman pledged to maintain the $400,000 usually granted to outreach groups. And he said another $4 million from the recently passed children’s levy, will be used for after school and mentoring programs. 

Those are meant to keep at-risk youth out of gangs.

The hope then, among families and city officials alike, is that they won’t have to keep meeting at the funerals of teenagers.