After-Action Review

The National Policing Institute (NPI) was engaged by the City of Portland to conduct an independent assessment of the Portland Police Bureau’s (PPB) response to mass demonstrations on June 4, 2017 and August 4, 2018. Recognizing that the PPB’s policies, practices, and training have continued to evolve since those events, the NPI assessment team also examined the PPB response to the August 17, 2019 demonstrations as well.

This review is focused on PPB policies, training, procedures, and practices at the time of the events and their immediate aftermath. The analysis is intended to provide objective feedback to the PPB, not to assign blame or criticize, but to contribute to continual evaluation and evolution of the PPB’s mass demonstration responses. The findings and recommendations are offered to identify key areas that the PPB can address to continue in enhancing their planning and responses to mass demonstrations. The findings and recommendations center on planning, preparation, deployment, training, and equipment; incident command; policies, protocols, and strategies; public communication and messaging; and the after-action review (AAR) process.