Gun Violence

OPB talked to four seniors at three different Portland high schools about safety and solutions.

Oregon voters approved a measure last fall aimed at reducing gun violence, something that already has led to more than 3,500 deaths nationwide so far this year. PBS NewsHour recently explored the gun safety measure in Oregon, and discovered the new law has sharply divided the state.

The report — a first-of-its-kind for the agency — examines everything from when in the year the attacks took place to behavioral changes exhibited in the attackers.

Portland city officials last week quietly reversed course on a decision to avoid a competitive bid process and launch a gunshot detection pilot program with ShotSpotter, a company critics say dramatically oversells its capabilities.

Families who had their lives shattered on Dec. 14, 2012, are still straining under the weight of their losses — and still pushing for the changes they had hoped would have already happened by now.

Text messages between a Portland Police Bureau officer and a ShotSpotter representative suggest a cozy relationship helped pave the way for the city’s decision to pilot the gunshot detection technology. The mayor’s office is piecing together a proposal for city council’s consideration that would award a contract for the trial run to ShotSpotter. Emails indicate the city plans to forgo a competitive bidding process, despite a concerted effort by competitor EAGL Technology to be taken seriously by city officials.

"Our community has been through a lot of different challenges throughout the decades and we've always managed to take care of each other," said Blair Stenvick of Basic Rights Oregon. "I think that's really important to remember in times like this."

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has decided to move forward with a controversial technology that claims to detect and pinpoint gunshots throughout the city.

Measure 114 calls for an expanded background check, completion of a gun safety course and a ban on magazines that hold more than 10 rounds. So would it have prevented tragedy in Bend?

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler recently declared a gun violence emergency in the city. He has also issued three different emergency declarations around homelessness this year. Portland’s new Community Safety Division is leading the efforts to address both homelessness and gun violence. We hear from Mike Myers, the leader of that division.