Portland has some pretty bad crime issues no one is talking about..FYI to people wanting to move to that area.. (Beaverton: apartments, violent crime)

Originally Posted by yamsnno

You win, there are no gangs.

Can you show where I or anyone else has suggested that?

Stop being so hyperbolic.

Nancy Grace should not be a role model.

[Mini-apple-less]

Originally Posted by JasonF

Before this turns into total hysteria...

Violent crime rate, per 100,000 people (2012)


Grabbed from the FBI's UCR. Includes all cities with populations of 500,000 - 999,999 that had data in the report.

There are no major shooting or gang issues in Portland. There is a low level of gang activity and yes, people do get shot on occasion. Overall, however, Portland has one of the lowest violent crime rates in the nation.

I think Portland's crime rate is so low just because we don't have any major "trouble spots" the way most US cities do with African-American and Mexican gangs. What matters to me more is how safe the average neighborhood is.

I'd also argue that while Portland has a low murder rate due to great hospitals and a lack of gangs, it's not particularly safe when it comes to sex crimes, robbery and other crimes that are a bit less serious than murder but far more likely to happen to you. Human trafficking and burglary are a huge problem in Portland.

Property crime is pretty average - perhaps a bit on the high side. It actually used to be much worse. In 1985, Portland had the highest property crime rate in the nation among cities with 500,000 - 999,999 people.



Sexual assault is lumped in with violent crimes in the chart I posted earlier, but here's forcible rape by itself:



Doesn't really stand out.

I haven't found any solid numbers on human trafficking, although from what I did manage to dig up, I see no reason to suspect Portland is any worse than any other metro area on the east or west coast.

[pdxmilw]

Human trafficking?

Originally Posted by pdxmilw

Human trafficking?

Sex workers and illegal labor, basically. Just need a threat or some some coercion to get it classified as human trafficking.

[ajams22]

I would think if Portland had a "major" crime problem, it'd be sex trafficking? Not gangs?

I have a close friend that lives in the Portland metro and a friend of hers had her drink drugged in a club downtown and woke up in the backseat of a car with some guy driving, telling her "it was all gonna be okay." I guess she jumped out at a stop light and got help from a cab driver.

Maybe I'm just misinformed?

[grassfeeder]

these things can happen in ANY major metro area. just cause people have heard of one thing happening doesn't mean PDX has an epidemic in any way shape or form.

[urbanlife78]

Originally Posted by yamsnno

Just pointing out a gang issues in Portland with local news stories. Seems like information that would be useful to others doing research to move to an area. I would want to know.

Yep, Portland has a small issue with gangs. Though there aren't really neighborhoods one should stay out of here in fear of gangs. There have been a number of recent stories, but over the course of a year, it would amount to much.

[urbanlife78]

Originally Posted by ajams22

I would think if Portland had a "major" crime problem, it'd be sex trafficking? Not gangs?

I have a close friend that lives in the Portland metro and a friend of hers had her drink drugged in a club downtown and woke up in the backseat of a car with some guy driving, telling her "it was all gonna be okay." I guess she jumped out at a stop light and got help from a cab driver.

Maybe I'm just misinformed?

Sex trafficking is an issue here, but that is more of an I-5 corridor issue than it is any one specific city. Portland just happens to be on that corridor.

[eric351982]

I have never seen a gang in Portland.

A bazillion homeless people and addicts but never a gang.