Demonstrators who had been camping for months to prevent a black and tribal family from being forced to leave their long-running North Mississippi Avenue home withdrew property after clashes with police Tuesday morning, saying new owners were working to “re-protect” the foreclosed home. Low enforcement officers arrived at the North Portland property around 5 a.m. to allow the new owners to fence and climb into the house. Police said they arrested seven people after encountering a man with a gun for a number of violations, and officers recovered other guns on the property. The crowd of protesters began to build up to the original camps, growing from a few dozen to 200 in the morning. The scene eventually escalated into clashes and clashes with officers, who eventually retreated. Initially the authorities left the area at one point and then returned, but were chased away by protesters. Police vehicles were damaged, at least one window was smashed. Protesters hurled stones at officers, sprayed a fire extinguisher on them, and incited an officer to use an assault weapon. A police officer’s vehicle collided with another car as it tried to exit. The tense scene was quiet after police left at 10:30 p.m. Demonstrators had erected a fence the previous day by workers, and they were building barricades around the property known as the “Red House over Mississippi.” Piles of rocks and bricks pile up as missiles for further collisions. The clash came amid an office effort by a Multnomah County Sheriff, “to re-protect a home previously ordered by those removed by court order,” the company said in a news release. The company said the affected assets would be handed over to their owners. Mayor Ted Wheeler’s spokesman Jim Midak said the office was “actively discussing with the Portland Police Bureau the best way to respond to the situation.” An exit continues, “We’re trying to figure out how to pursue it,” Midak said. Protesters have been camping in the house for months and vacant lots nearby to resist evicting the occupants of the house – a black and indigenous family that has lived there for decades, but it was foretold. Police said they received numerous complaints about the camp from the neighborhood. From September 1 to November 30, the police bureau received more than 80 calls for various issues, including fights, shootings, noise and threats. House History Law enforcement Tuesday said they own the property on 4400 blocks of North Mississippi Avenue, helping new owners to own the property. This marked the second time in recent months that law enforcement officials have visited the property. Delegates issued a court order at the home in September, saying the defendants were illegally occupying the premises. The “writ for execution of the restoration judgment” gave the sheriff 120 days, and on October 120 it was extended for another 120 days. The company gave the people there time to gather their belongings and provided them with housing and shelter options and other resources. “We understand the challenges of evacuation even in the best of circumstances,” Sheriff Mike Reese said in a statement. “I hope everyone has access to adequate housing.” The house, built in 1896, has belonged to the Kinney family since the 1950s, according to the Red House on the Mississippi website. Activists and others have been camping in the camp in an attempt to “recover” it for the Guineans since the September eviction. The Guinness Book of World Records says the problems started when a family member was arrested in 2002 when they took out a new mortgage to pay for security. According to the website, it was sold to the developer at auction in 2018, but Guinness fought back against the exit. Community members created the GoFundMe page “Save the Guinea Family Home” in September and demanded 250 250,000. The initiative has raised just over $ 41,000 so far. The area, which has historically been a black residential neighborhood, has grown over the past two decades and is a mixed-use retail and residential addition in addition to large-scale condominiums. Most single-family homes in the Mississippi section have been demolished or converted for retail. This story is growing and will be updated. — Jim Ryan Douglas Perry of Oregon / Oregon Live contributed to this report.
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