Portland, FBI Unit to Part Ways

Mayor Tom Potter and several city commissioners, frustrated by the FBI's refusal to grant them full access to classified information, say the withdrawal will signal Portland's commitment to the protection of individual civil rights.

High-profile cases such as the detention of Muslim lawyer Brandon Mayfield, who was wrongfully arrested last year as a suspect in the Madrid train bombings, prompted city leaders to request more oversight of Portland officers involved in the group.

The move, predicted to pass by a 4-1 vote of the City Council, would make official what has been anticipated for months at City Hall. Some fear the decision might encourage other cities to follow suit.

"I hope other cities do start asking questions," said Randy Leonard, a Portland city commissioner and chief backer of the withdrawal. "It's important for cities to know how their police officers are being used. Here in Portland, we are not willing to give up individual liberties in order to have a perception of safety."

The FBI heads 100 of the task forces across the country -- teams made up of federal, state and local law enforcement agents working together to prevent terrorist attacks. The task force in Portland, formed in 1997, was responsible for the convictions last year of six local residents who conspired against U.S. troops in Afghanistan. The two city police officers who have served as part of the team will be reassigned.

Critics say Portland's withdrawal could make the region more vulnerable to terrorist attack.

"Portland is a hub city," said Rob Drake, mayor of neighboring Beaverton. "If you take Portland out, it's basically a hole in the doughnut, and that hole could represent a gap in communication and intelligence."

"The primary lesson of 9/11 was that we need greater coordination, greater sharing of information between federal and state and local agencies," said John R. Kroger, an assistant U.S. attorney in New York at the time of the terrorist attacks. Kroger teaches criminal law at Lewis & Clark University law school here.

"The decision to pull Portland out takes us in the opposite direction," Kroger said. "We're not tearing down the walls [between government agencies]. We're building them back even higher."