A call involving a three-hour Portland police response to an alleged rape victim that Portland Police Chief Mike Reese brought up on live TV Thursday when asked how Occupy Portland events were distracting officers from other crimes was not considered a top priority emergency call, and it was made nearly two weeks ago.



The 9-1-1 call came in during the day Nov. 6, not during any of the large-scale Portland police deployments, but when Central Precinct had four officers and one sergeant assigned full time to the downtown encampments. It also didn't involve a sexual assault occurring at that moment but two days earlier, police said.



Portland police spokesmen have been working to obtain the circumstances of the call since last night.



Reese, speaking live to a KGW reporter Thursday afternoon while Occupy Portland's march on downtown banks continued to unfold, was asked how the Occupy events were distracting police from other crimes in the area.



Reese responded: "You know that's a great question. I appreciate you asking because we are reducing our patrol response. Many days, like today, we're taking emergency calls only for service. For example, we had a rape victim stand by for 3 hours until we could get an officer to take a report, and that makes all of us very sad."



KGW: For three hours?



Reese: Three hours



KGW: And that's directly related because there wasn't enough staff, because they've been doing other things with Occupy Portland?'



Reese: Correct



Sgt. Pete Simpson, who is researching the call today, said it appears the delay was "not exclusively because of Occupy Portland."



Shortly after 2 p.m., Simpson put out a release regarding the chief's statements on TV. "It's important to put this information into context,'' he wrote, in a prepared statement.

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Portland police said a 15-year-old girl called 9-1-1 Nov. 6 at 1:47 p.m., and reported that she had been the victim of a sexual assault two days earlier, and the suspect had been sexually assaulting her for months.

Reese told The Oregonian earlier today that he learned about the delayed response to the call Wednesday after Commissioner Amanda Fritz, who oversees emergency dispatch, brought it to the attention of the mayor's office.

When asked about the specifics of the call, Reese said he didn't know.

But he said the dedication of four patrol officers and a sergeant to the downtown encampments alone at that time limited Central Precinct's ability to respond to calls.

"We didn't have enough officers to go," Reese said today, after he had a meeting with the mayor around noon. "We're a lean force."

Yet the chief said that the delay also may have been due to poor communication between emergency dispatch and police. "There's probably a way to communicate better between dispatchers and police," Reese said.

Laura Wolfe, a spokeswoman for Portland's Bureau of Emergency Communications, said the delay was not due to any problem with dispatch.

According to BOEC, the call was dispatched to Central Precinct police at 1:56 p.m.. A synopsis of the call indicated it did not involve a sexual assault that was occurring but had occurred days earlier. A patrol sergeant would have seen the call, Wolfe said.

"Once we give the information out, it's for their patrol supervisor to decide how those calls are prioritized and how those go out,'' Wolfe said.

Police said a Central Precinct sergeant "advised that the call would need to hold for awhile as there were only two free cars to respond to emergency calls in Central Precinct.''

, an officer contacted the victim briefly and explained all officers were tied up, but someone would be back to talk to her once more officers were available.

On that day, Central Precinct police were dealing with an assault against a park ranger at Forest Park, a shooting investigation at Northeast 66th Avenue and Sandy Boulevard, and a rally and march for Occupy Portland between 2 and 4:30 p.m., Portland police said. Additionally, police said, Central Precinct officers were helping cover East Precinct calls because of a serious traffic accident that shut down the intersection of Northeast 82nd Avenue and Prescott Street and the callout of the Special Emergency Reaction Team to the shooting.

Around 3:15 p.m., dispatch records show an officer would stop by talk to the caller, and the caller said she'd be waiting inside a fast-food restaurant. She called back at 4:18 p.m., and told dispatch she was still waiting. An officer self-dispatched to the call at 4:58 p.m. , Wolfe said.

The office arrived at 5:16 p.m. and began an investigation, police said.

"It is important to note the victim was in a safe location, away from the suspect,'' police said, in a prepared release.

Last Saturday night through Sunday, during the Occupy Portland's encampment deadline, street celebration and eviction from Chapman and Lownsdale squares, and during Thursday's Occupy Portland's N17 march, Portland police dedicated 300 to 400 Portland officers to cover the movement's protests.

During those major Portland police callouts, the bureau relied on mutual aid agreements with other police agencies, calling in agencies such as Oregon State Police, Clackamas County Sheriff's Office, and Multnomah County Sheriff's Office, to help cover Portland patrol calls. Other days, Portland police are directing patrol to focus on priority 1 and priority 2 emergency calls, meaning that a host of other non-emergency calls may stack up for who knows how long, Reese said.

"The Police Bureau is a very lean organization and when several events are happening at the same time, police resources are often tapped to cover the priority calls while lower priority calls that have no immediate danger must hold until officers are clear and able to respond,'' the bureau's release said.

The bureau will continue to work through staffing issues, and how best to use resources "to ensure public safety needs are met within Portland,'' according to the bureau's prepared release.

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