US Attorney for Oregon calls on Brown to deploy National Guard

U.S. Attorney for Oregon Billy Williams has called for Gov. Kate Brown to deploy the National Guard to assist the police as local demonstrations over the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd are headed toward a fourth night in the state.

Speaking at a press conference Monday morning, Williams acknowledged the anger demonstrators feel over Floyd’s death at the hands of police officers. One officer used his knee to apply pressure to Floyd’s neck for around eight minutes while Floyd said he could not breathe. However, Williams called damage in Portland — particularly to the Multnomah County Justice Center and the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse — “sickening.”