Portland police use new ordinance to crack down on street racing

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Law enforcement used a new Portland city code to issue citations, tow eight cars and arrest over a dozen people for street racing.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports Portland police officers, Multnomah County sheriff’s deputies and Oregon State Police worked on the “speed racing mission” in North Portland Sunday night.

It’s the first time the city is enforcing the new city code, enacted via emergency ordinance 10 days ago, to make “street racing” or “sliding” misdemeanor offenses. The offenses are “Unlawful Street Takeover” and “Unlawful Staging of a Street Takeover Event.”