A higher rate of people trust the Bend Police Department than they did two years ago, according to a bi-annual survey conducted by Portland State University. Survey results showed the department is more favorably viewed, even as Bendites perceive greater risks in the community.
The survey invited 10,000 households in Bend to participate and garnered about 1,400 responses. The non-white responses gave less favorable opinions of BPD on average, though often by only slim margins, and the survey's authors admit that the data collected underrepresents people of color, Spanish speakers and young people. About 80% of people who answered ranked BPD as trustworthy, up from 75% in 2021 but still below its peak of 84% in 2019. The most-cited reason for increased trust in BPD is its response to the shooting at the east side Safeway in August, when officers responded to an attempted mass shooting within minutes of getting a call.
"My trust in the Bend police has increased since the shooting happened at Safeway. I saw how quickly the police responded to the emergency," one respondent is quoted saying in the report.
Residents also cited more professionalism, visibility and community outreach as reasons they trust BPD more. Most people's opinion hasn't changed on the department, but overall 16% said their trust grew in the past year compared to 8% reporting they trust BPD less than they did a year ago. Those who view the police less favorably believe BPD is either too aggressive or not aggressive enough in citing homeless populations and perceived biases against marginalized people.
People who responded reported generally feeling that Bend is safe, with 97% saying they'd feel safe taking a walk in their neighborhoods during the day and 73% at night. It's different for the nearest parks and downtown, though. About 54% of people who responded to the survey said they wouldn't feel safe walking downtown at night and fewer than half of people said they'd feel safe walking to their nearest park at night.
Nearly a third of people said they feel less safe in Bend than they did three months ago and only 3 percent feel safer. The most common reason for feeling less safe is decreased quality of life, often related to homelessness, substance abuse and minor crimes, but others reported perceived increases in crime, traffic violations and the growth of Central Oregon.
"I'm more aware of crimes as the population of Bend has increased. I've also noticed many more homeless people in the area where I live and throughout Bend. I feel bad about feeling nervous about this — I think homelessness is a societal problem and community changes such as affordable housing," one respondent said. "At the same time, I notice more single men on the street when I walk or run around town and in the evening."
The survey recommended the police department analyze its staffing needs, noting the lack of growth in the department in the past eight years, despite the population and duties of BPD increasing. It also recommended the department improve its communication with the public, to create and evaluate pilot programs and address the perceived decrease in safety.
The results of the survey show a return to more typical feelings about BPD after a historic drop in trust of the law enforcement in 2020 after the murder of George Floyd and thousands of protests across the country. Nationally, fewer than half of adults told a Gallup poll they had great confidence in police in the summer of 2020. The survey's been conducted every two years since 2017, and its most recent trends put police favorability slightly higher than 2017 responses and below 2019 responses in most categories.
