This percentage reflects how often Portland Police Bureau (PPB) officers are using force, or physical coercion, when taking people into custody. Following Graham v. Connor, a 1989 Supreme Court case, PPB's rules and regulations state that "members shall only use force necessary to accomplish a lawful objective, and the force must be objectively reasonable under the totality of the circumstances." While the nature of policing will likely always involve some cases where force is required, we want those to be a small minority of total cases.

Over the period 2017-current the rate of use of force has varied from as low as 3% to as high as 10.8%. It can be hard to identify specific drivers for this variance.

Police officers fill out a Force Data Collection Report (FDCR) every time they use force of a reportable type. The major exclusion to reporting since September 11, 2024 is 'de minimis force' (Latin for insignificant force). De minimis force is typically minimally intrusive application of a restraint like handcuffs, or the use of an empty hand coercive technique to separate, guide, and/or gain control of a subject. De minimis force is not readily capable of causing or reasonably likely to cause physical injury or persistent pain.

This captures the number of people against whom force was used. If a person had force used against them more than once each quarter they will be counted more than once.

'Custodies' are arrests (bookings, citations, or warrants), transports to detox, hospitals, or mental health facilities, and protective custodies.

Portland Police Bureau's Use of Force dashboard contains more detail.