A man was stabbed multiple times outside the downtown Portland Central Library on Monday. This was after a deadly shooting near the library in July prompted the county to bolster security measures at the facility.

Annie Lewis, Multnomah County director of libraries, says those measures paid off this week.

“Our library staff and our security officers responded very swiftly to attempt to deescalate the conflict,” Lewis says.

Lewis is quick to point out, however, that outside law enforcement agencies need to do their part, too.

“Our librarians are not law enforcement officers,” Lewis says. “So we rely on the response of law enforcement to enforce criminal behavior that’s happening around and inside of our library.”

Lewis spoke with “All Things Considered” co-host Geoff Norcross.

Geoff Norcross: Given what happened on Monday, how should we feel about the effectiveness of the changes that happened after the July incident?

Annie Lewis: In terms of actions that we’ve taken, we have increased the number of uniformed security officers at our central library. We’ve gone from four to seven officers. Also, at the recommendation of Portland Police, we’ve limited the hours of our exterior Wi-Fi access to just library open hours to help with some of the activity occurring on the exterior of the library. So those are just some of the measures we’ve taken on the security side to help enhance the security environment at Central Library.

Norcross: Given all those improvements, what happened on Monday?

Lewis: This is an ongoing investigation, so I’m not going to be able to speak to the details of the incident. But I can share a couple pieces of information.

The incident occurred outside of the library, on Southwest 10th Avenue. We are aware that the individuals involved were inside the library at some point prior to the altercation, but we do not have any reports of an altercation or an incident that happened inside of the library between the people that were involved. I’m really happy to report that our library staff and our security officers responded very swiftly to attempt to de-escalate the conflict that was occurring outside of the library. And when the conflict escalated, they contacted 911 to engage law enforcement presence to intervene.

Norcross: What else is needed, though? What kind of additional support would you like to see from the city or the county to prevent incidents like the one this week?

Lewis: I think it’s important for folks to know that our library staff and our security can enforce our library rules within our spaces, but our librarians are not law enforcement officers. We rely on the response of law enforcement to enforce criminal behavior that’s happening around and inside of our library. And we have robust protocols for contacting law enforcement when that is a necessary step.

We also have resources in place — such as peer support specialists and community resource counselors — that are available to help people who are in need of social service referrals that our library is not able to provide, where that need exists.

Norcross. That brings up a point. A library is not just a place to get books. It’s a place to get services for all kinds of people, including those experiencing homelessness. As we just saw during the heat wave, it can be a cooling center. I’m wondering how you think about this very important and very difficult question of balancing providing important community resources and keeping people in and around the library safe.

Lewis: I think that’s a really key challenge that we balance every single day. I want to underscore that the library is safe and welcoming for everyone. We also depend on our partners to be able to make referrals to folks, where we aren’t set up to meet folks’ needs.

I just want to underscore for folks that we work really hard to create a welcoming environment, and we regularly enforce library rules to make sure that people are using the library in a safe way that keeps themselves and others around them safe.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2025/08/28/multnomah-county-central-library-stabbing-security-measures/