Bradley Withdraws His Support for Police Tax

Mayor Tom Bradley has withdrawn his support for the special police tax in South Los Angeles and wants voters to decide on the merits if they should pay higher taxes for extra police, his chief spokesman said Thursday.

The special police plan, sponsored by City Councilman Robert Farrell, has attracted considerable opposition in the nearly two months since Bradley came out in its support. The June 2 ballot measure would add $148 to the tax bill of an average homeowner in South Los Angeles, city officials have estimated.

However, the mayor’s change is not related to the opposition or to the voters’ lukewarm embrace of Bradley-backed candidates in the City Council primary elections April 14, press deputy Ali Webb said.

“He wants the debate to be about the merits of the issue--not his endorsement,” Webb said.

The police tax measure needs a two-thirds majority of voters in the four affected Los Angeles Police Department divisions to win approval. It would add 300 new officers over three years to the Newton, Southwest, Southeast and 77th Street stations. Police Chief Daryl F. Gates favors the plan, although he has said that he prefers adding more police throughout the city.

Although the mayor’s official position has shifted, Bradley’s staff has continued to tell residents who ask for information that Bradley looks favorably on the idea. The standard letter sent to inquiring residents remarks that, without such a special tax, the city cannot afford to station any more police in South Los Angeles.

“The Farrell police tax plan can make a huge difference in the level of safety on South Los Angeles’ streets,” Bradley concludes in the letter.

Webb said the letter, although sympathetic toward the tax, stops short of endorsing a yes vote by residents.

Bradley originally announced his backing in February, but has begun in recent days to make his neutrality clear to community organizations, Webb said.