Local News in Brief : Chief’s Removal Sought
A group of black police officers accusing the Santa Monica Police Department of racial bias has scheduled door-to-door canvassing in that city today to push for the removal of Police Chief James Keane.
Members of the Law Enforcement Officers for Justice will distribute 2,000 leaflets to Santa Monica homes, founder Don Jackson said. The leaflets describe incidents in which current or former Santa Monica officers were allegedly discriminated against because they were black or intimidated when they made their charges public.
Keane has defended the department’s hiring record and says he welcomes “any impartial investigation” into hiring and promotion practices.
Officers for Justice claims a membership of 28 to 30 sworn officers and 76 support employees from 14 Los Angeles County cities. It was formed earlier this year by Jackson, a Hawthorne police sergeant who took stress leave because of alleged racial harassment.
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