Bernardi Assails Hall on Fire, Police Pensions

Los Angeles City Councilman Ernani Bernardi on Wednesday night loudly accused Lyle Hall, his opponent in the June 6 runoff election, of forcing the city to decrease the number of police officers to pay for the costly pensions Hall demanded for police and firefighters.

Hall, who is on leave from his job as a city fire captain and was president of the firefighters union from 1976 to 1984, declined to respond.

“I challenge Mr. Hall to get his goons to call that lawsuit off, to get the officers we need back on the streets,” Bernardi yelled during a gathering of more than 300 community members in a Pacoima church.

Later Bernardi said he was referring to a state Court of Appeal ruling last week against the city that would add up to $43 million per year to the city budget to pay cost-of-living increases on pensions for 7,500 current and former police and firefighters.

City Appeal

The city, which is appealing the ruling, has not determined what budget changes will be made to provide the extra funds.

Bernardi later apologized to several audience members for calling city union activists goons.

Hall refused to let Bernardi put him on the defensive and insisted that he was not angered by the councilman’s comments. Instead, Hall, in his speech, called for trees to be trimmed, streets to be cleaned and potholes to be filled.

“I think it’s time we had a voice in the City Council that looked out for us,” he said.

Although the event at Mary Immaculate Catholic Church was publicized as a debate, it actually was designed to allow members of Valley Organized in Community Efforts, or VOICE, to question the candidates.

Father Bill Antone, whose church was host for the assembly, said VOICE does not plan to endorse a candidate. Instead, he said, members wanted to pin down agreements that the winning candidate could be held to after the election.

‘Simple Commitment’

“What we’re looking for is simple commitment on their part . . . then we can hold them accountable to their commitment,” Antone said. “The issues are very specific and issues we feel they can solve.”

VOICE members challenged the candidates to take stands on issues the group has embraced, including an increase in Los Angeles’ police force to 10,000 by 1993 and a ban on some semiautomatic firearms.

Both candidates agreed to push for more police, but split over the firearms issue.

Bernardi said he would send a telegram to Gov. George Deukmejian today asking him to sign a bill banning the weapons, even though he said it would weaken a ban already passed by the Los Angeles City Council, because the state law would take precedence.

However Hall, who supports gun ownership rights, said he had sent a letter to Deukmejian on Wednesday calling instead for a program of education, stricter background checks for firearms purchasers and a 15-day waiting period to allow time for those checks.

Specific Complaints

Bernardi and Hall also said they would look into three specific complaints from VOICE: five garbage-strewn lots in Pacoima, illegal used-automobile and parts sales on several streets in the northeast San Fernando Valley, and crime and gang activity around Sun Valley Junior High School. In the area of the Sun Valley school, VOICE wants to see more street lights, more frequent police patrols and a recreation program that will offer youths an alternative to gang membership.

Formed in November, VOICE says it represents 15 Valley churches and synagogues with 29,000 members.

Wednesday’s event was the second face-off between the two candidates during the runoff campaign. Another debate, sponsored by the Arleta Chamber of Commerce, is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Branford Park community building in Arleta.