Some Make Tracks as Police Officers Begin Foot Patrols in MacArthur Park

The heavyset man was out of breath, terrified and clearly embarrassed. He ran up to a group of Los Angeles police officers patrolling MacArthur Park on foot Monday evening to tell them that a thug had just snatched a gold chain from his neck.

A patrol car pulled up and officers offered to drive the man through the area to look for the thief.

Still breathing heavily and speaking quickly with a Spanish accent, the victim thanked the officers but declined their offer. He was so terrified by the incident, he had lost control of his bowels, he explained.

The officers, nonetheless, persuaded him to get into the back of the patrol car to help search for the robber.

“Now that is above and beyond the call of duty,” said Sgt. Alan Bollinger.

In an age when police cruisers are equipped with computers and the fight against crime has taken to the air in helicopters, Bollinger was supervising a squad of 10 officers involved in a back-to-basics approach to police work: foot patrols.

The cop on the beat is so much in demand that the City Council approved $3 million to pay officers to work overtime pounding the pavement in the fight against violent street crime and drug dealing.

“A lot of people here are drug users, criminals,” Bollinger said. “A measure of our success here will be when people feel safe to come into the park. I’m not sure what it will take to get to that point.”

Roberto Julian Zamudio and his wife, Mary, reached that point Monday night.

“This is the first time I’ve ever come to the park after dark,” Zamudio said in Spanish, watching his four small children romp on the slides and swings. “I knew the foot patrols were coming tonight. I saw it on television.”

“Our priority is visibility,” said Officer Greg Morton, who walked patrol with Officer Pete Camino. “We want the suspects to keep away so the community will come back.”

Said Camino: “Eventually, the good people will move the dopers out.”

They spent much of their six-hour shift, running until 11 p.m., citing people for misdemeanors such as drinking in public. While several people in the park turned and moved away from their beaming flashlights, others offered the officers warm greetings and smiles.

Pressure Is Key

The officers recognize that many driven from the park by their presence may simply move to other areas in the neighborhood to ply their criminal trade. But with continued police pressure, the criminals also may become exhausted, officers said, and decide that getting a legitimate job wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

The foot patrols were launched Monday in the Rampart Division at MacArthur Park and in Koreatown, where community groups applauded the officers and City Councilman Nate Holden who pushed a measure funding the patrols through the council.

Foot patrols will begin tonight in the Hollywood and Southwest divisions, and 60 officers will be assigned to walking high-crime areas by the end of the week.

“Everybody agrees that foot patrols work,” said the Rev. Kathleen J. Cullinane of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church on South Mariposa Street in Koreatown. “We just hope the police are committed enough to remain long enough to make a difference.”