Council Panel Backs Special Fund for Rewards
A City Council panel on Monday endorsed the establishment of a $10,000 fund from which police could offer rewards of up to $500 for information leading to the arrest of suspects in so-called “hate crimes.” “This fund will enable us to conduct a form of psychological warfare to help stop these crimes of bigotry,” Deputy Police Chief Ron Frankle said.
Police have found an average of 300 hate crimes committed in the city each year, with about half of those taking place in the San Fernando Valley.
“The purpose of this measure is deterrence, and the more it’s publicized the more likely that these kinds of crimes will diminish,” said Councilman Richard Alatorre, chairman of the Public Safety Committee.
“The kind of person we’re after is someone who commits the crime so he can talk about it,” Alatorre said. “If he knows someone will report him, he will be less likely to commit it.”
Frankle said the fund would be just “one tool” in a wide-ranging program.
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