Black Captain Seeks to Calm Stormy Foothill Waters

Shortly after the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney G. King by Los Angeles police officers hit the news, Paul Jefferson received a call from his daughter in Kenya.

Half a world away on a college study program in Nairobi, she was upset after seeing the grainy video depicting white officers repeatedly swinging batons at King and called home.

Her father, a black Los Angeles Police Department captain, reassured her that the beating was an aberration, not the routine in the department that he has served for 22 years.

Now Jefferson has a harder duty, though one in which he must provide the same reassurance.

In a move that the Police Department hopes will help restore public confidence, Jefferson has been transferred to the eye of the storm as the new commander of patrol officers at the Foothill Division, site of the March 3 King beating.

While community leaders expressed mixed views on the new assignment Tuesday, Jefferson, 45, said he relishes the challenge but has no misconceptions about it.

He believes public support for the department and its relations with the black community have never been lower during his time in uniform. “I certainly have never seen anything like it in my 22 years,” he said.

He comes to a division that has been rocked by the beating scandal and allegations that the incident was not an aberration, but a symptom of institutional problems of racism and brutality.

Jefferson, who was Van Nuys Division patrol commander, said he does not believe those allegations. His priority now is to be highly visible and available to the public to assure them that his officers are sensitive to their concerns.

“I am going to come here with an open mind and be aware of everything that is said and see what develops,” he said.

The captain said he will tell his officers that they must follow through by continuing to provide the community the service it demands. “I am going to support them, but I also demand top-quality service,” he said.

Police Department officials concede that Jefferson was chosen, in part, because his race may better help ease tensions. He replaces a white captain who was transferred to Jefferson’s post in Van Nuys. Jefferson will be second in command to Capt. Tim McBride, who is white.

Some community leaders called the transfer a public relations ploy, but most praised it.

Community activist Irene Tovar said the move “is a good beginning out of a bad situation.”

“This is an excellent step in the right direction,” said Pastor James V. Lyles, president of the San Fernando Valley Ministers’ Fellowship.

Lyles and others were quick to add that the move falls short of their goal of having a minority officer replace McBride.

“We do not think it is complete, because we think the Foothill commander should be either Hispanic or black,” Lyles said. “We hope that it’s just a matter of time.”

McBride supporters said the captain has openly discussed the beating with residents and honestly answered questions about internal changes. Calls for his removal upset some residents, who said the captain has strong community ties and has worked hard to restore faith in his officers.

“The department had to do something,” acknowledged Lewis Snow, former president of the Lake View Terrace Homeowners Assn. “But I’m happy to see McBride is still going to be there. He has really busted his butt to work with the community.”

“I appreciate their concerns,” McBride said of his critics. However, the station commander said, he also has received hundreds of calls and letters of support.