Inglewood Police Chief Named to State Post
Gov. Pete Wilson named Inglewood Police Chief Ray Johnson as director of the California Office of Criminal Justice Planning Friday, sending Inglewood officials scurrying to find a replacement.
Wilson lauded Johnson, 55, chief of the 210-officer department since 1986, for promoting minority officers and introducing innovations in Inglewood, including a reverse drug sting program that arrested buyers and a tax to fund a special anti-crime team.
Johnson, who replaces Al Howenstein in the $86,000-a-year state post, is a former California Highway Patrol deputy chief. His departure creates more room at the top on the Inglewood force. Deputy Chief James Butts is leaving in September to become police chief in Santa Monica.
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