Community Policing / Panorama City, North Hollywood

THE PROGRAM: The Los Angeles Police Department has assigned 31 officers to full-time community relations duty in the San Fernando Valley. The officers, who in the past spent only a few hours a month on such duty, now work full-time with neighborhood organizations and individuals. One of the 31 areas is described below:

THE OFFICER: Timothy Bergstrom, Van Nuys Division, (818) 989-8343

THE AREA: Bergstrom’s beat includes a broad mix of residential and industrial areas; it’s the home of the Panorama Mall as well as the General Motors plant. The major crime problem is narcotics sales, which in turn breeds other problems. “It brings all the crime into the area,” Bergstrom says. “Street robberies in the area are up.”