Council OKs Police Reform Ballot Measure

The Los Angeles City Council on Thursday tentatively approved placing before voters City Charter amendments that would significantly change the selection process and tenure for the city’s police chief and increase the powers of the Police Commission.

The action, taken in a 12-3 vote during a special meeting, was a step toward “redefining the future of policing in Los Angeles” and the relationship between the 8,300-member department and the communities it serves, Councilman Marvin Braude said.

The proposed amendments grew out of recommendations made by the Christopher Commission, which was convened to review department operations and the use of excessive force after the police beating of motorist Rodney G. King on March 3, 1991.

City Councilman Michael Woo said Thursday’s action targeted the “heart and soul of what the City Council and the Christopher Commission have been looking at over the past few months.”

“The police chief sets the tone for the whole Police Department,” said Woo, an outspoken critic of Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates. “What the council did today will establish whether the chief of police and the Police Commission will be accountable to the public.”

Voting against placing the proposed measures on the ballot were Ernani Bernardi, Hal Bernson and Joan Milke Flores.

The council also voted 14 to 1 to include all proposed police reforms--including some still being negotiated with the police union--in a single ballot measure to be placed before voters in the June 2 primary election.

During the contentious debate, City Councilman Nate Holden, who wanted issues involving the chief of police on a separate ballot, warned, “An all-or-nothing ballot measure is very risky business.”

“If the package is defeated, the city gets nothing,” said Holden, who this week formed an exploratory campaign committee for a possible mayoral bid next year.

However, Holden ended up voting for consolidating the proposed reforms; only Bernardi voted against it.

Specifically, the council tentatively approved proposals that would limit a chief to two five-year terms, and would allow the mayor to nominate a new chief from three candidates named by the Personnel Department.

The Police Commission would have the power to fire a chief, although the mayor would have five days to reverse the commission’s action. The chief could request, within five days, a hearing before the City Council, which could reverse the firing with a two-thirds vote.

In addition, the council could initiate, by a two-thirds vote, proceedings to consider whether a chief of police should be be terminated. The council could also fire a chief by a two-thirds vote.

Under the current system, a chief has Civil Service protection enabling him to serve unless he is found guilty of misconduct.

The five-member civilian Police Commission, members of which are appointed by the mayor, would have the power to appoint a temporary chief of police for up to one year if the chief were unable to carry out the job.

A separate proposal would limit commission members to two five-year terms.

In a major change, a new position of commission executive officer--a civilian exempt from Civil Service--would also be created.

Under state law, other proposals involving discipline and training of officers were still being negotiated between the council and the 8,100-member Police Protective League because they involve labor issues, city officials said.

However, the council is expected to place the labor-related proposals on the ballot even if the union rejects them, said Fred Merkin, senior assistant city attorney.

Merkin said the council has until Feb. 28 to give final approval to the ballot measure, and until March 6 to place it on the June ballot.

The council’s action sparked a new round of political haggling between supporters of the embattled Gates, who has said he intends to step down in June, and those who wanted him to resign immediately after the King beating.

An effort to back the measure was being prepared by a group including Christopher Commission member Mickey Kantor, who intends to formally announce the creation of the Committee on Law Enforcement and Reform (CLEAR) sometime next week.

“The purpose of this committee is to support the ballot measure approved by the council and to make sure it is passed in June,” Kantor said. “I think it will be a tough fight because Daryl Gates has unfortunately politicized his office.”

Kantor was especially critical of Gates’ decision to remain on the job until June, after leading city officials to believe he would step down in April, and of the chief’s recent announcement that he is considering running for mayor next year.

A spokesman for Gates, who has been chief since 1978, said he was in court and unavailable for comment.

A staunch supporter of the chief, actress Peggy Estrada, said her group will fight the proposed changes.

“What they are going to do with this is split the city again,” said Estrada, a member of the board of directors of Citizens for Integrity and Viability in the City Charter. “The only people who want charter change are politicians, not the people.”

City Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, chairman of the city Budget and Finance Committee, disagreed, saying: “Any system that costs taxpayers $20 (million) to $25 million a year in lawsuits has got to change.”

Proposed City Charter Changes

The City Council granted tentative approval to several proposed City Charter amendments to be put before voters in June. The changes would affect the selection and tenure of the chief of police and increase powers of the Police Commission.

Other proposals involving discipline and training of officers are still being negotiated. The measures are an outgrowth of the Christopher Commission report last year following the police beating of Rodney G. King.

The changes would: CHIEF OF POLICE

Empower the mayor to nominate a new chief from a list of three candidates provided by the Personnel Department.

Limit a chief to two five-year terms.

Empower the Police Commission to terminate a chief, in which case the mayor would have five days to reverse the commission’s action. The chief could request, within five days, a hearing before the City Council, which could reverse the termination by a two-thirds vote.

Empower the Police Commission to appoint a temporary chief of police for up to one year if a chief is unable to perform his duties.

POLICE COMMISSION

Create a new position of commission executive officer--a civilian exempt from Civil Service protection--who would appoint additional staff to help improve the panel’s ability to oversee and control department operations.

Allow police commissioners to serve two five-year terms, plus up to two years of a previous member’s unexpired term.

Limit the commission presidency to two consecutive one-year terms.