Outcry Grows in Freed Men’s Case : LAPD: Mayor joins those calling for a grand jury investigation of charges that police pressured witnesses and suppressed evidence.

Mayor Tom Bradley on Friday threw his support behind a call for a grand jury investigation into police handling of the case of Clarence Chance and Benny Powell, two men who spent 17 years in prison for a slaying that prosecutors no longer believe they committed.

“A complete and impartial investigation of the role of the Los Angeles Police Department is appropriate,” the mayor said in a written statement. The objective of such an effort would be to “restore the public’s faith in our department.”

The grand jury investigation would determine whether detectives coerced witnesses into giving false testimony against Chance and Powell in the killing of an off-duty sheriff’s deputy and whether the Police Department suppressed information in the case.

The judge who freed Chance and Powell earlier this week called the department’s conduct in the matter “reprehensible” and said she hoped the department’s Internal Affairs unit would look into the “sordid record.”

Police Chief Daryl F. Gates, in response, said the two men had been released on a procedural error. He also bitterly criticized Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner for not permitting the department to participate in the re-examination of the case.

On Friday, Cmdr. Robert Gil said the Police Department would not oppose outside review of the case, adding that it welcomed an impartial, independent investigation of the facts.

Meanwhile, a coalition of community activists and church leaders gathered to praise Superior Court Judge Florence-Marie Cooper for releasing Chance and Powell. The group announced that it was planning a march to underscore the need for approval of a June 2 ballot measure that would, among other things, give the civilian Police Commission more independence in investigating complaints of police misconduct. That proposal was recommended by the Christopher Commission in the wake of the Rodney G. King beating.

Coalition members also complained about the testimony of defense witnesses in the trial of four officers charged in the King beating. The witnesses have maintained that the officers were following standard department procedure.

Danny Bakewell, president of the Brotherhood Crusade, said another purpose of the march--for which no date or place has been set--is to focus what he described as widespread anger and alarm among black people over the Police Department’s abuse of blacks.

Bakewell said he has received nearly 250 calls in the last two weeks on the King case and scores since Chance and Powell, who also are black, were released. State Sen. Diane Watson (D-Los Angeles) told the gathering she has heard similar complaints during her campaign for a seat on the Los Angles County Board of Supervisors.

“What is really angering people is the specter of Daryl Gates putting his foot in his mouth, the latest of which is his statement that the release of Chance and Powell was a travesty of justice,” said Joe Hicks, president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. “That’s the kind of thing that makes the African-American community believe it simply can’t get justice.”

Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, who introduced a motion supporting the grand jury investigation Friday, said he did not think the anger was limited to blacks.

“This is the state of affairs for a variety of people regardless of ethnicity,” Ridley-Thomas said. He also said he will pursue other options if his colleagues reject his call for the investigation.

The Council will take up the motion Tuesday. City Council members Rita Walters and Michael Woo have indicated they support a grand jury investigation.