Panel Makes Slow, Quiet Progress in Selection of Chief : LAPD: Working under intense public scrutiny, the Police Commission is determined to avoid a choice that might become tainted by scandal.

After poring over stacks of background materials and sitting through some 30 hours of face-to-face interviews, the Los Angeles Police Commission could decide as early as this week who will take the helm of the embattled Police Department after Chief Daryl F. Gates.

The commission goes behind closed doors again today, after a marathon six-hour private session last Thursday, during which panel members began comparing the strengths and weaknesses of the six police chief finalists.

“We made significant progress,” said Commissioner Antonio De Los Reyes.

Thus far, commissioners have kept their preferences a carefully guarded secret. Commission President Stanley Sheinbaum said he expects to announce the new chief this week or next--an event many government and civic leaders see as central to the city’s recovery from the upheaval caused by the beating of Rodney G. King.

At this point, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Willie L. Williams remains a leading contender, according to knowledgeable City Hall sources. Williams was ranked first by an oral interview panel last month. As the reformer head of a 6,300-officer force, he also has won praise for firsthand experience in implementing the types of changes called for by the independent Christopher Commission, including so-called community-based policing techniques, and for moving firmly to discipline rogue officers.

Commissioners on a subcommittee said they were favorably impressed last week on a visit to Philadelphia, where they talked to community leaders and dropped in on several neighborhood “mini-stations,” outposts staffed by police and community volunteers who work together to solve crime and other problems.

“It’s a dream come true as far as I’m concerned,” said Commissioner Ann Reiss Lane, who made the trip.

If selected, Williams would be the department’s first black chief and the first to come from outside the Los Angeles Police Department in more than 40 years--a combination that would send a powerful signal of change to a community whose Police Department has been battered by allegations of racism and brutality.

“A lot of people in the (selection) process and people commenting on the process believe we need an outsider,” said Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, who visited Philadelphia recently to talk with Williams and local leaders. Williams has a reputation for honesty “pretty much across the board,” Yaroslavsky said, but choosing him would spark “a lot of heat from the (LAPD) rank and file.”

Commissioners are acutely aware of this, noting that LAPD commanders have taken pride in saying that they export police chiefs to other cities--they do not import them.

“An insider may be caught up so much in the culture, there may not be any sign of change in philosophy, of approach,” said Commissioner Jesse A. Brewer, a former LAPD assistant chief. “But you have to look at whether an outsider can come in and gain control, and how long it will take.”

Capt. Charles Labrow, president of the LAPD’s Command Officer Assn., said if Williams is chosen he would “be immediately saddled with some tremendous problems, one of which would be the morale” problem caused by an outside chief. Williams said he discussed that issue with commissioners during interviews, but declined to comment further.

The outsider vs. insider question is one of several weighing heavily on the part-time, civilian Police Commission as it nears a decision in what is the city’s most closely scrutinized appointment process in decades.

“It’s an enormous decision,” said De Los Reyes, a trial lawyer.

“It’s hard even to sleep good,” said Commissioner Michael Yamaki, also an attorney. “You think of other things you might consider.”

One scenario that haunts commission members is the possibility that after a nine-month screening process, they could choose a new chief who becomes tainted by scandal. They fear that that might give Gates a reason to delay his retirement. The chief first said he would leave in April but more recently suggested he might stay on through June.

Commissioners say they have tried to thoroughly investigate all the finalists.

“We are taking it very carefully,” De Los Reyes said. “(Looking at) every little whisper that pops up; we are just creeping forward.”

Lane, an activist and former president of the city Fire Commission, said she worries that someone could withhold negative information on a candidate and use it against him after his selection is announced.

Some City Hall insiders believe that under these conditions, Williams would be a safe choice. He has survived 3 1/2 years as chief in a city with an aggressive local press, despite being at odds with his officers’ union. Also, some city officials believe that rivals and critics in the Los Angeles Police Department are less likely to have collected potentially embarrassing background information on Williams.

Williams’ weaknesses include his limited education--he lacks a four-year college degree. “He worked his way up,” said one City Hall source who is monitoring the selection process closely.

The second-ranked candidate, LAPD Deputy Chief Bernard C. Parks, has a USC master’s degree in public administration and a reputation as a strong and intelligent administrator. Other finalists include LAPD Assistant Chief David D. Dotson and Deputy Chiefs Matthew V. Hunt, Glenn A. Levant and Mark A. Kroeker.

The main objective, commissioners say, is to choose a chief who can reach out to the sprawling city’s diverse ethnic communities, rebuild morale inside the 8,300-officer force and move ahead with the reforms urged by the Christopher Commission and endorsed by the City Council and mayor.

“We want someone who would be the best at healing within the department and in the community,” Sheinbaum said.