Security Squads Face Crackdown

Detectives told the Los Angeles Police Commission on Tuesday that they will join the state Department of Consumer Affairs to crack down on vigilante-style security guard squads hired by landlords to rid their buildings of drug dealers and deadbeat tenants.

The formation of a joint task force, as well as other Police Commission staff actions aimed at eliminating such activity, came in response to a Los Angeles Times article last month that described the activities of teams operating in drug-plagued areas of Panorama City, North Hills and Pico-Union.

Police Commission member Ann Reiss Lane, who asked for a report on the security guards, said she was very disturbed by reports in the article that police officers were aware of the sometimes brutal approach taken by the squads but did nothing to stop it.

“I want a clarification as to whether this activity was approved by the Los Angeles Police Department and, if so, what they plan to do about it,” Lane said. “Even disreputable people have rights in this society.”

Police spokesman Lt. John Dunkin said the department is launching its own investigation of security squads that kick down doors of private apartments to apprehend suspected drug dealers at gunpoint, harass pedestrians in areas where drugs are sold and beat up those who are slow to comply with their orders.

The Police Commission regulates and licenses security guards who wear uniforms and travel city streets. The state licenses security guards who do not make patrols.

Detective Richard Rudell, who is assigned to the Police Commission, said many of the activities described in the article are illegal. He said many police officers need to be educated about the licenses that security guards need.

Rudell said police officers can issue citations or arrest security guards for being unlicensed or for breaking other laws.

The joint task force, which will include LAPD officers, will focus on “trying to identify where (the security guards) are operating so police officers in the area can apply the law” to the largely unlicensed squads, Rudell said.

He said a computer check determined that David Roybal, the 33-year-old security contractor who was the focus of The Times’ article, and Oscar Zuniga, a member of his crew, have been involved in 50 arrest reports in the last two years as witnesses, arresting officers or victims. The majority of those incidents were related to drugs or trespassing violations, although the two were listed as being victims in several assaults.

In other action during the commission meeting, a speaker accused board member Michael R. Yamaki of hypocrisy for obtaining a concealed-firearm permit for himself from the Culver City Police Department while routinely voting against the granting of permits by the Los Angeles Police Department.

J. Neil Schulman, a gun rights advocate, noted that with the exception of a permit granted recently to Police Chief Willie L. Williams, the board has denied all concealed-gun permit requests since 1974.

“When Mr. Yamaki felt it necessary to obtain a license to carry a concealed firearm to protect himself, after uniformly denying these licenses to the citizens he is supposed to serve, why did he sneak off to another municipality so that this commission could absolve itself of the responsibility?” Schulman asked.

Schulman received no response from the board, and when asked after the meeting about Schulman’s allegations, Yamaki ignored the questions.

However, Culver City Police Chief Ted Cooke confirmed that Yamaki had obtained a permit this year.

Times staff writer Eric Malnic contributed to this story.