Williams Expected to Unveil LAPD Reorganization Today

Police Chief Willie L. Williams is expected to unveil a detailed proposal today outlining his plan to reorganize the Los Angeles Police Department, including combining several department functions and civilianizing some key positions--all in an effort to put more uniformed officers on patrol.

The chief met for three hours Thursday with 20 members of his top command behind closed doors at the Police Academy, where he reached final decisions on redesigning the beleaguered department, which he took over last summer. The supervisors also discussed alternatives for police use-of-force tactics and reviewed new riot-readiness training for police officers.

Deputy Chief Bob Gil, the department’s chief spokesman, said Williams plans to file his reorganization plan with the Police Commission today so the panel can discuss it at its next public meeting Tuesday.

After earlier promoting a series of officers to top-level positions, the chief is now in the process of putting his stamp on the department, accentuating community-based policing, streamlining the bureaucracy and moving officers out of desk jobs and back into uniform.

“There’s going to be some selected significant modifications that we hope will have a positive impact on how we operate,” Gil said. “The staff is very upbeat about this. We are very supportive.”

Neither Gil nor Williams would address specifics Thursday about the reorganization, preferring instead to submit it first to the commission.

Williams, in an interview in his office last Friday, said he wants to reduce duplications by combining several police functions. For example, intelligence operations would be combined, as would press and community relations. He said he also wants to have the Internal Affairs Division, which investigates police misconduct, report directly to his office.

About 100 officers could be put back into patrol by January as a result of the streamlining, the chief said. He added that the reassignments will be mandatory.

“We’re going to look at everything,” Williams said. “Everything is on the table.”

About combining some units, the chief added: “You can consolidate; you can pare some functions. . . . Some consolidation will be done for unity of command because they’re scattered all over the department.”

On Thursday, Gil said the reorganization will include assigning specific commanders and deputy chiefs to new areas of command, positions they will assume within the next week or two.

At the same time, he said, the chief is looking to place civilian administrators in some top spots now held by sworn officers.

Gil said that Williams and the top staff also reviewed a class at the academy in which officers are undergoing riot-readiness drills.