Chief Vows to Shift Officers to Street

Police Chief Willie L. Williams promised a crowd of more than 100 Echo Park and Westlake residents Tuesday that he will put more officers on the streets, particularly on drug suppression detail, by shifting officers from special assignments to patrol.

Speaking at a community meeting at the Angelus Temple auditorium, Williams said he hopes to redeploy at least 100 officers to the field and increase street-level narcotics enforcement by 50% to 60%.

Williams said the 7,700-officer department barely has enough personnel to provide the bare bones of community policing. “But we’re not making excuses,” he said. “We’ll just have to modify how we do business.”

Williams also told the crowd during his 90-minute appearance that he would “get you, the resident,” more involved in the operation and policies of the department. “The department works for you, the community,” he said. “You have to tell us what you want us to do and how you want us to do it.”