THE TIMES POLL : Faith in LAPD Returns on Eve of Volatile Trials

Reflecting renewed confidence in the Los Angeles Police Department under Chief Willie L. Williams, a wide majority of Los Angeles residents say they believe the city will be able to quell any outbreak of violence resulting from verdicts in the Rodney G. King and Reginald O. Denny beating trials, a Los Angeles Times Poll has found.

Sixty-nine percent of respondents were confident that city officials and the LAPD could quell a major outbreak of violence should it occur; only 26% expressed doubt and 5% said they were unsure.

Mounting respect for the way the Police Department is doing its job is of critical importance because 67% of the city believes one or the other verdicts will trigger renewed rioting. The expectation of violence has increased slightly since October, when 61% thought it likely.

Nancy Loesser, a 42-year-old San Fernando Valley artist, was one of many respondents who expressed concern about renewed violence but voiced new confidence in the police.

“I think there’s a determination on (Williams’ part) not to let what happened before happen again,” she said. “It may be a matter of pride, but that’s OK. My fears have been allayed.”

The poll, conducted from Jan. 28 through Feb. 2, reveals a public mind-set that is both fearful and hopeful as the potentially explosive trials in the King and Denny cases move forward. Jury selection began this week in federal court in the prosecution of four Los Angeles police officers accused of violating King’s civil rights. The police officers’ acquittals April 29 in state court on charges that they used excessive force to subdue King triggered an eruption of violence from which the city is still trying to recover.

The case may overlap with the scheduled March 15 trial date of three black men charged with the attempted murder of white trucker Denny at the onset of the riots, an event that, like the King beating, was also videotaped and received worldwide attention.

Three in 10 respondents think it is very likely that the verdicts will cause another outbreak of violence, while 37% say it is somewhat likely.

More Anglo residents (75%) were inclined to expect trouble than blacks (61%) or Latinos (65%). But apprehension appears to pervade all corners of the city.

Seventy-three percent of Valley respondents thought violence likely, a sentiment shared by 69% of those living on the Westside and 63% of central city and South Los Angeles residents.

Despite their fears of renewed upheaval, most Angelenos reject the idea that the three Denny defendants should be allowed to plea bargain for lesser sentences as a way of defusing tensions in the city.

However, opinions surrounding the Denny defendants revealed the widest ethnic split of any other issue, with a sizable minority of blacks (29%) convinced that the trial will be biased against the defendants and 49% of blacks approving a plea bargain in the case.

The survey, conducted by Times Poll Director John Brennan, interviewed 1,618 Los Angeles residents, including Anglos, African-Americans, Latinos and Asian-Americans. It has a margin of error of 3 percentage points in each direction.

Despite the clear-cut unease surrounding the trials, residents citywide expressed resurgent confidence in the Police Department, which polled its highest job-approval rating (58%) since the March, 1991, King beating.

After months of negative portrayals, sagging public support and a critical lashing by the Webster Commission for its handling of the spring riots, the department’s image, led by William’s strong popular showing, appears to be on the mend.

African-Americans and Latinos have dramatically shifted their views of the LAPD in recent months. In a citywide poll in October, 58% of blacks and 54% of Latinos voiced disapproval of the force. Now, 61% of Latinos and 50% of blacks rate its performance positively.

Much of the boost in the LAPD’s image appears due to the strong broad-based appeal of Williams, who scored an impressive 67% job-approval rating, compared with only 9% who disapproved and 24% who had no opinion.

Moreover, Williams’ rating has climbed 15 points since October, when in the first Times poll of his popularity, the new chief garnered 52% of the city’s support.

Williams may be the most popular official in the city right now, scoring higher ratings than Mayor Tom Bradley (39% approve; 47% disapprove) or the City Council (37% approve; 43% disapprove.)

His high marks also stand in stark contrast to that of his predecessor, Daryl F. Gates, who received a staggering 81% unfavorable rating in a survey shortly after last spring’s riots. During that survey, 60% of those polled thought the LAPD could have prevented the violence from getting out of control had the department acted differently.

Similarly, 25% of the respondents named either Gates or his force as being most responsible for the riots.

Now, however, many residents say Williams has restored their confidence and believe the city should rally round the department.

“It’s real easy to be negative but unless we give them a shot we can’t expect anything better,” said Roger Avila, a 27-year-old Pacoima resident who responded to the poll. “Chief Williams has given them a whole new direction, it’s a change in attitude. With his community-based policing ideas, he’s trying to be more in touch.”

The department’s swift response in December to a rock and bottle-throwing incident at the riot flash point of Florence and Normandie avenues also seemed to have impressed many respondents.

“You could see a difference there; clearly they are trying to do a better job,” Baldwin Hills resident Tim Colohan said.

But if there is broad-based support for the new chief, the poll also revealed a potentially wide vein of racial polarization over the trials and the degree to which unpopular verdicts could inflame tensions.

Most respondents--including African-Americans--are undecided as to whether the trials will be biased in favor or against either set of defendants. But few (only 18%) are convinced the trials will be fair.

The question of allowing the three Denny defendants to plead guilty to lesser charges and thereby receive lighter sentences elicited the strongest opinion on both sides.

Majorities of Anglos (62%) and Latinos (57%) oppose the idea, but 49% of blacks support such an arrangement, and 34% oppose it.

Half of the Anglo and Latino respondents said they strongly opposed the idea, while two in five blacks said they strongly favored it.

Donald Jackson, a 58-year-old South-Central resident, said black residents remain wary of the criminal justice system and its ability to deliver just verdicts to African-Americans.

“I feel both sets are guilty, but if the police get off then the other should get off too,” Jackson said. “If the police had been found guilty in the first place, there would have been no riots and the (Denny beating) would not have happened. If the city forgets the whole thing maybe we can get back on our feet.”

But such opinions encountered strong disagreement even among other black respondents:

“People are trying to smooth it over so the whole city doesn’t catch fire . . . but (the King and Denny incidents) should be looked at separately,” 46-year-old Sheila Young said. “One may be the result of the other but that does not condone what happened (to Denny). To reduce the charges is to compromise justice.”

How the Poll Was Conducted

The Times Poll interviewed 1,618 Los Angeles adults, including 1,149 registered voters, by telephone between Jan. 28 and Feb. 2. Telephone numbers were chosen from a list of all exchanges in the city. Random-digit dialing techniques were used to ensure that both listed and non-listed numbers could be contacted. Results were weighted slightly to conform with census figures for sex, race, age, education, geography and household size. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. The margin of sampling error for the total sample and the sample of registered voters is plus or minus 3 percentage points. For certain subgroups the error margin is somewhat higher. Poll results can also be affected by other factors, such as the wording of questions and the order in which questions are presented.

L.A.’s RIOT FEARS

As Los Angeles uneasily prepares for verdicts in two racially explosive trials--the Rodney G. King and Reginald O. Denny beating cases--residents expect renewed violence but a majority are confident that the Police Department, under its new chief, will be able to quell any unrest.

Are you confident that top city officials and police are prepared to quell any outbreak of violence after the upcoming verdicts? Confident: 69% Doubtful: 26% Don’t know: 5%

By Race:

Anglo Black Latino Confident 72% 65% 65% Doubtful 25% 27% 30% Don’t know 3% 8% 5%

Do you approve or disapprove of the way Los Angeles Police Department is handling its job?

March 1988: 74% (Approve) March 1991: 34% (Approve) July 1991: 42% (Approve) May 1992: 40% (Approve) October 1992: 45% (Approve) February 1993: 58% (Approve)

What are the chances that one or both of verdicts in the upcoming trials will result in violence?

FEB. 1993 OCT. 1992 Likely 67% 61% Unlikely 28% 33% Don’t know 5% 6%

In order to reduce tensions in the city, should the principal defendants in the Denny case be allowed to plea bargain, or should they be required to face trial on attempted murder charges? Support plea bargain: 33% Oppose plea bargain: 55% Don’t know: 12%

Source: Times Poll of the city of Los Angeles, Jan. 28-Feb. 2, of 1,618 adults.