A ‘Yes’ Vote for Public Safety : Prop. 1 would put more police officers where they’re needed--on the streets

The fear of new violence in response to the coming verdicts in the Rodney King federal civil rights trial makes many Angelenos wish for a cop on every corner--or at least in their neighborhood-- if there is trouble. Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams is promising to put every officer needed on the streets, and his word fully deserves the city’s confidence. But over the long haul, he needs more cops to protect this huge city.

The L.A. Police Department is authorized to have a strength of 7,900; the current total is 7,690. Those numbers are much too small for a city of nearly 3.5 million that stretches over 467 square miles. At least half a dozen major cities have a higher ratio of police to residents.

Voters can beef up the LAPD by supporting Proposition 1 on the April 20 ballot. The measure would impose a special tax on businesses and homes to finance 1,000 new police officers over the next five years.

Nobody likes higher property taxes, but the city can’t afford more cops without the additional revenues. Hamstrung by a precipitous drop in revenues and a budget deficit that could grow as high as $500 million, the city must turn to the taxpayers.

The average homeowner would pay about $6 a month more in property tax, according to estimates. That’s a tiny investment for public safety and peace of mind.

This is not the first time the city has asked voters to raise property taxes to pay for more police. Earlier ballot measures failed, though just barely. The most recent thwarting of the will of the majority occurred last November when 63% of the voters supported a proposal similar to Prop. 1; that measure failed because two-thirds of the voters, a ridiculously high hurdle, must approve property tax increases.

A “yes” vote on Prop. 1 is more that a vote for more cops. It is also a vote of confidence in Williams and the improved LAPD. The chief deserves great support because of his leadership in his first year on the job. He also deserves the men and women he needs to make good on his commitment to community policing. Every new officer made possible by Prop. 1 will work the streets, not sit behind a desk, Williams vows.

Los Angeles is the second-largest city in the nation. It needs and deserves a larger police presence, not just this week but all of the time. Vote “yes” on Proposition 1.