Police Agencies Rehearse Riot Response Plans : King case: Authorities vow to back up one another if disturbances occur. Some area gun shops report brisk sales.

Fearing that violence will erupt after the verdicts arrive in the second Rodney G. King beating case, police across Ventura County polished their riot response plans this week as worried residents armed themselves at local gun shops.

Ventura County Sheriff Larry Carpenter, in a public statement issued Thursday, sought to reassure residents that police agencies are prepared for any trial-related civil disturbances.

“Although we do not expect problems in Ventura County, we want to assure our citizens that we are well prepared to protect them and their property and to effectively handle any situation that may arise,” the statement said.

The Ventura County Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee, representing the Sheriff’s Department and police in Simi Valley, Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Paula and Port Hueneme, has met in recent weeks to coordinate their emergency plans.

Ventura County agencies have vowed to back up one another, and if necessary seek additional help from Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties under a regional mutual-aid plan, Carpenter said.

Police officials pointed out that the destruction last spring in Los Angeles County, sparked by verdicts in the state’s King beating case in Simi Valley, did not spread to Ventura County.

Nevertheless, if looting and vandalism occur locally, officers do not want to be caught unprepared--a criticism often leveled at the Los Angeles Police Department last year.

“Nobody wants to be in that position,” Oxnard Police Chief Harold Hurtt said. “I also think we’re looking out for the safety of the city.”

Still, some residents are concerned that police would not be able to halt widespread violence. Area gun shop owners said they have noticed an increase in people buying guns over the past few weeks, well before the federal King beating case neared an end.

“They knew the trial was starting and that there would be a verdict eventually,” said Steve Cotter, whose family runs Hilldale Sales, a Simi Valley gun shop. “They knew about the 15-day waiting period, and they started buying early.”

Last April, angry residents in Los Angeles looted and destroyed numerous buildings after a Ventura County jury found four Los Angeles police officers not guilty of beating the Altadena motorist.

This year, federal authorities opened a second trial in downtown Los Angeles, charging the officers with violating King’s civil rights and touching off renewed concerns about civil unrest.

Chris Nielsen, a Thousand Oaks barber who lives in Simi Valley, said many of his customers believe the second verdict will trigger new violence that could sweep into suburban areas. “It sounds like people are arming themselves to the teeth,” said Nielsen, 53. “I think people are preparing themselves in case there is another riot.”

But the barber suggested that neighborhood gossip and news reports have provoked much of the concern about new rioting. “I don’t think it’s going to come to that,” Nielsen said. “I think it’s rumors. And the newspapers and television are hammering away at it.”

Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams has announced plans to assemble an unprecedented number of officers on the streets to quell any civil disturbances.

Beyond Carpenter’s statement, police agencies in Ventura County have revealed few specifics on their riot preparations. But they said the plans will allow them to quickly boost the numbers of officers on the street if violence occurs.

Sheriff’s Lt. Dave Tennessen, who oversees patrols in Thousand Oaks and Moorpark, said his department is ready to switch its daily schedule from three eight-hour shifts to two 12-hour shifts, doubling the number of deputies on duty. Detectives and traffic officers could also be sent on emergency calls if necessary, he said.

But Tennessen cautioned that deputies have no hard evidence that such expanded enforcement will be needed. “I would term it a just-in-case thing,” the sheriff’s official said.

Simi Valley Police Capt. Richard Wright said his department also has a plan to increase the number of officers on duty, if needed. The city received much attention last year as the site of the first beating trial, but Wright said, “We didn’t have any problems” with civil disturbances.

Still, the televised scenes of destruction in Los Angeles touched off a buying spree last year at Ventura County gun shops. Many were first-time gun buyers who were unaware of the state law requiring a 15-day wait to take home most handguns, rifles and shotguns.

Shops report brisk sales, but far short of last spring’s pace.

“I’d say there’s been an increase, but there hasn’t been the panic buying that there was last year,” said Roy K. Craik, owner of C. Crest Arms in Simi Valley.

Andy Dickson, manager of Shooters Paradise in Oxnard, said his recent customers have been a mixture of residents and business owners from Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

“Sales have just about doubled in the last two weeks,” he said. “There is a general concern about the potential for violence.”

But Dickson added, “I think a little bit of it is overreacting.”

At Sportsmen’s Exchange, also in Oxnard, owner Tony Montemorra said there has been no repetition of last spring’s buying spree at his shop. “We don’t see any increase in sales at all,” he said.

Instead of buying firearms, some business owners are hiring security guards.

Jack Combs, owner of Simi Valley-based Gull Security and Investigations, said several large retail outlets, concerned about post-verdict violence, have asked him for guards. One is an appliance store in Ventura.

“The manager said she wanted two armed guards from the time the judge sends it to the jury till a few days after the verdict is read,” Combs said. “It will be good money for a couple of security officers. But I don’t think it’s necessary.”

The security firm owner said the fears among local store owners are probably unwarranted. “I don’t know why the hell they’re worried about it here in Ventura County,” Combs said. “They didn’t burn anything here.”

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