Riordan Faces Test of Changing LAPD’s Direction

With all eyes on Richard Riordan’s pledge to enlarge the Los Angeles Police Department, the new mayor also will be judged on whether he can prevent another Rodney G. King beating.

Although Police Chief Willie L. Williams has moved to improve training, bring the cops closer to the communities and put an occasional smile on the LAPD’s grim face, it is Riordan who has the power to permanently change the direction of the department.

The mayor-elect has asked for the resignation of every city commissioner. The decisions he makes in filling the five seats on the Police Commission will be a test of his will to carry out reforms proposed in the aftermath of the King beating.

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Under the City Charter, the part-time Police Commission, appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the City Council, controls and manages the department.

Giving citizen commissioners such broad power was an attempt by 1920s reformers to make government more accountable to the people and protect them from abuse of power. But, as the Christopher Commission said in its report on the LAPD after the King beating, “during most of its existence, the Police Commission has taken a far more passive role, essentially acting as a ‘booster or rubber stamp’ for the department.”

The attorney who served as executive director of the Christopher Commission, Gilbert T. Ray, is one of the strongest candidates for appointment to the commission.

His advocates on the transition team said Ray has a lot going for him.

For one thing, they said it would send a message to the community that Riordan supports the Christopher Commission reforms, including strong civilian control over the department. Riordan didn’t join in public criticism of then-Police Chief Daryl F. Gates. His opponents cited this point in implying that he opposed stronger civilian oversight.

Ray also is an Establishment success, a quality that probably appeals to Riordan. He is a partner in O’Melveny & Myers, the influential L.A. law firm once led by Warren Christopher, who headed the King investigation before he became secretary of state. Ray also is a friend of Riordan transition chief Bill Wardlaw, himself a former O’Melveny partner.

Ray is an African-American, a member of a racial minority that has charged that it has often been the target of LAPD abuse. Presumably, Ray would be sympathetic to such charges.

Finally, Democrat Ray supported Republican Riordan when it counted, helping his effort to move from his Republican primary base toward the political center in the runoff.

At least one current member, Ann Reiss Lane, has asked Riordan to keep her on the commission, at least until her term expires next June, to provide continuity.

Nothing will be done without Riordan consulting the police union, the Police Protective League, which opposed a ballot measure two years ago that enacted major Christopher Commission reforms. The league endorsed Riordan. It stood up for him at a crucial moment, when his campaign was threatened by the revelation that Riordan had been arrested for drunk driving. A favor like that gives the union clout in the appointment process.

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Hopefully, there are limits to Riordan’s gratitude to the union. That may be the case, judging from a conversation I had with him before the election.

He recalled that he contributed and raised money to support the Christopher Commission and the election campaign that implemented some of its reforms. “It was a great example of my form of government, which is delegating to bright, powerful people and allowing them to implement,” he said.

He seemed to favor a strong police commission. “Let’s take the Rodney King incident, the violence the police brought,” he said. “I think with strong leadership in the Police Commission, the mayor’s office, the violence would have been stopped long before. There were 300 bad people on the Police Department of whom 50 were super-bad and everybody knew who they were. But the Police Commission never did a damn thing about it and the mayor appointed the Police Commission.”

Soon we’ll know whether this means he will appoint a Police Commission dedicated to carrying out the Christopher reforms or will cast his lot with the status quo.