Riordan Names Diverse Police Panel Appointees : City Hall: Selection of fresh faces draws praise, but some still question mayor’s commitment to LAPD reform.

One week after taking office, Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan on Friday unveiled what may prove to be the most closely watched appointments of his Administration: a new and diverse five-member Police Commission whose mandate is to reform the LAPD and restore public safety to the city.

Riordan’s appointees, introduced at a packed City Hall news conference, are Rabbi Gary Greenebaum of the American Jewish Committee; security firm executive Enrique Hernandez Jr.; attorney Deirdre Hill, daughter of Sen. Teresa Hughes (D-Inglewood); Xerox executive Art Mattox, a member of a police gay advisory group, and Herbert F. (Bert) Boeckmann II, a prominent San Fernando Valley car dealer. Of the group, only Boeckmann, a former police commissioner and prominent political contributor, is well known around City Hall.

The police commissioners are the first, and perhaps the most significant, of about 200 citizen volunteers that Riordan will soon name to the boards that run city government in Los Angeles. As the policy-setting head of the LAPD, the commissioners must guide the beleaguered force through the reform process begun after the 1991 beating of Rodney G. King. They also will oversee the promised expansion of the 7,673-officer department, which Riordan has vowed to increase by 3,000 officers.

Despite the lack of familiar names--or perhaps because of it--Riordan won some immediate plaudits for his selections. Several members of the City Council, which must confirm Riordan’s appointees, praised his choices.

“In the 22 years I have been on the City Council, I think this is the best group, as a whole, that I’ve seen,” said Councilman Joel Wachs, a Riordan supporter. “I think they are remarkably capable people, extraordinarily diverse, and they represent the many voices in the city.”

In other quarters, though, there was disappointment. Some complained that the nominees do not include a representative of Los Angeles’ sizable Asian-American community. Others said they are still concerned about the new mayor’s commitment to police reform--which came into question when he named the police union president, William Violante, deputy mayor last week.

During his news conference Friday, Riordan dismissed the notion that the Police Commission or any single city panel could always reflect the city’s diversity.

“What I have said time and time again is that my Administration will reflect the diversity of L.A. That doesn’t mean that any one commission will fully reflect the diversity because that would be impossible and it’s improper because I am looking for the best people for each of the commissions,” Riordan said. “Whatever the mix is for that one commission is not important. . . . But my Administration as a whole will reflect . . . diversity.”

As for police reform, Riordan said his commissioners--working with the City Council, Police Chief Willie L. Williams and others--will “put into effect the reforms suggested by the Christopher Commission and as an ultimate goal make Los Angeles safe.”

Indeed, one of the nominees--Greenebaum--was active in the campaign that led to voter approval of Charter Amendment F, an outgrowth of Christopher Commission reforms recommended after the King beating. The measure was overwhelmingly approved by voters last year.

Some political analysts thought the appointment of Greenebaum would help defuse the controversy over Riordan’s naming of Violante, who as head of the Police Protective League had opposed the reform measure.

Violante’s appointment continued to draw close scrutiny Friday when it was revealed that the expense accounts of Protective League directors, including Violante, were audited last year. A league source said a maverick union member suspected directors of mishandling expense accounts, but the audit found no wrongdoing.

“I called for the audit as the president,” Violante said. “They came in and audited the books, and they gave us a clean bill of health.”

Riordan’s handling of the appointment process has been viewed with great interest ever since the wealthy Republican businessman broke a longstanding Democratic lock on the mayor’s office. Indeed, on the eve of his commission appointments, some of the city’s black and Latino activists complained their their communities had been overlooked in Riordan’s first selections of a City Hall staff--with the four top jobs announced first going to to three Anglo men and one Asian-American woman.

But the new mayor said Friday he would not respond to such criticism with politically expedient appointments.

“I guess criticism comes with the turf when you are mayor. I have got to stand up to it and go ahead and just do the best I can,” he said.

Civil rights groups generally took a wait-and-see attitude with the new appointments.

“I’m not particularly impressed,” said Joe Hicks, executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Greater Los Angeles.

Hicks said he was upset that only one of the commission nominees--Greenebaum--has a record of supporting police reforms. Hicks said that he would have liked Riordan “to bring people to the board who had some history of involvement around police issues, and that doesn’t seem to be the case.”

The Protective League, the union representing rank-and-file LAPD officers, was researching the new appointees, some of whom appeared to take the union by surprise. Nonetheless, an official at the league said leaders were “pleased with the selections and looking forward to working with the new board.”

Jesse A. Brewer, the outgoing president of the Police Commission, said he was looking forward to retirement. Brewer was appointed to the commission by former Mayor Tom Bradley after leaving the LAPD in 1991. Brewer, who was the highest ranking black police officer in the history of the LAPD at the time he left, had tangled with former Chief Daryl F. Gates, but still was widely liked by many officers and some critics of the department as well.

“I feel that I have contributed to this city, and I have no reservations whatsoever about leaving the commission,” he said. “Mayor Riordan has chosen some quality commissioners.”

Stewart Kwoh, executive director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California, said he was disappointed about the absence of an Asian-American from the commission, though Asian-Americans make up about 11% of the city’s population.

“I’m very disappointed that he didn’t appoint any Asian-Americans,” Kwoh said. “With (outgoing Police Commissioner) Mike Yamaki, the commission did have a chance of being more sensitive to the unique problems our community has faced, problems such as having . . . only 3% to 4% of the police force being Asian-American.”

“Our community fears the police more than the criminals,” Kwoh said. “That is a major problem.”

Except for Boeckmann, a former police commissioner, the remaining choices are little known to the political Establishment--fulfilling a Riordan pledge to inject new blood into City Hall. Their backgrounds and accomplishments cover a wide spectrum:

* Boeckmann, 62, is a self-made millionaire, owner of Galpin Ford and the San Fernando Valley’s top political contributor. A conservative Republican from Northridge who backed television evangelist Pat Robertson’s 1988 presidential campaign, Boeckmann served as a Mayor Tom Bradley’s appointee to the Police Commission from 198491. He resigned, with another commissioner, when the city’s new ethics laws required disclosures that he considered an “invasion of privacy.” Some of those disclosure requirements have since been changed.

* Greenebaum, 44, a Democrat who lives in the Mid-City area, is a rabbi and western regional director of the American Jewish Committee. He and Riordan have served together on the Rebuild L.A. board.

* Hernandez, 37, a second-generation Mexican-American and son of a retired LAPD lieutenant, is a Harvard-educated lawyer. A Republican, he moved from San Marino to downtown Los Angeles two weeks ago in anticipation of his appointment, and runs an Alhambra-based security firm.

* Hill is a black attorney from Baldwin Hills. During the mayoral campaign, she joined a group of women who favor abortion rights to support Riordan at a time when he was under attack for his contributions for anti-abortion groups.

* Mattox, 37, an Eagle Rock resident who works as senior national account manager for Xerox, has acted as a training coordinator with the LAPD’s gay and lesbian advisory task force.

All the appointees appeared likely to win City Council confirmation.

Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, who has criticized previous Riordan appointments, could not be reached for comment. But an aide said the councilman “expects there will be a good exchange with the commissioners in terms of finding out where they stand on a variety of issues.”

Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky was effusive in his praise of Greenebaum, calling his selection “one of best Police Commission appointments I’ve seen.”

Noting Greenebaum was a strong supporter of Charter Amendment F, Yaroslavsky said, “This maybe dissipates some of the criticism that the Administration wasn’t as committed to reform as people wanted.”

Council President John Ferraro said that he knew nothing about any of the nominees except Boeckmann, but will vote to confirm the mayor’s recommendations.

Interestingly, for all of his mayoral opponents’ campaign efforts to paint Riordan as an intolerant conservative, his appointments Friday were notable for their inclusion of another gay activist. Before naming Mattox to the Police Commission, Riordan named Michael Keeley, an openly gay lawyer, as one of three deputy mayors. Two other deputy mayor appointments are expected as early as next week.

‘What I am saying to the city of Los Angeles is that I am going to pick the best, most capable people I can to help me run this city,” Riordan said. “If they happen to be gay, Christian, Irish, any other, so be it.”

The Appointees

Here are the new members of the Los Angeles Police Commission appointed by Mayor Richard Riordan.

Herbert F. Boeckmann II

* Age: 62

* Career highlights: President and general manager of Galpin Ford in the San Fernando Valley and a Los Angeles police commissioner from 1984-91.

* Quote: “I think I was a good commissioner then. I think I will be a good commissioner now.”

Rabbi Gary Greenebaum

* Age: 44

* Career highlights: Western regional director of the American Jewish Committee.

* Quote: “It is important, of course, that we deal with the Christopher Commission report . . . but also to increase the respect of officers out there on the street.”

Enrique Hernandez Jr.

* Age: 38

* Career highlights: President, Inter-Con Security Systems, Alhambra. Also co-founder and principal partner of Interspan Communications, a television broadcast company in Alhambra.

* Quote: “I have reviewed the reports of the Christopher Commission and the Webster Commission. In general, I agree substantially with the recommendations.”

Dierdre Hill

* Career highlights: Attorney with Saltzburg, Ray & Bergman of Los Angeles.

* Quote: “I look forward to implementing the reforms necessary to restore public confidence . . . and to (bringing) pride to the officers.”

Art Mattox

* Age: 37

* Career highlights: Senior national account manager for Xerox Corp. Also an LAPD specialist reserve office training coordinator for the Gay and Lesbian Police Advisory Task Force.

* Quote: “I look forward to helping serve all of the people of Los Angeles and helping to raise the level of safety for all of us.”