HUNTINGTON PARK : City Leaders Show Support for Police

The beleaguered Police Department received a boost recently from some city leaders and residents who expressed support despite allegations of discrimination and harassment within the 60-member force.

When Police Assn. President Steve Hess confronted City Council members at their April 4 meeting, asking them whether the city was considering turning law enforcement over to the county Sheriff’s Department, Mayor Ric Loya called the idea “a bunch of bunk” and council members unanimously expressed support for the city police.

“I’m strenuously opposed to going to the Sheriff’s (Department),” said Councilman Tom Jackson. “I’m for the Huntington Park Police Department.”

Julie Gonzalez, vice president of Cerritos Valley Bank in Huntington Park, praised the department for its quick response to a recent holdup and warned that the Sheriff’s Department would not be as efficient.

During a candidate’s forum, newly elected council members Rosario Marin and Jessica Maes rejected the idea of contracting with the Sheriff’s Department.

Two of the five council members, Jackson and recently defeated Councilman Luis Hernandez, have also publicly stated support for Police Chief Frank Sullivan, whose performance is being reviewed by the council.

And resident Manuel Delgadillo, a reserve officer in the Bell Police Department, submitted a letter to the council as a “vote of confidence” for the chief.

Sullivan expressed surprise at the public show of support but chalked some of it up to election season. Delgadillo, whose letter also criticized Loya and Councilman Raul Perez, is the son of unsuccessful council candidate Agustin Delgadillo.

The City Council is reviewing the chief’s report on problems within the department. Sullivan called the report “brief but substantial.”