Council Gives Chief Time to Drop Claim : Politics: Members vote to postpone discussion of Williams’ $10-million claim until Wednesday.

The Los Angeles City Council has postponed until Wednesday a closed-door discussion of the $10-million claim filed by Police Chief Willie L. Williams, in hopes that the extra time will lead the chief to change his mind and drop the claim.

“The council gave him time in order that this issue could cool,” said member Rudy Svorinich. “We’re giving a window of opportunity to the chief to do the right thing, which in my opinion is to dismiss the claim.”

Several City Hall sources who spoke on condition of anonymity said the informal consensus of the council that emerged after an hourlong discussion of the matter Friday was that Williams’ claim has no merit. The sources said there will be private talks over the next few days about how best to get that message to the chief, pressuring him to drop the claim before eroding what is left of his support on the council.

In addition, several council members spoke privately to Williams on Friday, sources said.

“I don’t think there’s a lot of sympathy on the council,” one insider said. “I think some people are trying to get the word to the chief . . . that he doesn’t have a chance. There are efforts to, hopefully, resolve it in that way.”

The chief’s biggest backer on the 15-member council, Nate Holden, was the only member to miss the meeting. Council members Rita Walters, Mark Ridley-Thomas and Mike Hernandez--who all have expressed support this week for Williams’ attempt to seek damages--did not return phone calls Friday.

Williams’ attorney, Melanie Lomax, said Friday afternoon that she had not heard from anyone at City Hall.

“I don’t have any reaction. There was nothing, really, that happened today,” Lomax said of the council session. “The chief’s course of action hasn’t changed. There has to be an affirmative response [to the claim].”

Williams’ invasion of privacy and defamation claim--the official precursor to a lawsuit--follows disclosures in The Times of confidential personnel information regarding the Police Commission’s investigation into whether the chief accepted free rooms in Las Vegas and then lied about it. The commission reprimanded Williams this year, only to have the council overturn the reprimand.

But the scandal erupted anew last week when The Times published more details of the investigation, and boiled over Monday when Williams filed the claim and several council members called on him to drop it or step down.

“I think it would be very difficult for him to be suing the city and leading the Police Department at the same time,” Council President John Ferraro said Friday, echoing sentiments that he and council members Joel Wachs, Richard Alatorre and Hal Bernson expressed earlier in the week.

“I would hope that the chief reconsiders,” Councilman Richard Alarcon said after the meeting. “I think he made a mistake. I think he was poorly advised. But frankly, in my heart, I don’t think anything is going to change between now and Wednesday. . . . By Wednesday, if nothing changes from Williams’ side, the council will be prepared to act.”

During Friday’s executive session, City Atty. James K. Hahn told council members that his office cannot represent them in the matter because it serves as the chief’s lawyer regularly.

The council made no move to seek outside counsel, several insiders said, because it hopes that Williams will be persuaded in the coming days to drop the claim, thus eliminating the need for the city to hire another lawyer.