Reported Drop in Patrol Officers Alarms Riordan : LAPD: Mayor orders detailed figures on how many police are deployed in the field. Chief says number of personnel on the street should soon increase.

Worried by Los Angeles Police Department internal reports showing that the number of officers assigned to the patrol division has actually declined since he took office, Mayor Richard Riordan on Tuesday ordered department brass to produce a more detailed account of how the sworn force is deployed.

Riordan, who pledged not to run for reelection if he failed to increase the number of LAPD officers by nearly 3,000 during his first term, said the figures in monthly updates on the implementation of the Public Safety Plan approved in 1993 are confusing. The mayor asked the department to report back with a total number of officers deployed in the field, including sergeants, detectives and gang, narcotics and traffic specialists, who are not counted in the “patrol” totals.

If in fact the number of patrol officers has declined, the mayor said in a letter to Police Chief Willie L. Williams, “the department has significantly misinterpreted the public safety priorities of our community.” Noting the massive financial support his office has provided the LAPD, Riordan asked a variety of pointed questions, ranging from whether the monthly reports are accurate to how the department defines a “patrol officer.”

“In light of the extraordinary amount of new tax dollars allocated to the department and the public’s continuing concerns over public safety, I believe the department has a special obligation to the people of Los Angeles to accurately and candidly portray its deployment of field forces,” the mayor added.

The Times reported Saturday that despite a 14% increase in the LAPD’s budget and warp-speed recruitment of new officers since Riordan took office, attrition and promotions to sergeant and detective left the patrol force with 27 fewer officers in September, 1995, than in July, 1993.

Overall, the sworn personnel has swelled, although one LAPD document shows the growth as 135 officers, and another suggests it is more than 800. Department officials were unable to explain the discrepancy, and either number falls far short of the increase of 1,805 officers called for by this summer in the Public Safety Plan.

Williams and other top-ranking police officials Tuesday told the Police Commission the patrol division would soon balloon, as about 80 recruits per month finish training at the LAPD’s academy. They also noted the importance of supervisors and non-patrol officers.

“Patrol is a misnomer. . . . Policing in the city of Los Angeles is more than just putting officers in black and whites,” Williams said. “We have a responsibility to educate the public. This is the most important piece, the men and women in the blue suit, but there are other pieces.”

Deputy Chief David Gascon said the levels of attrition and promotions have come as a surprise, adding, “We may want to look at readjusting those numbers” set out in the Public Safety Plan. But he also said that by using extensive overtime and employing civilians for desk jobs, the number of officers available for patrol duties is greater than what is reflected in the reports.

“Our head is only just above water,” said Assistant Chief Bayan Lewis, noting that an 18-month hiring freeze before Riordan took office left the department with 1,400 promotional vacancies. “We’ve had a difficult two years. . . . The climb should [now] be precipitous, rather than the roller coaster ride of the past two years.”

Deputy Mayor William C. Violante and several commissioners, however, reiterated that putting more officers on the street must remain the No. 1 priority.

“We’re not bean counting here,” Commissioner Art Mattox said. “We’re counting the number of people wearing uniforms, driving around in black and white patrol cars. If you talk to the majority of the people in the community, that’s how they define police.”

As if to emphasize the point, Mattox and Police Commission President Deirdre Hill later refused to approve a routine personnel transfer item, questioning the need for sworn officers on a technology task force.

“I would rather see a civilian in charge of recycling [computers] and see a sergeant, in uniform, out in a black and white serving the community,” Mattox said before he and Hill voted against the personnel transfer. The item was tabled until the fifth commissioner can break the 2-2 tie.

In other business Tuesday, the commission asked for a thorough review of the department’s crime lab and of detectives’ evidence-gathering procedures, which came under attack during the O.J. Simpson murder trial.

Williams promised a preliminary report on the crime lab by the end of next week, and a fuller analysis--including the prospects for consolidation with the county’s crime lab and privatization--within 45 days.

County Supervisor Mike Antonovich also recommended Tuesday that the city consider consolidating its crime lab with the Sheriff’s Department’s forensic lab. Without discussing the controversy surrounding the LAPD lab in the aftermath of the Simpson trial, Antonovich said that the sheriff’s lab has “an excellent record” in handling evidence in criminal cases and that a consolidation could lead to greater efficiency for both agencies. The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to send a letter to Riordan and Williams urging them both to consider the merger.

Two City Council members introduced motions Tuesday calling for an investigation into the crime lab’s training, staffing and equipment needs. The requests were referred to the council’s Public Safety Committee.

“The lab is still viewed as the best in the country. But, like any place, there is always room for improvement,” Williams told the Police Commission.

Noting that Simpson’s defense team attacked detectives for carrying vials of blood around for hours rather than taking them to the lab for analysis, Williams said holding onto evidence is standard practice, but one that might now need to be reviewed.