Council OKs Concept of LAPD-MTA Merger but Raises Concerns

Saying that a “laundry list” of issues has yet to be resolved, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday gave cautious approval to the concept of having the Los Angeles Police Department take over law enforcement on the city’s public transit system.

But lawmakers also ordered LAPD brass to cut off discussions with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department about the proposed merger. Instead, they asked top city officials to take over the negotiations and to prepare within the next month an analysis of the feasibility of LAPD handling law enforcement at the airport, harbor, city schools, parks and housing projects.

Though Wednesday’s vote marks the first time the full council has signed onto the idea of a merger, it is at best a lukewarm endorsement of the plan approved in October by the MTA board. Several members insisted they were only casting “aye” votes because they knew it was not a binding commitment.

“I feel very comfortable adopting the concept because the language waters it down so much,” said Laura Chick, who chairs the council’s Public Safety Committee. “If this is something that [the MTA board members] need to hear, then fine. The fact remains that the serious plate of issues still needs to be resolved, and I’m going to see that happen.”

Councilman Richard Alatorre, a merger supporter who sits on the MTA board, urged his colleagues at least to approve the broad concept to keep the doors to discussion open and ward off the Sheriff’s Department from taking over all transit policing. The current proposal calls for the LAPD to absorb 60% of MTA officers, patrolling buses and trains within the city limits, and for the Sheriff’s Department to take over the rest of the force and handle transit policing in other parts of the county.

The Sheriff’s Department is poised to take over the entire MTA force if the city balks at its share, and four of the five county supervisors have already endorsed the merger with their votes on the MTA board.

“Unless we make an affirmative statement, what you’re going to see in Los Angeles is these green uniforms with orange letters that say ‘Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department,’ ” Alatorre said. “It’s wrong to have another entity patrol here in Los Angeles, and that’s the practical effect.”

Several council members still protested the move, fearing that it will end up costing the city money, give an already swamped LAPD another huge project, and leave the department with a cadre of officers who had less rigorous background investigations and training before being hired.

“It just needs a lot more careful attention than we’ve given it,” said Councilwoman Rita Walters, who voted against the merger, along with Joel Wachs. Councilmen Mark Ridley-Thomas and Nate Holden also opposed parts of the package, which involved several votes.