Popularity of Williams, LAPD Show Upswing

Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams, whose popularity has steadily dropped in recent years, is suddenly showing new signs of life, with public approval of his performance increasing just as he steps up his campaign to win a second term at the helm of the LAPD, according to results of a new Times poll.

The rebound in the chief’s job approval rating--it has increased from 56% in June to 66% in a survey conducted last week--extends across all regions of the city and is paralleled by resurgent public confidence in the Police Department that Williams heads. Twenty-two percent of those polled disapproved of the chief’s performance.

The department has followed a similar trend. After falling from its high in 1995, the public’s approval rating jumped from the 56% who last year voiced support for the LAPD’s performance to 63% in the current poll. Thirty-one percent expressed disapproval in the latest survey.

Interviewed about their responses, a number of those polled said they were generally impressed by the LAPD’s recent efforts, even if they were not always sure why.

“I don’t have any specifics,” said Marlene Brown of Northridge, a poll respondent who agreed to a follow-up interview. “I just have a generally positive overall feeling for the LAPD. I think they’re trying to do a good job.”

The new poll numbers, which have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points, arrive just as Williams is engaged in a furious fight to keep his job for another five years. The chief’s lawyers have hinted at legal action if Williams does not receive another term as chief. The president of the Police Commission has accused the chief’s representatives of waging an attack on the commission and its authority to oversee the LAPD.

Those battles do not seem to have dented Williams’ popularity with the public. A majority of residents in all areas of the city--and of various ethnicities--say they support the chief for a second term. Although Williams’ popularity is strongest among blacks, 77% of whom said they want the chief rehired, a majority of whites and Latinos also said they believed Williams deserves a second term.

Overall, 58% of those who participated in the poll said they supported the chief’s reappointment. Twenty-six percent did not support another term for the chief, while 16% were undecided.

Williams said he was gratified by the results--both those indicating support for him and those demonstrating increased support for the LAPD.

“I am extremely pleased that support for the department is up,” Williams said through a spokesman, adding that the numbers are “supportive of the information I have gathered in numerous face-to-face meetings with community members.”

Commission President Raymond C. Fisher agreed. “We are quite gratified,” he said of the poll results. “These numbers are a tribute to the entire department, and I would even humbly include the Police Commission, not to take anything away from the chief. It’s been a unified effort.”

Although Fisher did not comment directly on Williams’ personal approval ratings, several of those who participated in the poll said in follow-up interviews that they were sympathetic to the chief and the enormous pressures placed on him.

“It’s an extremely tough job,” said Mike Hartley of Sunland. “It’s a big city, and there’s a lot that he has to do, but he’s appeased the crowd.”

Still, Williams has strong opposition in some quarters.

“He’s not a true policeman,” said Joe Martinez, a poll respondent from the San Fernando Valley. “He came out here looking for the big bucks. I don’t think he’s the man for the job.”

Kesha Cotton of West Los Angeles blamed Williams and Mayor Richard Riordan for what she views as excessive devotion to boosting the size of the LAPD at the expense of other city priorities. “More focus should be on trying to better the community,” she said.

Even among those who back Williams, many did not express such strong views about the reappointment that they were inclined to hold other officials responsible for it.

The poll asked respondents a series of questions about whether their vote for mayor would be affected by candidates’ positions regarding Williams’ reappointment. In response to each of those questions, roughly two-thirds of those polled said the positions of Riordan and state Sen. Tom Hayden (D-Los Angeles) in the Williams matter would not influence their choice for mayor.

Hayden has endorsed Williams for a second term; Riordan has declined to comment directly on the matter, but has made it clear that he is unhappy with some aspects of the management of the LAPD.

The poll results were based on interviews with 1,143 adults citywide. The interviews were conducted from Jan. 29 through Sunday by telephone. The survey was supervised by Susan Pinkus, acting Times Poll director.

Although few expect poll numbers to govern the outcome of the rapidly escalating dispute over Williams’ reappointment, City Council members have long been wary of tangling with the chief in part because of his enormous popularity.

The latest numbers reaffirm that popularity--in fact, they establish Williams as one of the most popular public figures in Los Angeles, if not the most popular--and council members could be asked to review the commission’s decision just months before many of them stand for reelection.

In all his years as chief, Daryl F. Gates never registered an approval rating as high as 66%. Williams has enjoyed even higher numbers. In 1994, Williams’ second year in Los Angeles, 73% of those polled said they approved of his performance. His approval rating dropped steeply in 1995 and 1996 before rebounding in the latest poll.

“Bill Clinton would love to get a 66% approval rating,” said Pinkus. “Willie Williams is way up there.”

The poll was conducted amid a busy time for Williams, who has seemed to move with greater assurance in recent weeks as he negotiates the complicated contest for his reappointment.

After months of staying largely out of the limelight and saying little about his prospects for a second term, the chief has recently held a blizzard of public events. He addressed supporters in December to announce his plans to seek another term and then, in early January, released his letter stating his case for reappointment.

Later that month, Williams forcefully addressed the media in the wake of the killings of Ennis Cosby, the son of entertainer Bill Cosby, who was killed near Bel-Air, and Corie Williams, a 17-year-old girl who was shot on a city bus. Williams received high marks for his handling of those incidents.

It is difficult to say how much Williams’ handling of those matters has contributed to his resurgent popularity. The chief’s job approval rating has increased by roughly the same amount as Riordan’s--since last year, the mayor’s approval index has increased from 46% to 57%. And public confidence in the city generally seems strong, a wave of good feeling that extends even to the City Council, which typically rates poorly in citywide polls.

Still, there are signs that residents are finding things to like about public safety in Los Angeles. Nearly three-quarters of city residents polled listed crime as their biggest concern, but most also said they feel safe in their communities.

Two-thirds of those responding to the poll said they feel either “very safe” or “fairly safe” in their communities.

Curiously, however, those polled did not feel more safe in their communities than they did five years ago, when Williams took command of the LAPD. Just 15% said they felt safer today, even though official LAPD statistics show that reported crime has dropped markedly during that period.

The effect of the latest poll numbers on the reappointment process is unknown. Police commissioners and others have emphasized that Williams will not be evaluated solely on the basis of his popularity. At the same time, some of the criteria for considering his performance could be bolstered by strong poll numbers.

One criterion calls on Williams to “establish the chief of police as a trusted and respected leader within the department and the community who . . . inspires public confidence in the department and its operations.”

“When the police are called, they come quickly,” said a poll respondent who asked to be identified only as Ruth. “That must be his office. Willie Williams deserves credit for that.”

But inspiring public confidence is just one benchmark for success. Other criteria are intended to assess Williams’ effectiveness in a variety of areas, from formulating budgets to improving the department’s employee rating system to producing timely, accurate reports on key issues.

“Public support is one of the factors,” said Commission President Fisher. “It is one of the criteria that we have articulated. We will take that into account along with other criteria.”

More broadly, strong poll numbers undoubtedly strengthen Williams’ hand in the event that the question of his reappointment is taken up by the City Council. It would take 10 votes of the 15-member council to overturn the Police Commission’s decision, but Williams could cite broad public support as a reason the council should take that action.

In fact, some supporters of the chief have argued that his popularity should weigh in his favor. Mike Varady, a member of the city’s gay community, appeared at the Police Commission on Tuesday and urged members to vote to keep Williams on board.

“This is a compassionate chief,” Varady said, adding that public opinion “has to be taken into consideration rather than politics.”

Commissioners have until April 7--one day before the citywide elections--to vote on Williams’ reappointment. They are expected to act before then. Fisher has indicated that he hopes a decision can be made this month.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Another Term?

A majority of L.A. residents believe Willie L. Williams should return as police chief.

* Should Willie Williams’ contract be renewed for another five years?

*--*

Don’t Yes No know All 58% 26% 16% Whites 55% 31% 14% Blacks 77% 11% 12% Latinos 55% 26% 19%

*--*

Source: L.A. Times Poll

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Approval Ratings

Both Police Chief Willie Williams and the LAPD are drawing higher approval ratings.

Willie Williams’ job approva rating among all city residents:

*--*

Approve Disapprove Oct. ’92 52% 4% June ’94 73% 14% June ’95 65% 20% June ’96 56% 33% Now 66% 22%

*--*

*

The LAPD’s job approval rating among all city residents:

*--*

Approve Disapprove Oct. ’92 45% 48% June ’94 67% 27% June ’95 66% 26% June ’96 56% 38% Now 63% 31%

*--*

****

How safe from crime do you feel in your community?

*--*

Safe Unsafe May ’92 60% 39% June ’94 52% 47% June ’95 56% 43% Now 67% 32%

*--*

Numbers do not add up to 100% because “Don’t Know” responses were left out.

Source: L.A. Times Poll

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

How the Poll Was Conducted

The Times Poll contacted 1,143 adults in the city of Los Angeles by telephone Jan. 29 through Feb. 2. Telephone numbers were chosen from a list of all exchanges citywide. Random-digit dialing techniques were used so that listed and unlisted numbers could be contacted. The sample was weighted slightly to conform with census figures for sex, race, age, education and area of city. The margin of sampling error for all adults is plus or minus 3 percentage points; for certain subgroups the error margin may be somewhat higher. Poll results can also be affected by other factors, such as question wording and the order in which questions are presented.