Talks Intensify for Williams Buyout

Amid intensifying talks aimed at securing Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams a severance package that would allow him to leave his job before the end of his term, City Council members Tuesday deferred a vote on the chief’s future and rescheduled it for today.

The delay was requested by City Councilwoman Rita Walters, an ardent backer of the chief, who acknowledged later that she did not have enough votes to take the matter away from the Police Commission, which last week voted to deny Williams a second term. It would take 10 of the council’s 15 members to remove the issue of the chief’s reappointment from the commission; Williams does not appear to have the support of even a council majority, much less the two-thirds he needs to retain his job.

Several council members said Tuesday that they do not believe an extra day will help Williams corral more votes to overturn the commission, but added that it could help buy time for negotiating a severance package--one large enough to satisfy the chief but small enough to avoid antagonizing the council. Mayor Richard Riordan has said he would support any proposal that could win council backing.

If a deal could be struck to pay Williams a severance package that both he and the council could accept, that might allow Walters to withdraw her motion and prevent the need for a formal council vote on the commission action. That would please council members who would prefer not to cast a vote against the popular police chief, and it would save Williams the embarrassment of a second public rejection in two weeks by the city leadership.

But time is running out--the matter comes before the council again today, and the deadline for the council to act on the motion to review the commission vote is Friday. The problem has been finding a middle ground acceptable to both camps.

Initially, sources said, Williams indicated that he wanted two years severance, a pension bonus and money to pay his legal expenses--all told, a package that would cost about $830,000. There seems little council appetite for that amount, however, and some council members instead have suggested that he settle for between $60,000 and $150,000, enough to pay him for the balance of his term and perhaps to provide for moving expenses and other amenities.

“Once you start to get much over $100,000, I think you see support start dropping off,” one council member said Tuesday. “People start to say: Why are we paying him at all?”

Although several officials described meetings in which Williams has suggested that he would accept a severance package, the chief denied Tuesday through a spokesman that he has any plans to leave early and insisted that he has had no discussions about vacating his job before the end of his term.

Williams, the first African American to head the LAPD, was appointed to a five-year term in 1992; it runs through July 6.

As proposals swirled on how to smooth Williams’ departure, some of the chief’s supporters were venting their frustration with the Police Commission, whose members unanimously voted last week to refuse him a second term. They cited problems with his management and questions about his integrity as reasons contributing to their decision.

About two dozen speakers--and another 40 or 50 supporters--showed up at Tuesday’s Police Commission meeting to castigate the panel for voting against the chief’s application for a second term. The predominantly African American crowd was so large that the commission was forced to move from its regular meeting room to the auditorium at police headquarters.

The group chanted “five more years” several times during the session.

“We believe that [Williams] deserves another five years, not merely because he is a black man, but because he is a good man, because he has shown some integrity in this city that for many, many years has lacked integrity,” said activist and developer Danny Bakewell, leader of the Brotherhood Crusade.

Council members Walters and Nate Holden criticized the commission, saying it is not willing to defend its decision in a public hearing before the City Council. They said the evaluation process was politicized and unfair for Williams.

Many of the speakers said they were afraid that strides made by the department on excessive force and community policing would disappear without Williams at the helm.

“He’s maintained harmony in this city,” said the Rev. Roy Petitt.

The public comments lasted about 80 minutes.

“We know this is a serious decision. . . . I understand you disagree with it,” Police Commission President Raymond C. Fisher said, noting that the commission decision was accompanied by a 22-page statement explaining its reasoning. “We respect you, and I hope you respect us.”

After the session, Fisher added: “The commission stands by its judgment, and we tried to explain why we did what we did.”

Times staff writer Matt Lait contributed to this story.