Reactions Are as Varied as the City

In a dim diner where homicide detectives started their day with steak and eggs, on a sizzling asphalt parking lot where weary patrol officers parked their squad cars at the end of their shift, in a dank underground parking lot where motorcycle cops gathered to gossip, the conversation Wednesday turned to the same topic: Their department’s new chief.

And the consensus among many Los Angeles Police Department officers was that Bernard Parks is better than the chief they had, but not as good as the chief they wanted. Still, most were satisfied with the choice because Parks met one important criterion. He is an insider, a 32-year LAPD veteran.

Throughout the city, in police stations and churches and community organizations, news of Parks’ appointment was received with mixed reaction. In South Los Angeles, many residents celebrated Parks’ appointment. On the Eastside, some were disappointed that a Latino was not appointed. Many simply reserved their opinion. They want to see if Parks can answer some of the LAPD’s most pressing questions, including how to improve the thorny relationship between the LAPD and the city’s minority communities; how to reverse the department’s drop in arrests and field interviews; and how to satisfy community concerns about excessive force complaints and still keep the respect of the rank and file.

The chief many officers wanted was Mark Kroeker, who was the rank and file’s overwhelming choice in a poll taken several months ago. The chief many did not want--because he is an outsider--was Arturo Venegas Jr., the Sacramento chief who, along with Kroeker, was a finalist for the position.

“Kroeker was my main man,” said E. J. James, a LAPD patrol officer who was sipping coffee at the Central City Cafe at the edge of downtown. “To me, he seemed to have more of a feel for the problems and the concerns of the street cops. But if they weren’t going to pick Kroeker, I’m glad it was Parks. They picked an outsider five years ago and it was a mess.”

At the Boulevard Cafe in the Crenshaw district, lunch patrons expressed reactions ranging from elation to skepticism.

Al Mayfield, 61, of Baldwin Hills said Parks’ strong disciplinary style would greatly benefit the department. He noted that Parks joined the department when William H. Parker was the chief of police.

“Parker was a disciplinarian and a racist, too, as far as I’m concerned,” Mayfield said. “You take the racist part out and you’ve got Bernard Parks. He’s a no-nonsense type of guy.”

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Gerald Anderson, a 33-year-old business consultant, said he was pleased with the selection--and the idea that Riordan withstood pressures not to select another African American chief of police.

“Apparently the mayor was able to look past all that to qualifications--I’m hoping that was it,” he said.

One of the challenges facing Parks will be “getting over the criticism that he was appointed because he’s black,” Anderson said.

But Charles Cook, who works at a beauty college, argued that Parks is a “a token black.” Cook predicted that Parks will be used and discarded “just like they did Williams.”

“They don’t want a man who’s going to make a change,” Cook said. “He’s not going to be able to voice his opinions and make change. He’s occupying a spot.”

At LAPD hangouts such as Little Rascals in South-Central, Pepy’s Galley near the airport and Tak’s Coffee Shop in Southwest Los Angeles, officers speculated about the new chief over breakfast.

Some expressed concern that proposals for a compressed work schedule--popular among officers--would be rejected by Parks. One plan, in which officers work three 12-hour days a week, was killed by interim Chief Bayan Lewis, who like other supervisors, disliked the program.

Parks’ style--described by one police lieutenant as “my way or the highway”--will take some getting used to, several officers said. And many officers expressed concern that their new chief would sacrifice individual officers in trouble to placate politicians and assuage popular opinion.

“We’ll have a happy mayor and a lot of unhappy cops,” said one Police Department supervisor who declined to be identified. “I’d want a chief with less ambition and more heart.”

While much of the LAPD’s rank and file had expressed support for Kroeker, black officers emphasized that it had been the white rank and file who had been most vocal in their support. Many black officers were unequivocal in their support for Parks.

“A lot of the support has been along racial lines,” said motorcycle officer John Goines. “I’ve heard a lot of white officers saying Kroeker should have got it. And I’ve heard a lot of black officers saying they were glad they picked a black man.”

On the Eastside, many community leaders have been alienated by the selection process because Lee Baca, the Latino candidate they supported, didn’t even make the final round of candidates.

“It’s a disappointing feeling,” said Frank Villalobos, a Boyle Heights activist and president of Barrio Planners, an architectural firm. “We on the Eastside had hopes we would have Eastside, specifically Latino, representation. To us, this is an indication of the respect downtown has for this community. It’s a letdown to have to wait again.”

But while many Latino officers favored Baca, they still preferred Parks to Venegas, the Sacramento chief.

“Even if he is Hispanic, he’s still viewed as an outsider,” said motorcycle officer Eddie Diaz. “But I never thought he had a chance, anyway. We all knew from the get-go it would be Parks.”

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Many Eastside residents seemed resigned rather than enthusiastic about Parks’ appointment. Residents could not shrug off their disappointment that they will have to wait, once again, to see a Latino police chief.

“I think they threw the Latino [candidate] in to look good,” said Terri Valasquez, a case manager with a youth outreach program in Boyle Heights. “They don’t really want to give us power. They want to do what’s good for City Hall, not the community.”

Other Eastsiders said Parks’ years and record with the LAPD overshadowed any concern about the tug of war for political power between African Americans and Latinos.

“This shouldn’t be an issue of race,” said Ignacio Villanueva, who owns a small sporting clothes company in Boyle Heights. “It’s his honesty and integrity and knowledge of the community that matters. Parks started at the bottom. He knows the problems of the community.”

On the Westside, opinions about the new chief ranged from hopeful to indifferent.

Lorenzo Merritt, executive director of Project Heavy West, a juvenile crime prevention program, said his experience with Parks made him a strong supporter of the appointment.

“He believes in real community policing and he knows how to relate to the community,” Merritt said. “And he knows how to keep the LAPD in line.”

Merritt said he was most impressed watching Parks in action. Several years ago, Merritt attended a meeting with Parks and a group of gang members.

Parks’ style, Merritt said, was one of balancing his empathy for the young people with his responsibilities as a police officer.

“It showed me a guy with a broad understanding,” Merritt said.

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Harry Coleman, the president of the North Hills Community Coordinating Council who has been very involved in police issues in his north Valley neighborhood, said he views Parks as a hands-on, strong manager who will effectively lead the police department.

“We need a strong man--a guy who can handle a $1.2-billion budget and 10,000 police officers,” Coleman said. “That calls for a strong man . . . and that’s Bernie Parks.

“Bernie’s tough,” Coleman said, “He’s a strong administrator.”

Coleman said he believes the LAPD needs a CEO and that Parks fits that bill.

John Bryant, founder of Operation HOPE, a nonprofit investment consortium that invests in South-Central Los Angeles, said he has known Parks to be extremely concerned about the city’s communities.

A case in point, he says, was a phone call he made to Parks on the second day of the riots, when South-Central was still in flames and looters roamed the streets. As Bryant tells it, Parks immediately took the call and quickly agreed to provide police escorts for Bryant to take a vanload of investors and bankers on a tour of South-Central.

“He’s a personal friend and professional colleague and he cares about the community,” Bryant said, emphasizing that he did not endorse either Parks or Kroeker for the job, believing both to be well-qualified for the position.

When Kroeker headed the department’s South Bureau he was was hailed for his efforts at community relations in South-Central and for reducing the enmity between residents and the police. Still, it was clear Wednesday that Parks was a popular choice among South-Central residents.

At Jacob’s Cafe, which has been serving soul food since 1947, the owners and waitresses were delighted that one of their favorite customers was the city’s new chief. Pat Jacobs has been serving Parks his favorite meal--pigtails and fried chicken--since he was a rookie patrolman more than 30 years ago.

“Everyone’s real happy about Parks,” Jacobs said. “He’s very popular here. He’s down to earth and not macho or arrogant at all. Even though he’s been very successful, he still comes by on occasion for lunch. Willie Williams,” she said, pausing and dismissing him with a flick of her wrist. “He never made it down here once.”

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Times staff writers Mattea Gold, Abigail Goldman and Jocelyn Stewart and correspondent Joseph Hanania contributed to this story.