Financial Crisis Forces City to Close Police Department
As the clock struck midnight on Halloween, the Hawaiian Gardens Police Department closed its doors and deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department began street patrols.
City Administrator Jack Simpson said Monday that the Police Department had earned a good reputation and that the department was closed only because the city is undergoing drastic budget cuts.
Simpson said Hawaiian Gardens is fortunate that Los Angeles County’s contract system provides an alternative law enforcement option during the city’s financial crisis. Officials anticipate budget savings of $800,000 to $1 million per year under the Sheriff’s Department contract.
“The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department is one of the premier law enforcement agencies in the United States,” Simpson said.
The city, which plans to lay off more than half of its employees by December, ran into financial difficulty when regular monthly contributions from bingo parlor owner Irving Moskowitz’s private foundation ceased in July. In October, the foundation again helped the city meet its payroll.
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