In Protest, Officers Seek to Bar Chief From Funerals

In a show of blatant animosity toward Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard C. Parks, some LAPD officers have submitted written instructions to department officials stating that if they die in the line of duty they do not want the chief to speak at or even attend their funerals.

“I don’t want somebody I don’t respect at my funeral,” said LAPD Officer Lisa Golt. “He has no feelings whatsoever for the officers. He only goes for political reasons.”

Golt and other officers interviewed by The Times said the declarations reflect their deep displeasure with Parks’ leadership, particularly what they view as his heavy-handed approach to discipline.

The movement to ban Parks from officers’ funerals, LAPD insiders say, is further evidence of a worsening morale problem at the department and represents one of the chief’s biggest internal challenges in managing a force of 9,700 officers.

Although the chief appears to be well-regarded within community and governmental circles, police union officials allege that Parks’ support among the rank-and-file is at an all-time low.

“Morale is terrible. It’s the worst it’s been in many a year,” said Gary Fullerton, a director with the Los Angeles Police Protective League. “He’s done absolutely nothing to rally the troops around him. He’s heartless and could care less about the officers.”

Parks, through a spokesman, said he was unaware of the officers’ action and had no response.

Officers said the fledgling campaign against Parks started in the 77th and Harbor divisions and has spread elsewhere in the department. It is unclear how widespread the movement is. According to some officers, nearly all of whom wished to remain anonymous, several dozen officers have submitted the paperwork to various department officials, or included the instructions on their emergency information cards, which are kept at the divisions where they work.

Like Parks, other top LAPD officials said they were unaware of any such action.

“I haven’t heard about this,” said Capt. Harlan Ward, who heads the 77th Division.

Many of the officers who signed letters requesting that the chief stay away from their funerals have had run-ins with the LAPD’s disciplinary system or have friends who have. Golt, in fact, is a 10-year veteran who recently was suspended from duty for making false and misleading statements. Golt and other officers interviewed by The Times said they are applying for positions with other police agencies because of their dislike for Parks.

The officers’ action comes in the wake of the recent funeral for Officer Brian Brown, who was the third LAPD officer to be killed in the line of duty last year.

Some law enforcement experts say that the campaign against Parks is a morbid and disturbing way to lash out at the chief. Although being killed in the line of duty is considered the ultimate sacrifice, excluding people from a funeral is considered the ultimate snub, some officers said.

“It’s unfortunate that any members of an organization would feel compelled to make comments that are not productive,” said Timm Browne, spokesman for the California Peace Officers Assn. “That’s a pretty bleak and disruptive view.”

Ellen Kirschman, a police psychologist based in Oakland, called it “a very exaggerated and dramatic situation, probably done for effect.”

“There is always antagonism and lack of trust between the line-level officers and the administration at every department,” she said. “Everything is more dramatic and intensified in law enforcement.”

LAPD officers who submitted the declarations said they did so, in part, to protest what they believe is Parks’ overzealousness in firing officers.

According to recent department statistics, 54 officers were fired under Parks in 1998. That number far outpaces the number of terminations in the two previous years: 13 in 1996 and 11 in 1997. The LAPD’s command staff said all the terminations were warranted, considering the officers’ conduct.

The statistics show that officers were fired for a variety of reasons, including domestic violence, falsifying records and use of excessive force.

Union officials do not quarrel with Parks’ belief that bad officers have to be let go, but they contend that the chief has hammered some officers for relatively minor offenses.

“He’s out to break records,” said one 77th Division officer who wants to bar Parks from his funeral if he dies in the line of duty.

One LAPD sergeant in the Harbor Division went so far as to change her will to indicate that she did not want any command officers to attend her funeral if she dies on duty.

“My family is well aware of my wishes,” the sergeant said.

Another police officer said that some of his colleagues have asked that former Chief Daryl F. Gates attend their funeral instead of Parks.

“I feel his presence at my funeral would be disrespectful to me,” said a five-year LAPD veteran. “Everybody is afraid of him. I shouldn’t be afraid to give my name, but if I did I would be retaliated against.”

Representatives with the Police Protective League said they are not involved in the movement, but added that they were not surprised by it either.

Union officials have repeatedly clashed with the chief. Parks has accused the directors of being out of touch with their members, while they portray him as an autocratic and capricious administrator.

“This isn’t a league plot,” said Director Dennis Zine, who is facing his own disciplinary hearing. “This is such an incredibly strong message. It shows the officers’ anger and the fear. It’s sad.”

Police Commissioner Dean Hansell said Parks has “taken some hard stands on things” that have put him at odds with the officers, such as being a strict disciplinarian and eliminating flexible work schedules. But he said, the chief has “made the right moves.”

Hansell added that he thinks morale problems are not as bad as some officers suggest. On the other hand, he said, “I’d love to have the relationship being more positive.”