Volunteers Step In Where Police Can’t Afford to Tread

Ask a Devonshire Division police officer how long it would take the Los Angeles Police Department to supply new chairs for the watch commander’s office and you’ll get either a chuckle or an incredulous stare.

“I could be retired before I see it,” Sgt. Loren Farell said.

But with the philanthropic aid of Supporters of Law Enforcement in Devonshire, or SOLID, necessities and amenities have a tendency to appear months sooner than those requested through the department.

Established in 1991, the grass-roots, nonprofit organization raises money in the northwest San Fernando Valley to improve the effectiveness of the police who serve them.

“We feel that if we give the best equipment they need, they can do a more efficient job, and it comes back to us in the form of safe communities,” said board member Becky Lohnes Leveque, who was inspired to create the program after her home was broken into 10 years ago.

Today the organization raises $25,000 to $30,000 a year, said its president, Don Hoffman. Most of the money comes from annual spaghetti dinners and pancake breakfasts that draw about 1,200 residents and officers. Hoffman said that since 1991, the group has raised about $200,000 in addition to equipment donations.

The funds have been used to refurbish the Northridge station’s weightlifting room and purchase a surveillance van, computers, metal detectors, paper shredders, a copy machine and new chairs.

Judy Miller, the commanding officer of the LAPD’s supply section, a division with an $8.6-million operating budget, said high demand and budget constraints make providing equipment a complicated task.

“It’s difficult to give all things to all people with limited resources,” said Miller, who said chairs were the most requested item. “We try to do the thing that’s most appropriate and fair for everybody. We expect to be $4 million short by the end of the year in terms of office supplies.”

That’s where SOLID comes in. The group has provided so much that some at the division shudder at the thought of life without the boosters.

“We’d be severely restricted without their assistance,” Lt. Joseph Eddy said. “Not only do they increase our productivity, they increase our morale.”

Capt. Joseph Curreri cites a piece of equipment similar to a periscope to illustrate SOLID’s role. The device is used to inspect attics for suspects without putting officers at risk.

“It would have a significant impact if we were not able to get the equipment that SOLID has provided for us,” Curreri said.

SOLID is similar to the Mid-Valley Community Police Council, a booster program for the LAPD’s Van Nuys Division. But unlike SOLID, board member Flip Smith said, the Mid-Valley organization generates money from businesses rather than residents.

Although none of the booster programs are officially affiliated with the LAPD, department spokesman Lt. Horace Frank praised their work: “They’re a huge boost to the officers. They are a valuable resource and one I know the officers appreciate.”