Colleges OK Policing Contract With Sheriff

The Los Angeles Community College District agreed Wednesday to contract with the county Sheriff’s Department for law enforcement services in a move that the department views as a powerful recruitment opportunity.

The $9.2-million contract must be reviewed by the Board of Supervisors, which is scheduled to discuss the matter next week. But sheriff’s officials believe it will be approved.

Under the proposal, the Sheriff’s Department would patrol the district’s nine campuses and offices with 24 deputies, including 10 sergeants, and security officers.

The colleges now are patrolled by separate units of security officers on each campus. After lengthy and contentious contract negotiations with the district, the Los Angeles Community College District Police Officers Assn. proposed the plan.

“I really do think this is the best solution for everyone involved--the district, the officers and the public as a whole,” said Albert Reddick, association president.

Sheriff’s Department officials, who have been working on the plan since last spring, said they can provide more services at about the same cost or possibly less than the district already spends. But they also think that the department would have a new and potentially rich pool of possible recruits.

“The community colleges are a very diverse educational system, and that’s exactly the kind of thing we’re looking for in the cadet program,” said Sheriff’s Capt. John Radeleff.

The department is interested in expanding that effort to provide broader regional policing. Sheriff Lee Baca has said the contracts, which provide a lucrative stream of revenue, are an important part of his plans for the department.

The district’s plan requires a special arrangement with the Los Angeles Police Department since six campuses are in LAPD territory. Under that deal, the Sheriff’s Department would handle most misdemeanor-type offenses on those campuses, with the LAPD investigating more serious crimes.

The Sheriff’s Department is expected to hire 76 of the 82 college district officers who applied, said Lt. John Andrews, who has been working on the proposal.