Parks, Officers Agree on Disciplinary Guidelines

Under pressure to boost officer morale, Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard C. Parks on Monday established specific guidelines for punishing police officers who misbehave.

At a Parker Center news conference with Mayor Richard Riordan and police union President Mitzi Grasso, Parks said the new guidelines are intended to clarify the department’s disciplinary process and give officers an idea of the punishment they will face if they violate department policy.

Many members of the rank-and-file have complained that the department’s old system--which gave the command staff the discretion to hand out penalties as they saw fit--was often arbitrary and unfair.

“It’s now written down in one document,” Parks told reporters. “The rationale as to how we develop penalties is also written down. So although it may cause questions down the road, it certainly gives a great deal more clarity of expectations.”

Parks’ announcement came a month after he agreed--under pressure from Riordan--to take steps to address morale, recruitment and community policing issues.

He previously was resistant to committing the disciplinary standards to paper because he wanted to make sure the department’s brass still had some discretion in handing out punishment. In a compromise agreement with the new leadership of the officers union, Parks said supervisors will be granted the flexibility to deviate from the new guidelines--but only after they are able to support their reasons in writing.

He also said that any departures “should be the exception.”

Under the new provisions, officers who misbehave--whether they make a discourteous remark to a fellow employee or appear late for a court hearing--can expect to receive at least four days off without pay. Officers who knowingly make false or misleading statements under oath, who knowingly arrest someone without cause or who improperly possess illegal narcotics will be automatically referred to a departmental board of rights, which will decide whether the officer should be fired.

Other offenses calling for possible termination include knowingly receiving unjustified overtime compensation, engaging in felony domestic violence and engaging in lewd conduct, according to the department’s 13-page Penalty Guide.

Under the old system, managers often disciplined officers based on how similar infractions were handled in the past, but were granted leeway to mete out punishment as they wished.

For years, officers complained that the system was influenced by favoritism. Finally, with officer morale at a new low, Riordan urged Parks and union officials to “meet and confer” to address the concerns.

Police Protective League President Grasso, who represents the 9,100 rank-and-file LAPD officers, called the guidelines a “significant and historical step toward achieving a fair and objective disciplinary process.”

“This is only the beginning, and I think that given the opportunity, we will continue to step toward the reforms needed to ensure not only a fair disciplinary system but a Police Department we can be proud of,” Grasso said.

Slapping Parks on the back, Riordan praised the new guidelines at the news conference on Monday.

“One month ago, I stood right here and gave you my word that by today we will revamp the LAPD’s system,” Riordan told reporters. “We have.”

Riordan said the guidelines are intended to provide officers with “swift, certain and equitable” justice when they are found guilty of wrongdoing.

“This action represents historic reform and is part of the solution to the plummeting morale of our men and women in blue,” Riordan said. “Consistent and fair discipline is necessary. The youngest cadet will receive the same treatment as the most senior, well-connected officer.”