Riordan Reinstates Popular Police Plan

In the second major policy change this week in the Los Angeles Police Department, Mayor Richard Riordan announced on Tuesday the reinstatement of the department’s popular Senior Lead Officer Program.

“Community police officers are the bedrock that unites our neighborhoods with the officers who are sworn to protect them,” Riordan said. “I am proud to announce today that . . . community policing is back.”

Under the program, dismantled by Police Chief Bernard Parks in 1999, more than 160 officers were assigned full-time as liaisons to residents, merchants and neighborhood watch groups. It ended when Parks argued those officers were urgently needed on patrol to help fight a rising tide of murders and other violent crimes.

Pressure from the public and politicians, including Riordan’s pledge to reinstate the program, forced Parks to address the issue of community policing last year.

Parks, who joined Riordan Tuesday at a news conference outside of the Pacific Division, said he would ensure full cooperation throughout the department in the program.

In a compromise, however, senior lead officers will work at least one day a week on street patrol.

Last October, the Los Angeles Police Commission agreed to reinstate senior lead officers, but little action was taken.

Fearing more empty promises, community activists asked for a signed agreement from the mayor’s office Tuesday.

“We were lied to last October,” said Page Miller, co-chairwoman of Save our Senior Leads. “We demanded from the mayor’s office that there be a signed document between the Los Angeles Police Protective League and the chief today.”

The announcement of the program’s return appears to conclude a long-running debate over how best to adapt community-based policing principles to Los Angeles.

Many of the senior lead officers forged ties with community activists and groups who helped identify crime problems and attack them.

But when Parks disbanded the program, he argued that the community policing practices of the senior lead officers should be adopted by all members of the force, not just a select group.

The activists and groups who appreciated the attention from the senior lead officers disagreed and have protested Parks’ decision. The Los Angeles Police Protective League also has lobbied for the program’s return.

Among those who joined in the clamor has been Councilman Joel Wachs, a longtime supporter of the police union and a candidate for mayor of Los Angeles. Wachs, who said that, if elected, he would not reappoint Parks for a second term, joined Riordan and Parks for Tuesday’s announcement.

On Monday, Parks issued a special order to clarify and standardize the entire LAPD disciplinary system. Officers had complained that disciplinary punishments were inconsistent and unfair.

The new policy includes a four-day suspension of any officer who misbehaves and potential termination for offenses.