Secession Group’s Estimates Disputed

An anti-secession group disputed projected law enforcement costs for a new San Fernando Valley city Thursday, accusing its rival group of fabricating numbers to build voter support.

One Los Angeles, a group formed last October, took the first swing at pro-secession Valley VOTE by issuing a critical report on proposed law enforcement for a new city.

It is the first of at least three reports by the group evaluating major issues, such as taxes and utilities, surrounding the cityhood proposal.

The three-page report countered statements by Valley VOTE President Jeff Brain that contracting with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department would cost $80 million less than the cost of services currently provided by the Los Angeles Police Department.

The savings would be reflected in diminished services for the area, according to the report.

The Sheriff’s Department patrols with one deputy per car, not two like the LAPD, said Larry Levine, a co-founder of One Los Angeles.

There would be no senior lead officers, motorcycle patrols, SWAT team or helicopter patrols in the new Valley city under Valley VOTE’s proposed law enforcement budget, Levine said.

“You can get them from the sheriff, but it costs more,” he said.

Levine said that he and other volunteers based their analysis on the same two-page letter from the sheriff’s contract law enforcement bureau to the county’s Local Agency Formation Commission that Brain has cited in his speeches in support of the secession movement.

The report concludes that Valley VOTE’s statements on a proposed sheriff’s contract are “outright and knowingly dangerous fabrications with no basis in fact.”

But Richard Close of Valley VOTE said the figures were released by LAFCO, not his group.

“If they are not satisfied, they should go back to the Sheriff’s Department,” Close said. He said the letter was not intended to be a contract proposal.

Close said the decision rests with newly elected city officials, who could create their own police force or contract with the LAPD.

One Los Angeles found fault with those options too.

The group concluded that sticking with the LAPD for services defeats the purpose of secession.

“If you are happy with LAPD law enforcement, then why secede?” Levine asked.

He said creating a new police force is “outlandishly expensive.”

But Close disputed those costs, saying the city of L.A. would have to give the new city some of its facilities and patrol cars.

He also suggested that the new city could create its own police commission to oversee LAPD officers assigned there.