Lopez Bid for Chief Gets Boost

Searching for a role in the selection of the next Los Angeles Police Department chief, members of the City Council have begun lobbying Mayor James K. Hahn behind the scenes in favor of Oxnard Police Chief Art Lopez, the only one of three finalists for the job who has worked in the LAPD.

Council members said in interviews that--led by Councilman Nick Pacheco, a longtime supporter of Lopez from his days with the LAPD--they are seeking appointment of the San Fernando Valley resident because he is familiar with Los Angeles and the department. They also argue that it is time the city had a Latino police chief.

Hahn is consulting with council members and other city leaders regarding the appointment, which he terms the most important he has faced since becoming mayor. Also under consideration are former New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton and former Philadelphia Police Commissioner John Timoney.

The mayor is expected to announce his decision in the coming days, and though his nominee needs council confirmation, aides to the mayor say his choice will not be principally influenced by trying to please the council.

In addition to Pacheco, those voicing support for Lopez are other members of the council’s so-called Latino Coalition: Council President Alex Padilla and Councilmen Ed Reyes and Eric Garcetti.

Other city lawmakers who favor Lopez include Councilmen Dennis Zine and Nate Holden. Pacheco said that he hopes at least eight council members, a majority, will come out in support of Lopez, but that ultimately he expects the council to ratify Hahn’s selection--Lopez or not.

“Everyone agrees that the three candidates are qualified,” Pacheco said. “Personally, I think Art Lopez is someone who can unite the city.”

Lopez, 52, spent 27 years in the LAPD before being named head of the Oxnard Police Department in 1998. Unlike Bratton and Timoney, Lopez has met most of the council members. He was also a strong supporter of Antonio Villaraigosa during the most recent mayoral race.

“When you work with someone--and I did, about eight or 10 years ago--you understand the notion of experience and capabilities,” Reyes said of Lopez. That interaction occurred when Reyes was chief of staff to former Councilman Mike Hernandez. Lopez “has experience of being in the trenches with us.”

Zine, a veteran of the LAPD who represents parts of the west San Fernando Valley, said he spoke to Hahn soon after the Police Commission named its three finalists for the chief’s job. In that conversation, Zine said, he did not push for a specific candidate but urged Hahn to choose a chief who could reduce crime and raise police morale.

Zine added that he considered Lopez’s knowledge of the Police Department superior to that of the other contenders and believes that Lopez is “very professional. He’s a listener. He’s not afraid to change his mind. He’s not inflexible.”

Bratton has worked with the LAPD as a consultant in implementing the conditions of a federal consent decree, but Zine said that would give him “limited knowledge” of the local department. Timoney--whom the councilman first called “Tomey” in an interview Monday--struck Zine as the least conversant with LAPD issues.

The chief wields “a big hammer” in disciplining officers, and Zine criticized the discipline system under former Chief Bernard C. Parks as “arbitrary and capricious.” Officers became paranoid that they would be disciplined, so they were less aggressive in combating crime, the councilman said.

Zine said he hopes that, whoever the next chief is, that person will take a less severe attitude toward discipline and will find ways to better navigate the city’s politics. “Clearly, we cannot have another five years of turmoil,” he said. “We can’t have a [different] chief of police every five years. We need consistency.”

Garcetti said he is supporting Lopez because Lopez would “hit the ground running.”

But Garcetti said he is being careful not to pressure Hahn. “People realize if they put too much pressure on this mayor, he might go the opposite way,” Garcetti said.

Council members Cindy Miscikowski, Hal Bernson and Wendy Greuel, meanwhile, have declined to pick a favorite.

Of all the council’s 15 members, Janice Hahn has the easiest access to the mayor, who is her brother and with whom she speaks nearly every day.

“He hasn’t tipped his hand yet--even to me,” she said.

Janice Hahn, who represents San Pedro and the rest of the harbor area, said she has not ventured an opinion about which candidate is best suited for the job, though she downplayed the need for a chief with experience in the LAPD.

“I think it’s less important that this next chief of police knows all of the streets in Los Angeles than whether or not he knows how to turn a department around and make Los Angeles the safest big city in America,” she said.

Councilman Tom LaBonge said he’ll leave it to the mayor to pick the next chief but hopes that in addition to combating violent crime, the LAPD’s leader will have “a passion” for traffic safety.

“I’ll support Chief Bratton, Chief Timoney and Chief Lopez--whoever the mayor wants,” said LaBonge, who represents North Hollywood, parts of Hollywood, Los Feliz and Silver Lake.

He joined with Janice Hahn in contending that a candidate from outside the LAPD could still do the job.

“I love people from Los Angeles, but I’m not afraid of people” from other cities, he said. “It’s not just about being able to pronounce ‘Pico’ and ‘Sepulveda,’ but also to be able to serve everybody who is on Pico Boulevard or on Sepulveda, and all people thereafter, on all streets.”