LACP.org
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Forum Articles - 2008
LA Community Policing
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Below the heading marked "Departments" you'll find
the many "Main Articles" from the LACP website this
year, listed by the month they appeared with a brief
description of what's inside. Scroll down to find them.
  
Click here for other year's articles:

2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
...Departments:    
LACP Press Release - Jan, 2003   - former film and television editor, Bill Murray, admits that running the nine-month-old LACP website has taken over his life - a tremendous amount of time goes into the effort, now a nonprofit (not yet funded)
Police Commission honors LA Community Policing   - the LA Police Commission honored Los Angeles Community Policing (LACP.org) on October 29, 2002, by awarding its founder, Bill Murray, with a Certificate of Appreciation
 
- recent comments and criticisms from the LACP "stakeholders" - community members, LAPD officers and City officials
 
- a list of articles from Dr. Arthur Jones and Dr. Robin Weisman, consultants and authors on international policing, social policy and human rights
...Main Articles 2008:    
LANI 6th Annual Communiry Forum - FREE!! Apr Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative Sixth Annual Community Forum - FREE !
- Thursday • May 15, 2008 • 8 am - 2:30 pm - Once again we’re bringing the community together for the LANI (Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative Sixth Annual Community Forum).
Drawing on Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative's unparalleled track record of revitalizing diverse areas, this exciting event gathers and trains neighborhood leaders and community stakeholders, providing a critical opportunity for dialogue and information sharing. USC Davidson Conference Center, 3415 S. Figueroa St., LA, CA 90089 - Register for FREE !
LAPD Releases SWAT Team Analysis Apr from LAPD . Chief William J. Bratton of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) presented the Police Commission and general public with an Executive Summary  (available below) of a Board of Inquiry analysis into the Department's Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team operations, a process that began in July 2005. Board of Inquiry members consisted of a variety of distinguished individuals with legal and law enforcement backgrounds. Read the Executive Summary here ...
Asian American Officer is Promoted to Deputy Chief Apr Deputy Chief Terry S. Hara - West Bureau .Asian and Pacific Islander American community leaders, friends, family and colleagues joined Chief William J. Bratton and Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa on the Los Angeles Police Academy Field yesterday morning as the Department's highest-ranking Asian American police officer, Terry S. Hara, was officially promoted to Deputy Chief.  Deputy Chief Hara is the first ever Asian Pacific Islander American in the history of the Department to achieve the rank of Deputy Chief, and will serve as Commanding Officer of Operation West Bureau.
Gang Wars - the BIG turf fight's among our elected officials Apr by Bill Murray .There's a terrible gang war going on these days in Los Angeles. But we're not talking about what's happening on the street. The BIG battle's for turf of a different kind .. for control of LAs official anti-gang efforts .. and it's being waged at City Hall. Elected politicians and local activists are lining up behind two gangs .. I mean camps .. one led by Laura Chick, the City Controller, who's charged with auditing LA's spending, and the other by Councilman Tony Cardenas, who Chairs a committee with anti-gang oversight.
Revised Crowd Control Strategies for May Day Apr Los Angeles: Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton announced the Department's strategy for crowd management at the upcoming immigration rights demonstration on May 1, 2008, and changes to selection process for Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT). Training Group Commanding Officer Sandy Jo MacArthur provided a comprehensive review of the Department's ongoing efforts to improve crowd management/control policies and procedures. Since the previous May Day event on May 1, 2007, the LAPD has made a thorough examination of the 2007 May Day event, including pre-event planning and training.
SWAT: The Next Level - selecting SWAT officers Apr Changes will toughen the elite team . Changes to how the Los Angeles Police Department selects officers for its SWAT training program have prompted angry letters, disgruntled anonymous quotes in the newspaper and even a claim of unfair labor practices  from the police officers union. These critics charge that the department has lowered the standards for entry into the Special Weapons and Tactics Team. What is missing in all that rhetoric are the facts.
Chick Audit of LAPD HQ Makes 32 Recommendations Apr Controller Laura Chick - Finds ways to save public dollars . EDITOR'S NOTE: The new downtown LAPD headquarters building is $150 million over projections - and will cost to more than $450 million . In a report containing 32 recommendations for improvement, City Controller Laura Chick released her audit of the construction of the Los Angeles Police Headquarters saying, “It is time for us to be thinking outside of the box and adopting more flexibility and modern approaches which could cost us less in the long-run.”
Neighborhood Preparedness Ambassador Program Apr by the LAPD Community Policing Unit - Preparing our neighborhoods is no longer one person’s, one department’s, or even one city’s responsibility. It takes a united effort among government, businesses, schools, faith-based organizations, neighborhoods, neighborhood blocks and individual households. It is everyone’s responsibility to prepare themselves and then take initiative to engage others around them to be prepared, too! To foster this spirit of preparedness and readiness, the City of Los Angeles Emergency Operations Organization sponsors a three-part series, train-the-trainer program for neighborhood council representatives. This series offers participants an opportunity to get involved in the City’s emergency preparedness program.
  Mar  
LANI 6th Annual Communiry Forum Mar Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative Sixth Annual Community Forum - FREE ! - Thursday • May 15, 2008 • 8 am - 2:30 pm . FREE !! . Once again we’re bringing the community together for the LANI (Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative Sixth Annual Community Forum) !  Drawing on Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative's unparalleled track record of revitalizing diverse areas, this exciting event gathers and trains neighborhood leaders and community stakeholders, providing a critical opportunity for dialogue and information sharing. USC Davidson Conference Center, 3415 S. Figueroa St. Los Angeles, CA 90089 - Register for FREE !
CERT Volunteers Needed for LAFD Funeral Events Mar by Linda Underwood . EDITOR'S NOTE: Run by the LA Fire Department, at LACP we LOVE the CERT program! It's a terrific way the community can participate in public safety ... and almost anyone can play a part! We recently received the following announcement from CERT-LA and the Los Angeles Fire Department: Funeral arrangements are being made for fallen Firefighter Brent Lovrien. At this time CERT volunteers are needed to assist in the set up, support, Rehab and logistics for three upcoming funeral events.
One Firefighter Dies and One Injured in Explosion Mar in Playa Del Rey . It is with great sadness that the men and women of the Los Angeles Fire Department share word of one, City of Los Angeles Firefighter dying today in the line of duty. Firefighters were summoned to investigate smoke in the 8800 block of South Sepulveda Boulevard in the Westchester area of Los Angeles - not far from Los Angeles International Airport.
LAPD Archive Photos - Preserving the Legacy Mar The Los Angeles Police Department has embarked on an ambitious plan to catalog and preserve nearly one million photographic negatives accumulated during decades of police service in the city of Los Angeles. The images constitute a visual record dating primarily from the early 1920s to the late 1960s. Until now the images have remained largely forgotten and unexplored.
Report Identifies Ways to Increase Civilians at LAPD Mar Controller Laura Chick - Potential to Redeploy Over 400 Officers Back on the Streets . Calling Los Angeles “… one of the most underpoliced big cities in America,” Laura Chick issued a report identifying ways to increase civilian staffing of the LAPD and put more officers out fighting crime on our streets and in our neighborhoods.“We found over 500 positions that could potentially be filled by civilians, freeing up sworn personnel to perform more traditional policing functions. The last chapter of the report lays out a clear plan, implemented over a three year period that would put these already trained, experienced veteran police officers, back out in neighborhoods where we need them,” said Chick at a news conference with LAPD Chief Bill Bratton. Read the Executive Report here.
Helicopters Become Black and Whites in the Sky Mar " .. Only the Vehicle Has Changed ” . The Los Angeles Police Department's (LAPD) Air Support Division (ASD) recently unveiled two police helicopters with a new black and white color scheme. The new design represents an effort to develop a closer bond with uniformed police officers on the ground and to underscore the fact that ASD pilots and aircraft are in the air 24/7 as backup. The ASD motto is: “The Mission is the Same Only the Vehicle Has Changed.”
LAPD E-policing - bringing community policing to the Internet Mar Get up-to-date City wide crime maps, and sign up for e-policing . E-policing is a new innovative LAPD tool that cross-references the address you enter to the Senior Lead Officer (SLO) who patrols your neighborhood. After registering, you will receive periodic e-mails from your SLO regarding safety tips and crime alerts. Being aware, alert and in sync with safety tips and crime alerts in your neighborhood is key safety and success for the whole community! The website is updated every 24 hours and information can be sent out to a wide area or as little as one block, providing detailed information on crime patterns and things that affect your neighborhood.
Gun Microstamping Legislation Gains Local Support Mar Los Angeles – Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Assistant to the Speaker of the House, the author of the National Crime Gun Identification Act of 2008 (H.R. 5266) and a longtime proponent of microstamping, will host a press conference to explain how new technology can help investigators match a single cartridge recovered at a crime scene to the gun – and the criminal that fired it. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Police Chief William Bratton, Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jan Perry, and Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley will all unveil their support.
Official Police Garage B-roll Now Available Mar LAPD Police Commission - Los Angeles – In order to provide the public with a clear and comprehensive understanding of the services provided by the Official Police Garage facilities throughout the City of Los Angeles, b-roll footage has been filmed and is now available. The footage covers interior and exterior shots of Official Police Garage facilities, functions occurring within the facilities including Inspection Hold Areas, the process of a vehicle being towed for a parking violation, the use of heavy duty tow trucks, and the use of Official Police Garage tow trucks at a collision scene. A complete list of the images is attached.
Activism or Cowardice? Mar by LAPD Senior Lead Officer Deon Joseph . At a recent public hearing, an activist group, who will remain nameless as always, entered the hearing and began their usual chants and rhetorical pot shots against the Los Angeles Police Department and myself.  This is nothing new.  Most people are immune to their tactics, which are almost comical, until we see the negative results of their activities. Yet what was different than before, was the fact that these activist took it upon themselves to attack a fallen officer, who had valiantly given up his life trying to save lives, along with his injured partner.  This officer is not able to defend himself.  As we all know, we recently lost not only a great officer, but also a wonderful human being.  On duty and off duty, SWAT Officer Randy Simmons dedicated his life to protecting the community and mentoring to children.
Speech Given to LAPD Graduation Class Mar by Deputy Chief Gary Brennan . 34 Years ago, during February 1974, I graduated from the Los Angeles Police Academy (Class of 9/73) ... These Police Academy grounds are truly special. Indeed, these are hallowed grounds. Every Los Angeles Police Officer Since 1931 has graduated here at this Academy. Today the ranks of our graduates are enhanced by the presence of officers from the LA Airports, LA General Services and LA Harbor Police Departments. To you family, friends and loved ones of these graduating recruits…a very special welcome to this Academy on this most special day in the lives of the officer of classes 8/07 and 9/07. It is to these recruit officers that I wish to speak. As I stand here at the end of my career and you at the beginning of yours, I want to congratulate and encourage you in your commitment to law enforcement, the LAPD and our allied agencies. You are embarking on a journey of work few others have the chance, or even the ability to take. And my hope for you is that 35 years from now, you will know as much pride, satisfaction and fulfillment in your lives in law enforcement as I've known in mine with the LAPD.
Police Academy for Community Members - FREE ! Mar Police Academy for Community Members - free 11 week course offered, Thursday nights  . The new Community Police Academy has been scheduled to begin on Thursday, March 27th, and is held every Thursday for 11 weeks from 6pm to 9pm. The course is designed to provide the community members with an inside look at the LAPD and various facets of law enforcement. The academy is held at the Elysian Park Academy (1880 North Academy Drive, CA 90012-1001) every Thursday from 6pm to 9pm. There is no physical activity involved other that walking to the classrooms and there is no charge. During the eleven week academy students will be introduced to police operations, participate in firearms safety demonstrations, tour Air Support Division (Helicopter Cops) and communications divisions.
City Approves LAPD Signing Bonus of up to $10,000 Feb from the LAPD - With the signature of the Mayor, the LAPD now offers a signing bonus of up to $10,000 for qualified men and women to join the Los Angeles Police Department. Paid for in part by a $1 million donation from Mercury Insurance, the Signing Bonus is the most recent action in the Mayor's push to put 1,000 new police officers on the streets of Los Angeles by the year 2010.  The LAPD Signing Bonus offers $5,000 to new recruits and $10,000 to returning LAPD officers and current police officers from other jurisdictions who join the Department.
LA City - Fiscal Year 2008-09 Budget Deliberations Feb The City's Budget and Finance Committee will be holding public hearings to consider comments and recommendations from Angelenos concerning implementation of the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. This is also a reminder to complete the Mayor's Budget Survey. This year's survey includes questions about the key issues and decisions that the Mayor and City Council will have to make to balance a budget in times of great financial challenges. The Mayor is requesting your feedback on key City services that impact our communities and on how to safeguard and/or attain new revenue for essential services.
Rep. Becerra and Sen. Kennedy Introduce Gun Microstamping Legislation Feb EDITOR'S NOTE: We at LACP have actively supported the concept of Gun Microstamping (and Ammunition Microstamping) for some time, and appreciate the efforts of Congressman Becerra and Senator Kennedy.  We feel this legislation could have a significant impact in helping to solve the many serious crimes involving firearms. WASHINGTON, D.C. – Close to 40 percent of all homicides nationwide go unsolved each year. To help improve this gravely disappointing statistic, Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Assistant to the Speaker of the House, today introduced the National Crime Gun Identification Act of 2008. Senator Edward Kennedy (MA) introduced an identical companion bill in the Senate. Microstamping is the next generation in ballistics technology that gives police more precise investigative leads to pursue criminals.
LAPD Helicopters Used as Targets for Lasers Feb from the LAPD - At a news conference held atop the Air Support Division's heliport, Captain Mike Williams, Commanding Officer of Air Support Division, accompanied by Deputy Chief Richard Roupoli, Commanding Officer of Special Operations Bureau, stated to the media the growing problem of people pointing lasers inside the cockpits of LAPD helicopters and commercial airliners. “This is a problem that affects LAPD helicopters and commercial aviation.  A laser beam shot into a cockpit is illegal, causes temporary blindness to the air crew, causing disorientation and can lead to a possible crash,” said Captain Williams.
Laura Chick Audits LA's Anti-Gang Efforts Feb Los Angeles -- Calling it, “A time for action…now,” City Controller Laura Chick released her wide ranging and highly anticipated Blueprint on ending gang violence. “During the last two decades, there have been countless studies, reports, consultants, City Council ad-hoc committees, new programs and hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars spent to stem the gang crisis. And what do we have to show for it? The recent in-depth Advancement Project study painted a grim picture, which my report echoes, of a disjointed maze of services that don't reach the intended “at risk” youth population,” said City Controller Chick.
View from a squad car Feb by Jack Dunphy . Putting video cameras in black-and-whites won't clear up a distorted picture of the LAPD. The federal consent decree mandating reform of the Los Angeles Police Department was supposed to expire in 2006, five years after the city negotiated it with the U.S. Justice Department following the Rampart scandal. But in May 2006, the federal judge overseeing it ruled that the department was still not complying with several of its provisions and ordered that the court-appointed monitor keep watch over the department until June 2009. According to the Police Protective League -- the police union -- the city has already spent more than $13 million for the monitor's fees and expenses and more than $30 million in complying with the decree's many provisions.
2008 LAPD Essay Contest Kicks off Feb Now in its fifth year, the LAPD Essay Contest is conducted through middle schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.  In 350 words or less, students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade are asked to answer: "If you were a Los Angeles Police Department officer for a day, what would you do that would have the greatest impact on the community?" The contest begins this Monday, February 25, 2008, and is open for four weeks. The entry deadline is Friday, March 21, 2008. Submissions are read by volunteer judges that consist of police officers and community members.  Essays are judged on topic significance, creativity, content, and writing style.
LAPD Mourns Loss of Veteran SWAT Officer Feb from the LAPD (please see UPDATES, too) . February 07, 2008 . Shortly, after 9:00 last night, the Los Angeles Police Department's Communications Division received a 911 call from a home in West Valley in the 19000 block of Welby Way.  The caller indicated he had killed 3 of his family members.  West Valley Patrol Units responded to conduct an investigation. The suspect refused to leave the home and LAPD SWAT was called to the scene. Around 12:30 this morning, SWAT made entry into the home and an exchange of gunfire between the officers and the suspect occurred.  Two veteran SWAT officers were shot, removed from the home and rushed to Northridge Medical Center.  The incident at the home in West Valley is still ongoing, and for that reason there will be no more tactical information released at this time. Despite the efforts of the Los Angeles Fire Department and hospital personnel, one of the officers passed away just after one o'clock this morning.  The other officer was seriously wounded but will survive. Due to overwhelming support for LAPD Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) Team Officers Randal Simmons and James Veenstra, trust funds have been established in both their names through the Los Angeles Police Federal Credit Union (LAPFC). Please see UPDATES and how to make a donation here, too.
CERT Help Needed - Presidential Primary Elections - Feb 5th Jan by Linda Underwood . The Los Angeles Fire Department has requested help from CERT graduates for the Presidential Primary Election on Tuesday, February 5, 2008.  The County Clerk is expecting a large voter turnout for this election. This is a CERT event, not a call-out. Seventeen of the polling places will be at fire stations.  The purpose of the CERT volunteers will be to assist with parking, provide direction to the community, and augment fire station security.
LAPD Reports - Reduction in 2007 Gang Crime Jan Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa joined Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton to announce significant gang violence reductions in 2007. “At the beginning of last year, I announce a new approach to gangs,” said Chief Bratton.  “The strategy consisted of several Gang Initiatives aimed to reducing violence and fear.”  Working together with community members, our city's political leadership, and State and Federal agencies, we have begun to turn the trend and reduce gang crime and the fear associated with it.
Back to School Safety - from the LAPD Jan Now that the holidays are over, it is time for children to return to school and for classes to resume.  Each year in the City of Los Angeles nearly 200 children are killed or injured while being picked up or dropped off from school. In 2006 alone, 192 children citywide were injured while arriving at or departing from school.  Fifty-three children were injured in the San Fernando Valley alone. This is a good time to remind drivers and parents that it is imperative that they drive responsibly.  Here are a few tips to ensure the safety of our kids.
LAPD's Message From The Chief of Police Jan by Chief Bratton - Jan, 2008..As we begin a new year, I not only feel good about where we are going, but where we have been.  The past year was a very good one for the Los Angeles Police Department.  We continued our efforts to re-establish the LAPD as the leading law enforcement agency in the nation, raising the bar of professional standards for ourselves and for our colleagues in law enforcement.  We delivered declines in crime for the residents of the City of Los Angeles for the sixth year in a row, furthering a history-making success streak that is making local, national and international headlines.
Monthly Crime Prevention Tips Jan Ten Things Adults Can Do To Stop Violence . Set up a Neighborhood Watch or a community patrol, working with police. Make sure your streets and homes are well lighted. Make sure that all the youth in the neighborhood have positive ways to spend their spare time, through organized recreation, tutoring programs, part-time work, and volunteer opportunities. Build a partnership with police, focus on solving problems instead of reacting to crises. Make it possible for neighbors to report suspicious activity or crimes without fear of retaliation. Take advantage of "safety in numbers" to hold rallies, marches, and other group activities to show you're determined to drive out crime and drugs. Clean up the neighborhood! ... and much more ....
LA Crime Down for Sixth Consecutive Year in 2007 Jan from the LAPD - January 2, 2008 . Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Police Chief William Bratton announced that homicides fell to a 37-year low, 392 total, with preliminary statistics for 2007 showing the City's Part I crime rate dropped for a sixth straight year. In 2007, the per capita crime rate for Part I crime remained below the 1956 level. During that year the population of Los Angeles was 2.3 million. Per capita crime was 385 per 10,000 people. In 2007 the estimated population is 4.2 million with a per capita crime rate of 290 per 10,000, a significant decrease from 1956. "My fellow Police Commissioners and I want to commend the men and women of the LAPD for this significant crime reduction effort," stated Police Commission President Anthony Pacheco. "This is a testament to the fine leadership of Chief of Police William J. Bratton and his leadership team. Los Angeles is a safer city due to these fine efforts."