officers - The Black Vault

One option to be considered
today was settling any lawsuit filed
by Gates in his favor and reinstating
him.
Under another plan, the council
would deny funding for a private
law firm the Police Commission
wants to hire in the event Gates
takes the commission panel ~o
court:
Throughout City Hall, rhetoric
was sharp and voices pitched high.
City Council President John
Ferraro· said at least 10 council
members strongly object to the
Police Commission's decision to
place Gates on leave. "I think. that
they're a loose cannon," Ferraro
said. "I think that is a dangerous
group to have in there."
Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky
called the situation a "crisis in
governance" that is "ripping . . .
the people of this city apart and has
now driven a wedge between the
various branch~s of city government
to no constructive end."
Councilman Joel Wachs likened
Bradley to former President Richard
M. Nixon, who resigned in
disgrace. .~'It's a naked politica~
power grab and it's got to be
stopped," he said. "Not since Richard
Nixon, has anyone employed
the ends justifying the means as
we've seen in this case."
But Bradley, after returning
from a trip to Sacramento, said th~"·
commission had done the right"­
thing.
w
"It is my hope that today's Polic~~
Commission action will give us .an~
time to bridge the differences tha"!:._
have grown between us since th$:l1
· Rodney King incident," he said. ·~c
He referred to Gates' leave of:
absence as a "time-out," and added:
·"The Police Commission is
using a well-established procedure"!.
that the chief himself often applie?tto
officers under investigation." :n
· In addition, Garcia said his panel~
will not cave in to political influ 1 ~
· .nr
ence.
"The City Council is not the
operating body of this depart ... c.i
ment," Garcia said. 111
TheLAPD ,(1
Throughout Parker Center;;..
rank-and-file officers and mem-'
bers of the chief's high command'J
reacted angrily to the news that
Gates was told to vacate 'his sixth!.H
floor office, where he has serv.ed as
the city's top law enforceme.n.~
official for the last 13 years. Ch1E;f
·of Staff George Morrison, one elf
cGates' top commanders, strung .i.
dar}{ ribbon over his badge. "It's
better than losing my temper 'over
this," he said.
George Aliano, president of th~
Los Angeles Police Protective
League claimed that "no one's
getting the message .how upset we
are." He declared ·-that if Gates
• doesn't get his job b~ck:'the polic~
u9Jofi will hold mass meetings t&
. consiaer protests that could lead to
·'$Orne unprecedented job action. ~t'
He suggested that rank-and-file"
officers will consider work slow~~
downs. or other activities. Shortly;
after Gates was placed on leave~
officers were seen writing an un~
usual number of jaywalking tickets
around City Hall.
t
Capt. Doug Watson, who head~,
the LAPD uni1 -probing politica~
corruption cases and. is currently
investigating the mayor's fundraising
operation, said he was "sick
to my stomach [and] disgusted" by1
w~at had happened to Gates. . 1
He predicted that the events of,
I Thursday will lead to the politici:--,
.'zation of law en{orcement. 1
"Fear of an ,investigation" by au.
"independent- .police chief .has'
helped keep graft otit of city gov "'1
· ernment, he said. Gates' ouster and:
-any effort to bring the chief under:
the control of the mayor will mean
police comm_anders will "rely Ol}l
the milk flowing out of the breas~
of the police chief. 'Phe departmen~
becomes a poll tical animal."
' He then said that after 27 years
on the Police Department, he is
retiring. "This did it," he said. .:
· Lt. Fred Reno said he will as~sume
supervision of the investiga~
tion until a new captain is namedo:.
He added, however, that the may~·
qr's move to ous.t Gates will not be_­
a factor in the contributing pro_be. ·;
"It's incumbent upon us at this
time that ~he public knows th~
investigation we are conducting is
going to go on with great integrit)ll
with no pressure," he said. "No
matter whose name comes up 1
. there will be no witch hunt. This is.
·the Los Angeles Police Depart-•
ment.".
Th~ Community
Community reaction was sharply.
divided along lines espoused by the
Gates and Bradley camps. J
Ramona Ripston, executive director
of the American Civil Liberties
Union of Southern California,
rPraised the Police Commission for
putting "the control of city's police
:force squarely back in the hands of
•the civilians." · .,
t
·,
Dariny Bakewell, president ot;
the Brotherhood Crusade, a group
active in the black community, also
defended Bradley and the Police
Commission.
"I think the action he [BradleyJ
took showed he was the mayor of
t all the people," .Bakewell said. "He
gave Daryl Gates enough .rope to
either distinguish himself or hang
himself, and I think Daryl Gates
chose the latter."
But attorney Stephen Yagman,
an unrelenting Gates critic who has
built a career out of suing the
LAPD, wrote Gates a letter encouraging
him to "hold ·his
ground."
"It's outrageous to put the chief
of police on a paid leave of absence
without first affording him all of
his rights," Yagman said. "Even
the police chief is entitled to due
process of law;''
· Yet,· Steven Lerman, who is
pressing a multimillion-dollar
·claim against the city on behalf of
King, said his client believes the
commission has signaled to the
community that police brutality
will not be tolerated. ·
"He wants to be the last man the
police ever beat up," Lerman said. '
Times staff writers Leslie Berger,
Paul Feldman, Paul Lieberman, James
Rainey and Tracy Wood contributed to
this story.