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Complaint Follow-On ... motorcycle officers speeding

September 2, 2004

Hello,

I tried to address to the OIG (Office of the Inspector General) but the website was unavailable. Please forgive me if this is the wrong forum to submit this.

On May 2, 2004 I submitted a citizen complaint on motorcycle officers speeding past me quite frequently on my way to work on SB 405 freeway without their emergency lights on. Why I submitted this complaint is because a former LAPD commanding officer friend of mine informed me that vehicles, especially motorcycles, become uncontrollable for emergency maneuvers at high rates of speed from 75 – 80 mph and I have concern:

1) for the officers’ safety and

2) for other motorists that may come in harm’s way should an incident occur.

The complaint was investigated by the LAPD. The results were communicated to me in a letter dated August 23, 2004 by Chief Bratton, countersigned by Capt. David Baca. Basically, “Insufficient evidence to adjudicate” came back for those officers I could not read license plates for, either because they were going too fast or the plates were concealed. For the officers I did get plate numbers for, one was a Beverly Hills officer, the other from LAPD West Traffic – the latter being labeled “not resolved” because of “insufficient evidence to prove or disprove the allegation.” Apparently I didn’t score too well on my (and my colleague’s) interviews/discussions with [the Sgt. who investigated] to convince him this was a problem.

Why I am writing this note is to state that I am still being passed by motorcycle officers at a high rate of speed, sometimes recklessly, in the mornings on my way to work, the most recent being yesterday, September 1, 2004 at 4:45 AM. This time I could not read the entire license number because the license plate light was not on (however I did see a “K” and a “7”). I personally believe this non-emergency driving is unsafe. And while the LAPD feels that I am mistaken, incorrect, or not expert in my accounts, the fact of the matter is that officers are passing me carelessly, and this does not seem to concern anyone. Maybe it is the CHP that needs to monitor the driving habits of police officers, hence the copy of this to them – certainly they are more qualified to make these observations than I.

Thanks for your consideration in this matter.

Best regards,

Dennis Pikop
Sylmar

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EDITOR'S NOTE: I spoke to Mr. Pikop at a phone number he'd provided and assured him that LAPD takes such complaints seriously and would see this, as he does, as an issue of safety for both the officers and the community. He also wrote the same letter to CHP.

At LAPD, the Office of the Inspector General is charged with general oversight of the complaint system for the Police Commission. It seems the OIG website is malfuntioning at the moment but I'll place the link here anyhow. In the past it's worked fine for me:

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Office of the Inspector General

http://www.oiglapd.org/

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