LAPD's
Message from the Chief of Police
March 2008

Greetings from the men and women of the Los Angeles Police Department.  The following is the monthly update.  We hope you find the information useful. You are encouraged to continue to visit our website at www.LAPDonline.org.

( LACP EDITOR'S NOTE: Past monthly messages are available directly through the link we've provided below. )

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CHIEF'S MESSAGE

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COPS COUNT

One of the most formidable challenges facing the Los Angeles Police Department today is LA's generations-old gang problem. For decades, our residents have seen their quality of life impacted by gang violence and intimidation. In 2006, our city saw a 15.7% increase in gang-related crimes. Our response, in February 2007, was to announce the implementation of several strategically focused and coordinated initiatives for 2007. I want to focus on some of these initiatives and their results in this message.

In 2007, we saw an overall reduction in gang crime and a reduction in violent crime, in particular. In 1992, the City of Los Angeles experienced its highest number of homicides ever: 1,092. Of those, 430 were identified as gang-related. In 2007, there were 216 gang murders. That number represents a 49.7% decrease from 1992's gang killings. In 2006 there were 294 gang homicides investigated, so, between the two years, the men and women of the LAPD, in cooperation with our many law enforcement and community partners, were able to reduce gang homicides by 26.5%. This is a great success, particularly for the first year of these initiatives. The good news is that your focused attention in 2008 is continuing to drive these numbers down.

Our initiatives include Bureau and Area programs that address the unique needs of the communities they serve. In South Bureau, the Criminal Gang Homicide Group was launched in March 2007, uniting homicide teams from Southeast, Southwest, and 77th Street Areas under the leadership of Commander Pat Gannon. Personnel from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, LA County District Attorney's Office, County Probation, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, FBI, and Gang Intervention Specialists were dedicated to this assignment. Working with the officers of South Bureau, homicides within South Bureau were reduced by 23.5%, for a total of 46 fewer homicides. At the same time, the homicide clearance rate increased from 52% in 2006 to 72% in 2007. In 2008, we intend to create a similar effort in Central Bureau.

The San Fernando Valley has its own very specific gang culture. This region has seen gang crime rise in recent years. As the Valley's overall population grew, there was a sharp increase of 44% in 2006. Strategies were designed in 2007 to specifically address this increase. I am pleased to report that these strategies, under the direction of Deputy Chief Michel Moore, resulted in a decrease of 5.3% in gang crime, or 76 fewer gang crimes in the Valley. Even more significantly, gang homicides are down 39.6% from 48 in 2006 to 29 in 2007. Shots fired are down 30.3% from 479 in 2006 to 334 in 2007. The number of victims shot is also down 27.1% from 247 in 2006 to 189 in 2007.

In February of 2007, we identified and targeted the city's 10 most problematic street gangs with the intention of generating political, media, and community interest and participation in our efforts to reduce gang violence. This was met with skepticism and criticism, as it represented a break with tradition for the Department. The Los Angeles City Attorney's Office has since obtained permanent injunctions against eight of these targeted gangs, with one additional injunction pending. To date, the Department and City Attorney's Office have obtained 33 injunctions in 17 Areas, targeting 50 street gangs. Since the inception of the Gang Injunction Program, dating back seven years, 5,009 gang members have been served with injunction court orders and 3,227 gang members have been arrested for violation of those orders. This effective tool will be expanded upon in 2008.

We have applied the “Top 10” strategy to the most wanted gang members as well. Last February, we posted this list on the Department website, LAPDOnline.org, and have updated it regularly. Since then, we have arrested 7 of these dangerous individuals. Two are currently serving sentences in state and federal correctional facilities, with the other five awaiting trial.

One of our most successful gang intervention and prevention programs is our Community Law Enforcement and Recovery Unit, or CLEAR, program. CLEAR is an effective model that combines comprehensive, coordinated resources to address and intimately focus on existing gang problems. It has been successful in empowering communities to reclaim neighborhoods from violent gangs. Currently there are 8 CLEAR locations, 3 of which we began in 2007, including the Imperial Courts housing project in Southeast Area, the Ramona Gardens housing project in Hollenbeck Area, and Baldwin Village in Southwest Area. All eight sites have shown significant decreases in gang crime, with Hollenbeck Area and Newton Area showing decreases of 17% and 11%, respectively. Mayor Villaraigosa's office is working on expanding intervention and prevention programs at all CLEAR sites.

Other methods have been proving successful as well and, overall, these results from the first year of our renewed and enhanced gang enforcement initiatives show that creative, focused, and properly resourced enforcement efforts can reduce the cycle of gang violence. Key to our suppression efforts are you, the cops, fighting gang crime on the front lines. For you, the cop in the neighborhoods, reducing gang crime is very dangerous work, as evidenced in the recent gun battle in Northeast Division. But, despite significant risk, you, the dedicated officers of the LAPD, are making a difference and proving, yet again, that cops count, that we matter.

On that note, I want to take a moment to remember Officer Randy Simmons. His respected stature within the Department, his church, and his community, along with his long list of accomplishments stand as reminders of what it means to be a true police professional and underscore my point that Cops Count. Officer Simmons embodied this. Not only in the field, where he demonstrated continuous prowess, bravery and courage, but also in his community, where he strove to make a difference. Affectionately known as “The Rock,” he did make a difference: Officer Simmons changed lives by mentoring and offering a helping hand to his colleagues, whomever, whenever.

But as great a cop as he was, he was an even better human being. As husband and father, he was more than solid. He was the epitome of role model. He had a strong relationship with his God that was at the center of his existence. As a deacon in his church, Officer Simmons always carried the Bible with him, had a cross in his car, and even prayed openly before his Code-7 meal. He has been credited with bringing a former gang member into the church, and becoming the godfather of that man's young child. Of course we all know about his generous spirit, as evidenced by the yearly toy drive he started for the children patients of Orthopedic Hospital. Few people know he was almost a professional football player after he finished college. An injury early in NFL training camp brought his days as a Dallas Cowboy to an end. But that end was a beginning for the Department. Shortly thereafter, he joined the LAPD and the rest is now, sadly, history. But it is a history that we will cherish.

Officer Simmons lived and died a hero. He understood, that to make a difference, you had to be that difference.

WILLIAM J. BRATTON
Chief of Police

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To see previous messages (there's one each month) just click on this link: