Bratton appoints panel to implement LAPD reforms
Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton has appointed an advisory group, including former City Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski, to help implement reforms recommended after the Rampart police corruption scandal, officials said Tuesday.
In addition to Miscikowski, the group will include police union President Bob Baker, policing expert Merrick Bobb, civil rights attorney Connie Rice and top LAPD command officers.
The group will help Bratton put in place changes recommended last July by the Blue Ribbon Rampart Review Panel, including expansion of the police force and moving the department toward a more community-friendly, problem-solving policing style.
Cmdr. Sandy Jo MacArthur said the group’s goal is to make sure that reforms recommended after Rampart, including those in a federal court consent decree, are carried out.
“It’s very important to institutionalize the mandates of the consent decree,” MacArthur told the Police Commission.
The scandal, which erupted in the late 1990s, involved allegations that anti-gang officers in the Rampart Division used excessive force and framed suspects. Nine officers were criminally charged, and 23 were fired or suspended, and 156 felony convictions were invalidated because of suspected police misconduct.
The group will work on improving training, developing more community trust in the department and using the latest technology to make the police more efficient.
“It’s a good beginning,” said commission President John Mack.
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