‘We’re going to end up in the L.A. Times.’ LAPD officers’ alleged racist comments were secretly recorded
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Good morning. Here’s what you need to know to start your day.
- A complaint by a 10-year veteran of the LAPD alleges racist comments from other officers on secret recordings.
- UCLA launches an effort to fight antisemitism as Trump says more pro-Palestinian activist arrests ahead.
- What the dead have to say to the living: Lessons from a psychic reading.
- And here’s today’s e-newspaper.
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‘We’re going to end up in the L.A. Times’
A note to readers: This edition includes offensive language to illustrate a few of the crude and racist remarks allegedly made by Los Angeles police officers.
The Los Angeles Police Department is facing a new scandal after a 10-year department veteran secretly recorded some of his fellow officers allegedly making derogatory and racist comments.
That’s according to a complaint filed with the LAPD in January, which has sparked multiple investigations and led some officers to be removed from the department’s Recruiting Division Personal History Section.
My colleagues Richard Winton and Libor Jany are the first to report on the actual language in the complaint, which they detailed in a Times subscriber exclusive.
“[The complaint] portrays officers and supervisors voicing open discrimination against potential recruits and colleagues based on race, sex and sexual orientation,” Richard and Libor wrote. “These same officers were tasked with deciding who could join the LAPD.”
The scandal comes during a time when the department is struggling to recruit officers and shore up its ranks. An estimated exodus of cops over the next 15 months could drop the city’s force down to 8,620, which would mark a 30-year low.
What’s on the alleged recordings?
The complaining officer’s name was redacted from the complaint, but he was described as a Latino who has been with the LAPD for 10 years. He initially made written accusations anonymously but later submitted dozens of hours of recordings made between last March and October.
Richard and Libor have not listened to the audiotape itself but have reviewed a copy of the complaint that details dozens of racist and derogatory comments made by officers during hours of recorded conversations.
The complaint accuses LAPD Sgt. Denny Jong, who is Asian, of leading the crude and bigoted banter.
In one incident, the complaint alleges Jong was talking with subordinates about Dodgers baseball legend Fernando Valenzuela’s death from septic shock. “I know why he died, he ate too much Tacos,” Jong is accused of saying.
In another conversation, a Latina LAPD officer, identified as Shirley Burgos, offered a tip on fighting African Americans: “You hit Black people in the liver; I heard they got weak livers,” according to the complaint. Burgos allegedly described a Latina janitor to her colleagues as a “wetback” after the janitor complained about her.
“The complaint also alleged that Burgos often pulled officer candidate profiles to see what they looked like and failed candidates on the basis of their appearance,” Libor and Richard reported.
The complaint also names Christian Flores, a Latino officer who allegedly bragged that he lived in Simi Valley and called the cops on some Black kids selling chocolate because “They do not belong here.”
Lt. Louis Lavender, who oversaw the section, “witnessed and heard these conversations going on ... [He] has done nothing,” the complaint alleges. The complaint details a conversation in November when an officer said “You’re just in time for the naked mud wrestling,” to Lavender, who is Black, as he walked into the office.
“Man, we’re going to end up in the L.A. Times the way you all talk in here,” Lavender replied, according to the complaint. “You all can bring down the whole department.”
How city officials are responding
LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell removed a lieutenant, a sergeant and four officers from the unit last month after news of the complaint broke.
Mayor Karen Bass received details of the complaint last month. She told Richard and Libor that the allegations were “especially outrageous and unacceptable.”
The LAPD is investigating the allegations and launched a parallel probe into how the officers’ alleged comments and actions may have affected the department’s recruitment efforts.
LAPD officials said they would also investigate whether the recordings were made illegally.
That didn’t sit well with attorney Greg Smith, who’s representing the officer who filed the complaint.
“The officer that recorded and reported repeated offensive racial epithets and slurs concerning female officers and their sexual orientation, by those who are recruiting officers to serve the City of Los Angeles, should be celebrated as a hero,” Smith said, adding:
“This officer is a whistleblower that reported egregious unlawful conduct by his supervisors and had no alternative but to secretly tape record the individuals to prove this conduct was occurring.”
In a statement, the union representing the LAPD’s rank-and-file officers tried to put some distance between itself and the accused officers.
“Any roadblock to growing the ranks of the LAPD must be eradicated and that includes any alleged conduct that does not uphold the high standards we, as police officers, are held to,” Los Angeles Police Protective League officials wrote. “Accountability is a cornerstone of any healthy organization and we believe it is being applied to this particular incident.”
You can read more about the LAPD’s latest scandal and the department’s history of racism in Richard and Libor’s subscriber exclusive.
Today’s top stories
UCLA launches an effort to fight antisemitism as Trump says more pro-Palestinian activist arrests are ahead
- UCLA announced an initiative to combat antisemitism but faced questions over addressing anti-Palestinian, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents.
- The Trump administration sent a letter to colleges warning of “potential enforcement actions” if they do not protect Jewish students.
Lawmakers call on the Trump administration to nix a plan to shoot 450,000 owls
- Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service approved a plan to kill up to nearly a half-million barred owls in West Coast states over three decades to protect the spotted owl.
- A bipartisan group of 19 members of Congress wants Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to scuttle the plan, saying the cost could top $1 billlion.
- Supporters of the plan say it’s needed to prevent the extinction of the northern spotted owl, which is being pushed out of its habitat by barred owls.
What else is going on
- Here’s how to watch the ‘blood moon’ total lunar eclipse this week.
- Measles at LAX: An L.A. County resident had highly contagious disease when arriving at airport.
- Southern California is about to get drenched by new storms this week.
- A judge blocks Trump’s order canceling teacher training grants after California and others sue.
- Former Rep. Katie Porter announces run for California governor.
- Fewer than 20% of L.A. residents give Mayor Bass high marks for fire response, a poll shows.
- A ‘surge’ of violence prompts a crackdown in California’s prison system, officials say.
- Trump doubles planned tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50% as trade war intensifies.
- California’s ancient petroglyphs in the eastern Sierra keep being vandalized.
- Billy Joel postpones his tour due to an undisclosed medical condition: ‘My health must come first.’
- At Southwest Airlines, bags will no longer fly free.
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Commentary and opinions
- With his new podcast, Gavin Newsom may just talk himself to political death, writes Mark Z. Barabak.
- El Clasificado, the largest Spanish-language weekly in the United States, has started a new lifestyle magazine in an era where many print publications are dying, columnist Gustavo Arellano writes.
- California politicians, neglect rooftop solar at your peril, columnist Sammy Roth writes.
- No matter the alarms raised by a majority of economists, to Trump tariffs aren’t a dangerous weapon, they’re a tool, writes columnist Jonah Goldberg.
- A small study of COVID vaccine aftereffects triggers a political and scientific storm, writes columnist Michael Hiltzik.
This morning’s must-reads
What the dead have to say to the living: Lessons from a psychic reading. An Orange County retirement community recently hosted a psychic named Rose, a self-described spiritual evidential psychic medium and spiritual healer. Her lecture is called “Lessons from the Spirit World,” and for those who are of an age when grief, loss and their own mortality are near and prevalent, the lessons are welcome. Among these men and women, all seniors, lies the hope, if not the belief, that there is something beyond this world.
Other must-reads
- California farm groups look to stabilize workforce amid a crackdown on illegal immigration.
- Running a restaurant in L.A. seems impossible. So this chef has one employee — himself.
- Jordan Chiles continues to fight for her Olympic bronze medal while leading UCLA gymnastics.
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
For your downtime
Going out
- 🏡 Joan Didion made her mark on L.A. Here are 10 places she knew and loved.
- 🥟 This dumpling reveals all at a Turkish restaurant like no other in L.A.
- 🏛️ How to see the new LACMA up close: The museum sets opening for a plaza around the new building.
Staying in
- 📖 A cranky Kevin Costner and a resilient Uma Thurman: 5 juicy stories from Maureen Dowd’s ‘Notorious’ interviews.
- 🍽️ Here’s a recipe for artichokes with sizzling shallot vinaigrette.
- ✏️ Get our free daily crossword puzzle, sudoku, word search and arcade games.
A question for you: What’s your favorite local restaurant?
Michael N. Antonoplis writes: “My favorite local restaurant is Claudine [Artisan Kitchen & Bakeshop] in Encino. I’ve always favored non-chain breakfast/lunch restaurants and Claudine is simply the best. I especially enjoy breakfast burritos and Claudine’s Brisket Breakfast Burrito is an original! Claudine’s vibe is welcoming and the lunch crowd is energetic. Let’s continue to support our local restaurants - it’s worth it!”
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And finally ... your photo of the day
Show us your favorite place in California! Send us photos you have taken of spots in California that are special — natural or human-made — and tell us why they’re important to you.
Today’s great photo is from Alex Casbara of Oakland: Máyyan ‘Ooyákma – Coyote Ridge Open Space Preserve.
Alex writes: “This photo was taken at the Coyote Ridge Open Space Preserve during a spring bloom. It overlooks the Diablo Range and has one of the best wildflower shows in the Bay Area.”
Have a great day, from the Essential California team
Ryan Fonseca, reporter
Defne Karabatur, fellow
Andrew Campa, Sunday reporter
Kevinisha Walker, multiplatform editor
Hunter Clauss, multiplatform editor
Christian Orozco, assistant editor
Stephanie Chavez, deputy metro editor
Karim Doumar, head of newsletters
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