Are police copping to Measure F stance?

Greg Risling

NEWPORT-MESA -- The signs are scattered throughout Newport Beach and

Costa Mesa: “Cops Say No on F.”

Printed by the Newport Beach-based Airport Working Group Political Action

Committee, the signs, have been distributed to thousands of residents

during the past couple of weeks.

“We sold out in two days,” said David Ellis, a consultant for the local

group. “The signs are on reorder right now, but there will be 4,000 signs

up by the end of the week.”

Ellis said the “cops” in the signs do not refer to the local police

departments, but to Orange County Sheriff Mike Carona and Dist. Atty.

Tony Rackauckas, who oppose the measure.

If approved March 7 by voters, the measure would require a two-thirds

vote before the county could build new jails, hazardous waste landfills

and commercial airports. The measure is designed to block the county’s

plans for a $2.9-billion airport at the closed Marine Corps air base at

El Toro.

But, at least in Newport-Mesa, the two police departments haven’t weighed

in on the issue. And don’t expect an announcement any time soon.

“We stay out of these situations because it is inappropriate for us to

take a position,” said Newport Beach police Sgt. Mike McDermott. “We will

keep politically neutral.

“We have, in the past, thrown our support behind a City Council or

judicial candidate, but even those we are straying away from.”

Newport-Mesa residents have a keen interest in the outcome, because most

fear John Wayne Airport will undergo an expansion if a second airport

isn’t built.

However, El Toro advocates have shifted more attention to the measure’s

impact on law enforcement than its controversial airport proposal. Fliers

have flooded mailboxes and garden-variety signs have been plastered on

telephone poles and front lawns in recent weeks.

Airport proponents who launched an anti-Measure F campaign have said if

the measure passes, criminals could roam free in every neighborhood

because there are not enough jail beds. They argue that the measure could

prevent more jails from being built and convicts could be let out early

to make room for new criminals.

The message, along with the name of the Orange County sheriff, is

prominently displayed on anti-F fliers. The sheriff and the district

attorney are not only law enforcement officials, but they are politicians

who are elected to their positions.

Many other police officers are not considered a part of the political

arena.

For instance, Santa Ana Police Chief Paul Walters recently announced that

some campaign literature incorrectly used his statements to say he

supported the measure. Walters said the quotes, from his 1998 campaign

for sheriff, were taken out of context and should never have been applied

to the Measure F debate.

Walters plans to remain neutral, as most chiefs, including those in

Newport Beach and Costa Mesa, have done.

“I think getting police on your side during a political campaign

strengthens the argument,” said Costa Mesa police Lt. John Fitzpatrick.

“We aren’t taking any sides, though. We don’t mix politics with

business.”

The “cops” signs are the most noticeable addition to the anti-Measure F

campaign in the last two weeks. Some residents hoped the signs would be

more specific instead of using police in a general sense, leaving others

questioning if their department has taken a stand against the measure.

“It’s probably misleading to the average Newport Beach resident,”

McDermott said. “We don’t get too worked up about this stuff unless the

portrayal is completely outrageous.”

Some residents were floored by the purported law enforcement stance. Gay

Wassall-Kelly has received the anti-F mailers and couldn’t believe the

airport proposal wasn’t even mentioned. Although she sides with the

measure’s opposition, she thinks law enforcement has not been correctly

depicted.

“It’s probably not the way they want to be presented,” she said. “The

airport project should be a separate entity on the ballot. I don’t see

how all of these important things can be lumped together.”