The next chief of the Los Angeles Police Department will need a turnaround wizard. But it's unlikely she or he will be given what the turnaround chief needs on day one: a PET scan of the LAPD's serious problems.

The City Police Commission has selected Dominic Choi, a 28-year LAPD veteran, to replace Chief Michelle Moore when she retires at the end of February. As several LAPD experts have pointed out, Mr. Choi is an insider in the current administration and an ally of Mr. Moore. He is more likely to maintain the LAPD's troubling status quo rather than witness the chaos within.

This means Mayor Karen Bass is unlikely to be able to properly assess the most serious challenges awaiting a new permanent leader, making it even more difficult to choose the right candidate.

As a civil rights attorney for more than 35 years, I have sued, investigated, cooperated with, and monitored the Los Angeles Police Department. Having been in charge of nine LAPD chiefs, dozens of commanders and officers, more than 30 committee members, four inspector generals, and six Los Angeles mayors, I have seen the best and worst of the department. I've also seen it.

I wish I could say in 2024 that the Los Angeles Police Department was on the right track. I can not do it.

As this newspaper has reported, the department has been plagued by corruption and leadership scandals in recent years. flawed response George Floyd/Black Lives Matter protests, Recording awards to civilians against police abusesto Allegations of sexism and misogyny In rank and promotion, Recent allegations of theft and other corruption among gang leaders.

Many police officers told me about problems such as “kill the messenger” management that squelches bad news, dangerous oversight errors, watered-down police standards, and gaps in police knowledge.

While these allegations are serious, there is another serious issue that goes to the very foundations of public trust. Many Black officers claim that the current Los Angeles Police Department leadership has repeatedly failed to quell a resurgence of anti-Black racism within the force.As an African American Veteran Having worked as a department supervisor for over 22 years, this is how I summarize 2023.

“We're back to a post-Rodney King place of stench and hostility. Black cops feel unsafe. I’ve heard racist comments like, “You should be disgusted.” But now it's even worse. Because it's not just MAGA white people. There is also a faction of anti-black Latino cops. ”

Preliminary but qualitative work by independent researchers suggests that this view requires consideration.

A 2022 Work Environment Survey conducted by the UCLA Anderson School of Management of all city agencies found that LAPD Black and Asian workers, as well as workers with liberal political attitudes, are more likely to feel It was found that they reported a “relatively negative” rating. Researchers found that in focus groups and interviews, black officers cited a racially hostile work environment where they were subjected to questions about their loyalty, challenges to their authority, and even expressions of racial hatred. Told. Worse than the racial violations was the refusal of their supervisors and top LAPD leaders to address their plight because it damaged morale.

In 2020, the Hydra Foundation, an international first responder consultant group, evaluated the racial views of specialized divisions within the Los Angeles Police Department. The report found the officers' reactions to be “stunningly defensive” and “dismissive,” and noted an “unhealthy hostility” to questions related to systemic or implicit bias. The consultants concluded that “education about the various forms of racism is urgently needed” and recommended hiring experts who know how to overcome binary racial thinking.

That same year, a survey conducted by the Oscar Joel Bryant Foundation, which represents black Los Angeles Police Department officers, found that most of the members surveyed said they did not support their colleagues on LAPD social media, including jokes about George Floyd. Respondents said they had seen comments about black and anti-black lives matter. police murder. Officers reported that the department's response was to hold a small “dialogue session” in which the deputy chief instructed them to eliminate racism because it was “too divisive” and “damaging morale.” That's what it means.

The Los Angeles Police Department is not alone in failing to combat burgeoning prejudice within its ranks. in 2022 California State Auditor Finds Evidence Five other California metropolitan law enforcement agencies also reported bias and “hateful comments” by officers against people of color, immigrants, women, and the LGBTQ+ community. Auditors concluded that state law enforcement agencies have insufficient safeguards against such behavior and are unable to investigate or respond.

I have been in contact with countless LAPD officers. In my experience, the majority of the Los Angeles Police Department does not share this harmful attitude. What is needed is leadership that actively engages with corrupt factions.

Mayor Bass and the Police Commission need to appoint a permanent LAPD Chief with the courage, strategic know-how, and intrapersonal IQ to eliminate bias from the police department and build a culture of safety and dignity for all officers. There is. Instead of changing the status quo of the Los Angeles Police Department, the city needs to analyze the department's most serious deficiencies. That information will then be useful in selecting the next chief.

Make no mistake, today's Los Angeles Police Department is not your grandfather's police department. The situation improved in the wake of the Christopher Commission's investigation into civil unrest in 1992, and during a federal consent decree imposed after the Rampart gang corruption scandal, Chiefs William J. Bratton and Charlie Beck I have made great progress under your guidance.

But 33 years after Rodney King's assault, the LAPD is not where it should be. Let's hope the new chief does better.

Attorney Connie Rice, a member of President Obama's 21st Century Policing Task Force, chaired the Blue Ribbon Commission that reviewed the LAPD's response to the Rampart incident.