Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Sunday, Oct. 6. I’m your host, Andrew J. Campa. Here’s what you need to know to start your weekend:
Jim McDonnell is chosen as the new LAPD chief
The vacancy atop Los Angeles law enforcement was filled Friday morning after a months-long search.
L.A. Mayor Karen Bass announced the hiring of Jim McDonnell as the new chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.
My colleagues Libor Jany, Richard Winton, David Zahniser and Dakota Smith covered the hiring and added critical reporting on the selection.
In picking McDonnell, Bass is getting a seasoned veteran as the massive security challenges of the World Cup and the Olympic Games loom on the horizon.
At the news conference Friday, Bass said she spoke with several of McDonnell’s former colleagues. They described him as honest and “a man of integrity.”
“These are essential leadership traits we will need to continue to transform the department while addressing the near and far challenges we will face in the coming years,” Bass said.
Who is Jim McDonnell?
McDonnell was often seen on television as the department’s public face as assistant chief under Chief William J. “Bill” Bratton.
Overall, McDonnell spent 28 years with the LAPD.
He joined the LAPD in 1981 at the age of 21 and worked his way up in patrol, detective, vice, gang, organized crime, homicide and other divisions.
Twice before he applied for the LAPD chief’s job, losing out to Bratton in 2002 and Charlie Beck in 2009. He was appointed police chief of Long Beach in March 2010.
In 2014, he was elected Los Angeles County Sheriff, following soon after Lee Baca, the longtime sheriff who retired under a cloud of scandals.
He served one term as L.A. County sheriff before being replaced by Alex Villanueva in a stunning electoral upset for a seat that hadn’t seen an incumbent lose in more than a century. He later joined an exodus of high-ranking law enforcement officials moving into academia.
McDonnell currently heads the Safe Communities Institute at the USC Price School of Public Policy.
He was one of the three finalists chosen by the civilian Police Commission from a field of more than 25 applicants to lead one of the nation’s largest police departments.
For McDonnell, the hire was a long-awaited vindication.
“I love this city — and I understand the modern-day challenges our officers face in working to protect it,” McDonnell said in a statement. “It is a tremendous honor to lead the men and women of the LAPD. I will work hard to make sure their work to keep Angelenos safe is supported.”
What do the critics say?
Some detractors argue that McDonnell was an effective leader as a sheriff but didn’t do enough to address the problems that surfaced during the Baca administration.
At Long Beach, McDonnell led a force that, while far smaller than the LAPD, faced the same concerns about staffing shortages. He has been criticized for a rise in officer-involved shootings, as well as the 2013 beating of an unarmed man.
What do supporters say?
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, which represents about 8,800 officers, voiced support.
“We have every confidence in Chief McDonnell’s ability to hit the ground running to improve public safety in Los Angeles and to appoint an upper command staff that will do away with the status quo and turn a new page for the LAPD,” said the union, in a statement from its board of directors.
Former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said McDonnell “brings a depth of experience and knowledge which is absolutely unmatched. His leadership will successfully guide and mold the future of law enforcement in Los Angeles and the nation.”
Former Asst. Chief Horace Frank praised “the moral and intellectual caliber” of McDonnell, saying, “This is a bold decision by the mayor and she deserves a lot of credit.”
Miriam Krinsky, a former federal prosecutor and a former executive director of the county’s Citizens’ Commission on Jail Violence, described McDonnell as a “true public servant,” someone who has perspectives on law enforcement both as an insider and an outsider.
For more on the hire, check out our coverage.
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