Between 2023 and 2024, the Long Beach Police Department engaged in 29% more use-of-force incidents, while the number of complaints filed against officers rose by 27%, making 2024 the fourth year in a row that the number of complaints increased by at least 10%.
The LBPD cannot dispute these numbers, as they come straight from their 2024 Annual Year in Review and Accountability Report. They can, however, put an ironic twist on “Accountability” by refusing to address the issues they document. Instead, LBPD Public Information Officer Alyssa Baeza provided replies to questions that were not asked:
Q. According to the report, compared to 2023, police use-of-force incidents rose 29% in 2024 (248 to 320). What accounted for such a large increase?
A.While there was an increase in the number of use-of-force incidents in 2024, it’s important to note that these incidents still represent a very small fraction of the total public interactions by the Long Beach Police Department — consistently less than 1%. The Department attributes this to our ongoing investment in de-escalation and scenario-based training, which all officers receive annually. Our commitment to professional development remains a top priority as we continue to evaluate and improve how we serve the community.
Q. In 2024, complaints against officers filed by the public increased for the fourth straight year. Does the LBPD have any theories as to why complaints are trending in this direction? In 2024 complaints increased 27% (184 to 234) over the prior year. Does the LBPD have any theories as to why there was such a large jump?
A. The LBPD takes every complaint or allegation of misconduct seriously, and investigates every complaint thoroughly, with attention to the unique context of each case. As public expectations evolve and transparency continues to increase, the Department remains committed to accountability and strengthening trust through continued training and community engagement.
Despite last year’s large increase, the LBPD actually sustained fewer complaints than they did in 2023 (48 to 35), which makes for a 66% jump (98 to 163) in supposedly “unfounded” complaints in a single year. Baeza offered no theory for why the general public would suddenly file so many more meritless complaints.
Meanwhile, it is unclear whether Mayor Rex Richardson or any of Long Beach’s nine city councilmembers were aware of these numbers prior to being contacted for this article. And despite RLn’s following up with all ten officials, not one would say whether they are concerned with anything in the LBPD report. The closest any came to comment was a staffer for Vice Mayor Roberto Uranga’s office (7th District), who simply said, “The vice mayor is unavailable. That’s all I have for you.”
Another negative trend noted in the report is officer response time to Priority 1 calls (“potentially life-threatening emergencies”), which slowed for at least the third year in a row, rising to an average of 5.8 minutes despite internal projections that “For FY 24, resources will allow the Department to continue to respond to Priority 1 calls for service in an average of 5.4 minutes or less.”
Although the use-of-force numbers are listed on page 9 of the 27-page report, information about complaints against officers is buried on page 22, four pages after a recap of the 2024 Police Awards Ceremony and one page after a feature on police fashion (“The 1924 Centennial Badge”). Priority 1 response time is listed on page 9, but comparison with prior years can be made only by reviewing prior years’ reports.
The LBPD touted the 5.8-minute response time as a “notable 2024 accomplishment” in the press release accompanying the report, while neglecting to mention the three-year trend in slower responses and how this fell short of the department’s 5.4-minute target.