By Rick Thomas, Columnist
Doing a column on the Los Angeles Police Department or any urban police department comes with challenges.
“Nobody likes cops…until you need them.” Right?
We’ve heard that one many times. I needed the local police department. When I had my café, I needed the Philadelphia PD. Owning a retail establishment back then in the 90s was rough.
We needed police then.
But we need them more now.
Called Caffe Rocks, South Street in Philly. The week I opened; I got a visit from an officer from Philly PD. Kathy Simon. Another visit from Officer Charlie Kapusniak. Both walked the beat on South Street, introduced themselves, and got their cards so that I knew them, and they knew me.
Great beat officers.
That’s community policing.
Charlie was working undercover one day. I didn’t know. I saw him at a 7-Eleven near the café and started chatting him up, talking about stuff in the area where my café was.
That’s community policing.
Kathy was rough and tumble. She would take ANYBODY down. She always popped in to grab a cup of coffee. Never take it for free.
She would take ANYBODY down.
Anybody.
I opened the Comic Stop Comedy Club. I hired off-duty Philly officers as security. Hired another uniformed officer, called him ‘Kenny the Cop,’ to do cash drop-offs after the shows. Back then it was all cash. Meant when the show was over I would have to take a boatload of cash and do drop-offs after midnight at the bank. That wasn’t fun when I only had a .22 caliber handgun for protection. ‘Kenny the Cop’ in fact used to laugh at me saying that a .22 “ain’t gonna do no damage.”
He would drive me to the bank, armed, so I wouldn’t get jacked up.
Community policing.
“Until you need them,” right?
Trust me, when working and serving the public, you want to have a great relationship with the local police department.
So, we’re good Officer Bravo?
Cool!
When Neighborhood Council meetings are held in the HG South our Senior Lead Officer comes in to share what’s going on in our neighborhood. Crime stats are given out to the few that attend, meetings are bland, and not a whole lot comes out of most of them. Field Deputies from the Mayor’s office, the Council office, our Congressional office, the Assemblyman, and the County Supervisor give presentations about the work they are doing in our district. Did I miss anyone?
A lot of political representation.
Some days it’s hard to understand. All of these elected officials are getting paid all that money yet we are always complaining that nothing is getting done.
I’ll leave that for a future post.
At the June Neighborhood Council meeting, it was a lot different. It was held at Normandale Recreation Center. I headed there. It was brutal finding parking, which is not unusual for LA. I did a few drive-byes and thought I’d go home. Not much happens at these meetings. You look at the agenda and there is not a lot of red meat there. I get yelled at saying negative things about this Council but give us meat to chew on.
We ain’t vegan.
This meeting was different. I moved here in 2019 and have attended 95% of the Council meetings. This was without question the best I attended. I’m glad I found parking.
I walked into Normandale Recreation Center and saw five, or six, or maybe 127 uniformed members of the LAPD’s Harbor Division. Memories from my time in the music and entertainment industry back in the 80s and future decades came flooding back. I quickly emptied all my pockets of any contraband.
“THOSE BAGGIES ARE NOT MINE!!! IT’S FLOUR!!!”
But they weren’t there for me.
WHEW!!!
Oh, the good old days…
The boss was there, our Senior Lead Officer by committee was there and there were four members of the Gang Unit. To keep them safe, I’m not gonna say their names, I’m going to share the story as to why this type of community policing is vital to our communities.
The boss said he wanted to do something different. So he brought in the Gang Unit to explain what they do and what they are doing to relieve gang issues in our neighborhoods. This was the first meeting where Gang Unit officers were in the hood.
This is community policing at its best.
I had a chance to chat with them outside as they left. Talking to these officers was clearly important. Gangs are a huge problem in LA. Reality hits as I know this issue will never go away. Not in my lifetime, not in our kids’, nor grandkid’s lifetimes. Living in LA, being in a gang is a badge of honor.
It’s cultural.
It’s generational.
One gang member that I have the pleasure to know, his dad was in a gang, his brother was in a gang and he just had a kid.
Note the pattern here.
I guess I can take solace now that his brother moved out of town.
The son of another OG in the hood, he moved his son out and off the block. Didn’t want it for his kid.
There is hope.
So, I’m talking to these Gang Unit officers and sharing information about a problem in our community, right?
Just to show you how good these guys are? This officer knew the perp. He knew the perp’s car. And get this… the officer was able to relay back to me the description all the way down to the color of his bumper. I looked at the officer for 47 seconds gobsmacked.
How the heck did he know that?
Well, good community police work.
“We’ve pulled that guy over multiple times, and he doesn’t carry, but he’s affiliated.”
Is this good community policing?
No.
It’s great community policing.
“It’s their job as gang officers to know all the bad apples in the community, but I feel it is also very important to know all the good people in the community and build relationships with the good people so that we can work together.”
From LAPD.
This is community policing at its best.
One Week Left. McOsker Urges Residents to Submit Comments TODAY for the Vincent Thomas Deck Replacement Project
The Vincent Thomas Bridge is facing critical deck deterioration due to heavy truck traffic. Since last year, Caltrans has been developing a proposal for the Vincent Thomas Bridge Deck Replacement Project. The state agency aims to replace the entire bridge deck and install seismic sensors to ensure structural integrity and enhance overall safety. Originally completed in 1963, the Vincent Thomas Bridge serves as a vital link for approximately 44,500 vehicles daily, including a significant number of heavy trucks.
The project’s construction staging options, ranging from full closures to phased approaches, aim to minimize disruptions to port operations and meet completion deadlines. Currently, anticipated detour routes will redirect traffic to alternative bridges and local streets. However, the current proposal only specifies redirections in Wilmington.
Driving along many of Wilmington’s main streets, you’ll see trucks lined up bumper to bumper. With the impending closure of the Vincent Thomas Bridge for repairs, this congestion will worsen.
In 2011, the city of Los Angeles anticipated “Carmageddon” when a bridge reconstruction project required closing 10 miles of the Interstate 405 freeway on two weekends, leading to horrific traffic jams. Councilmember Tim McOsker stated he fears that with the closure of the Vincent Thomas Bridge, we may experience “Harbor-geddon”.
He continued, “as the representative of the One-Five, I am determined to hold Caltrans accountable and will collaborate with the state to mitigate repairs to streets and roadways that are already damaged.
“Historically, there has been unequal treatment of services in the Harbor Area compared to wealthier parts of LA. As the home to the busiest container port in North America, we deserve equitable consideration in project planning and public outreach efforts, as well as the same level of attention and resources typically reserved for high-profile projects elsewhere in the city, to ensure that the Harbor community receives fair treatment throughout the bridge repair process.
“There is still time to submit public comments for Caltrans to consider. I urge you to review the Draft Environmental Impact Report and Environmental Assessment (Draft EIR/EA) and provide your input, which will be accepted through Monday, July 15.”
Details: Click here to learn more and submit your comments.