After another police shooting, LAPD quick to meet with the community
The fatal police shooting of an unarmed man in Los Angeles brought a quick response from LAPD Chief Charlie Beck, who questioned the circumstances of the encounter and scheduled a community meeting.
Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck speaks during a news conference in Feb. 2014. Based on a security camera video, Chief Beck says he is 鈥渧ery concerned鈥� about what happened when an officer fatally shot an unarmed man.
Reed Saxon/AP
As the country grapples with the legal and social implications of police shootings, 鈥渢ransparency鈥� and "accountability鈥� have become the watchwords of public protest and official response.
The latest effort in this regard comes Thursday evening in Los Angeles when a community meeting will focus on the fatal shooting of an unarmed transient by a Los Angeles Police Department officer.
As with many such incidents in recent years, this week鈥檚 violent encounter in Los Angeles was captured on video 鈥� in this case, from a nearby security camera.
Based on the video, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck says he is 鈥渧ery concerned鈥� about what happened when officers tried to intervene in a fight Tuesday night involving the homeless man 鈥� identified as Brandon Glenn 鈥� and a bouncer outside a bar along the Venice beach boardwalk.
鈥淎ny time an unarmed person is shot by a Los Angeles police officer, it takes extraordinary circumstances to justify that,鈥� Chief Beck told reporters. 鈥淚 have not seen those extraordinary circumstances.鈥�
The LAPD 鈥渨ill expend all resources to find out the truth of what happened,鈥� Beck said. One of the officers was injured in the encounter. Both Mr. Glenn and the officer who shot him are black 鈥� a point the police chief emphasized 鈥� which may help account for the absence of the kind of aggressive protest seen after police killings in Baltimore and Ferguson, Mo.
The police union representing the officer in Tuesday鈥檚 shooting was quick to criticize Beck鈥檚 comments.
鈥淚t is completely irresponsible for anyone, much less the Chief of Police, to render a judgment on an incident that is in the early stages of the investigation," Craig Lally, president of the Los Angeles Police Protective League,
鈥淎s the final trier of fact in the use-of-force investigation and disciplinary process, the premature decision by the chief essentially renders the investigation process void,鈥� Mr. Lally said. 鈥淎dditionally, by making his opinion public without having all of the facts, he influences the investigation for all parties involved, including his command officers and the public.... We encourage everyone to reserve judgment until the investigation has run its course, and the facts are collected and assessed.鈥�
Critics of what they see as police aggression welcomed Beck鈥檚 comments.
鈥淲e thank Chief Beck for having the courage and conviction to publicly state he doesn鈥檛 see a justification for this shooting,鈥� civil rights activist Najee Ali said at a news conference outside police headquarters. 鈥淲e are asking District Attorney Jackie Lacey to fast-track this investigation. We want charges brought against the officer if what Chief Beck said is found to be accurate following an investigation.鈥�
Beck鈥檚 quick decision to schedule a community meeting just two days after a fatal police shooting reflects the kind of transparency and accountability increasingly evident in law enforcement policies around the country.
In Salt Lake City, Police Chief Chris Burbank鈥檚 department hosts a monthly 鈥渃offee with a cop鈥� event and maintains an active Twitter feed.
Chief Burbank releases a monthly video message educating residents about public safety programs and issues geared toward prevention. Burbank also gives talks in local schools about policing and citizens' rights during encounters with police officers.
Even some groups normally critical of the police find the Burbank鈥檚 overall approach laudable.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 just the nature of a civil rights organization and police that there is going to be tension,鈥� Karen McCreary, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, told the Monitor. 鈥淲e have a respectful relationship and value the way that the chief has led the police force in terms of having the orientation of serving the community.鈥�
In Atlanta, Police Chief George Turner "has dramatically diversified the face of his department, discouraged racking up petty arrests that fall disproportionately on minorities, tapped the power of big data to institute preventive policing, and tried to create a more humane force," the Monitor鈥檚 Patrik Jonsson reported earlier this year.
Chief Turner 鈥渃ame in with a vision to move the department forward in terms of community policing, in terms of improving morale, and [to residents] he really portrays a very good balance of being inquisitive, wanting to learn, and wanting to make a positive difference,鈥� Robert Friedmann, a criminal-justice professor at Georgia State University in Atlanta, told Mr. Jonsson. 鈥淗e listens, and he cares.鈥�
Like many police departments around the country, Seattle is issuing its officers small video cameras attached to their uniforms or eyeglasses. Blurry, silent versions of聽 are posted on YouTube, giving the public a chance to see what they involve while also protecting the privacy of those depicted.
A US Justice Department report released in March found that officers wearing cameras in departments around the country had 87.5 percent fewer incidents of use of force and 59 percent fewer complaints than the officers not wearing the cameras.
鈥淭he focus on police is here, it鈥檚 now and it鈥檚 staying,鈥� Greg Meyer, a retired LAPD captain and use-of-force expert, . 鈥淚t will become more intense in the coming months and years as more and more people video police with cell phones, and as more and more officers are issued body-worn cameras.鈥�