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• • • RCV 5y:1RELL & MANELLA 2133124224 .. _ .. -- .... ~ . CONFIDENTIAL • l ..l • NAME or INTERVIEWER& Brad Seiling l Li • DATE or INTERVIEW: June 10, 1991 l c.;. LENGTH OF INTERVIEW: 2t houri I ci • NOTES1 2. I. D • CODE: Seiling 001 • :L §!!_: Male 4 • ~: Caucasian 5. ~: ... 6. DIVISION: North Hollywood 1. CURRENT RANK[ASSIGNMENT: PJ; Patrol Di vi"sioo North Hollywood a. MISC. PERSONAL BACKGROUND: • 9. MISC. L,A.P.D. BACKGROUND: l~ki ling 001, June 10, 1991) 1 ... --- -A • • ~ ----- ~ . -·-~- - - - 10. FIELD TRAINING -- SELECTION OF F.T.O.s: Criteria when he applied: 1. All officers had to take a written test before becoming an F.T.O. The test was multiple choice and true and false, and the Department graded the test on a pass/fail basis. The officer believes that the test has become more difficult, but it is still possible for an officer to pass the F.T.O. exam with relatively little time in the field. 2. Oral Exam: The oral exam consisted of an interview by three supervisors, including at least one captain. This officer's oral exam consisted principally of a discussion of an arrest that the officer had just made. The officer was late for his interview because he had to respond to an emergency call and engage in a freeway pursuit, and the interviewers were extremely interested in how he had handled the situation. The remaining questions in the oral exam dealt primarily with basic police work. Each officer who took the oral exam received a rating after the oral exam (outstanding, excellent, or satisfactory). At the time this officer took the exam, you had to receive an outstanding rating in order to become an F.T.O. There was no provision to appeal an adverse decision, and the rating was based on solely the oral interview. The officer believes that the process is basically the same, but he feels that the Department now takes officers who have not received an outstanding rating on their oral exam. 11. FIELD TRAINING -- TRAINING OF F.T.O.s: The officer did not attend F.T.O. school because he does not believe that the Department had such a school when he first became an F.T.O. During his tenure on the force, the officer has attended a variety of education and training courses under Department osmesis. Specifically, the officer has attended in- [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 2 • • • • • service school and tactical awareness school (the officer believes that these two schools essentially taught the same subjects but that the Department changed the name of the training in recent years). Both in-service and tactical awareness school involve a general update on police policies and procedures. The officers who attend these schools are re-certified in C.P.R. and first aid, and the Department updates the new self defense techniques. The officer has also attended Academy sponsored training in narcotics, juvenile procedures, driving, and use of the new .9 millimeter pistols. This training has fulfilled his requirements to maintain POST certification with the state. He still has not attended any formal training courses on field training. 12. FIELD TRAINING -- MISCONDUCT BY/ DISCIPLINE OF F.T.O.s: The officer had no anecdotes regarding misconduct by or discipline of F.T.O.s. However, the officer recounted examples of discipline against probationary officers. The officer could not remember any examples of probationary ' officers being disciplined for excessive use of force. However, he noted that probationary officers frequently can be over zealous in applying techniques learned in the Academy. For example, recruits tend to be a bit over zealous in using a risk lock. This F.T.O. attempts to stress to the recruits that they need not use these control techniques if a suspect has cooperated. The officer also complained that it is very difficult to try to terminate a probationary officer who is incapable or a safety risk. In one instance, he attempted to terminate a probationary officer who consistently demonstrate that she could not perform her job. However, the Department simply sent her back to the Academy for more training. After leaving Foothill, officers in Rampart institute a personnel complaints against the Field Training Officers in Foothill for allowing her to complete the training program. However, to this officer's knowledge, this woman is still on the force. 13. FIELD TRAINING -- EVALUATION OF F.T.O.s' PERFORMANCE: F.T.O. are evaluated on the same basis as regular officers. They receive an evaluation every six months from one supervising sergeant. 14. FIELD TRAINING -- ASSIGNMENT(S) TO PROBATIONERS: Recruits out of the Academy are assigned to a geographical region. Once the recruit is at a division, there crew is assigned to one of the three watches and to a specific car on that watch. Each recruit is assigned to two field training officers, and the three officers rotate to allow for each officer to get enough days off during the month. The probationary officer is assigned the same car for two or three months, and the assignment rarely exceeds three months. According to the officer, this rotation is a fact of life to meet the scheduling demands of [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 3 • • • • • the Division, but he believes that it is a good thing. Individual F.T.O.s play little part in deciding which probationary officers get assigned to them. Training supervisors make the decisions regarding assignment, but frequently the training supervisor will pair a problem recruit with a more skilled F.T.O. 15. FIELD TRAINING -- RELATIONSHIP WITH / TRAINING OF PROBATIONERS: This officer reviews a probationary officer's book before getting a new probationary officer and talks to the former F.T.O.s to get back background on a probationary officer. In particular, the officer is interested in finding out any problems that the probationary officer may have -- specially in the areas of officer safety. If the probationary officer is fresh from the Academy, the officer will review the probationary's officer records from the Academy, but these records typically are not very revealing. According to the officer, during the initial period of field training with a new probationary officer, the F.T.O. is working alone. The probationary officer knows nothing, and this lack of knowledge can make the probationary officer a liability. According to the officer, many probationary officers are excessively formal as a result of their Academy training. One of the key elements that this officer tries to engrain in his probationary officers is that they cannot be so formal in dealing with the public or else the public will not relate to them. The officer treats his probationary officers like any other officer. His goal is to make the probationary officer a full partner in operation car and to treat the officer with the respect of a full-time partner. 16. FIELD TRAINING -- EVALUATION OF PROBATIONERS: F.T.O.s evaluate probationary officers on a daily basis. The F.T.O. keeps a daily diary on the probationary officer, and the probationary officer must sign the diary each day. Every two weeks, the Field Training Officer completes an evaluation form and attaches the daily diary to the evaluation form. The officer discusses the rating with the probationary officer, and the probationary officer must sign the rating. The officer favors simplifying the evaluation procedure. Daily evaluations of the probationary officer constitute "overkill", according to this officer. The officer believes that it is not necessary to document every time a probationary officer does sometime correctly. These daily evaluation forms are merely a "legal paint brush" to make it easier to terminate truly problem However, these forms create so much paperwork that no one in the chain of command has time to read them. Although sergeants, lieutenants, and captains are supposed to review each probationary officer's notebook, a sergeant [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 4 • • • • • generally does not become directly involved in evaluating a probationary officer unless the Field Training Officer has given the probationary officer an unsatisfactory rating. If a Field Training Officer gives an unsatisfactory rating, everyone in the chain of command (the sergeant, lieutenant, captain and EODD) must review the unsatisfactory rating. According to this officer, giving an unsatisfactory rating frequently is more trouble than it is worth. The supervisors who review unsatisfactory ratings always demand additional documentation; however, sometimes it is difficult to document these ratings because they are based on a hunch by the F.T.O. Such instances frequently occur in the areas of cowardice or officer safety because these officers are difficult to document. After review of the unsatisfactory rating, the EODD may make recommendations that the probationary officer receive additional training or may give the probationary officer a new F.T.O. or transfer the probationary officer to another Division. 17. ROLL CALL TRAINING: Roll call training is frequently redundant. The Department has established a trading schedule of topics which must be covered, and roll call training frequently covers the same topics each month. In the area of use of force, the roll call training typically involves demonstrations by one or two officers regarding use of force. Only occasionally will the officers actually practice use of force techniques during roll call training . 18. USE OF FORCE: The L.A.P.D. has used a use of .force thermometer to demonstrate appropriate uses of force every since this officer has joined the Department. Until recently, the _use of force thermometer included the choke hold before the baton. However, as a result of the well-publicized problems, including deaths, resulting from the use of the choke hold, the Department elevated the choke hold to "deadly force" -- the same as use of a firearm. However, this officer contends that the choke hold is a valuable tool to control suspects. The problems with the choke hold resulted from use of the choke hold on suspects or had ingested PCP. According to this officer, PCP eliminates pain, the key element in the effectiveness of the choke hold. Because officers no longer can use the choke hold, they must rely on the baton. The basic teaching point and use of the baton is to "beat them until they stop". Because the inherent properties of the baton, even if justified use of force appears very violent. 19. RODNEY KING INCIDENT: This officer knew all of the officers involved in the King beating except Officer Wen, the probationary officer. He believes that the officers simply failed to use their batons [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 5 • • • • • properly King. According to this officer, they should have broken both of King's arms when he was on his hands and knees, so that he would have been in a prone position and, thus, easier to arrest. However, the officers who attempted to arrest King hit King repeatedly in soft tissues areas. According to this officer, although such a beatings looks terrible, it is extremely ineffective. This officer has used the baton five times in twenty years and has broken four bones, even though he does not think he hit any suspect more than once with the baton. The officer believes that had the officers at the scene properly used their batons, the public would have perceived the use of force as proper, even though the beating may have looked brutal. 20. CITIZEN COMPLAINTS: This officers has never been involved in taking a citizen complaint. He has had three complaints filed against him for excessive use of force, but none of the complaints were sustained. In each instance, the Department investigated the complaint, and in two of the three instances, the officer had other witnesses to support him. 21. INTERNAL DISCIPLINE: The Department's approach towards discipline deperids on the offense. Complaints against patrol officers initially are handled by people in patrol. However, if an investigation goes to internal affairs. Internal affairs evenly investigates all offenses. This officer believes that the L.A.P.D. 's internal discipline system broke down in connection with the King beating. According to this officer, the Department effectively convicted the officer~ involved before it even started its investigation. As a result of this mentality, the Foothill Division has become one of the worst Divisions for an officer to be stationed. All officers in Foothill now receive repeated complaints, some involving incidents which occurred years ago, and the Department is investigating all of these complaints. 22. PROMOTION: This officers does not agree with the L.A.P.D. 's promotion system. This system emphasizes an officer's ability to study and pass tests, both written and oral. However, the Department places no emphasizes on an officer's ability to work in the field. If an officer wants to be promoted, the officer has an incentive to get out of the field as soon as possible. The best way to promote within the Department is to get a job in Parker Center. The recent batch of F.T.O.s demonstrate this deemphasizes on field experience. As a result of the influx of new recruits, the Department had to make new F.T.O.s to train the recruits. As a result, recent Academy graduates took the F.T.O . test and past the test. It is not difficult for a recent Academy [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 6 • • • • • graduate to pass the written test, because it covers much of the same material that the recruit has just learned in the Academy. In the Foothill Division, several of the F.T.O.s were made F.T.O.s only eighteen months out of the Academy. Such officers do not have enough field experience on their own to train recruits effectively. The officer favors changing the L.A.P.D. 's outlook towards promotion to emphasize an officer's experience in the street. This officer believes that no officer should be in a supervisory position unless her or she has had at least five years in the street. Futhermore, all officers, regardless of their rank, should spend no less than one day per month in a patrol car. According to the officer, mulch of the brass has lost touch with the realities of patrol work, and requiring the brass to go into the field every month would eliminate this problem. 23. ASSIGNMENTS / TRANSFERS: This officer favors stability over a planned rotation. In fact, he choose not to promote because he liked his position and didn't want to increase his commute. He believes that the mass of transfers in the Foothill Division have been grossly unfair. These transfers had added to his commute, forced him to learn a new area, and cost him a shot at a promotion. The officer believes that he "didn't do anything wrong other than to be there too long and be white." The officer contends that there has been favoritism in these transfers for non-white officers. 24. COMMUNITY POLICING /COMMUNITY RELATIONS: This officer believes that the biggest enemy of the police Department is the traffic ticket. The hierarchy places great pressures on officers in the field to write tickets regardless of the merit of the tickets. As a result, officers frequently write tickets for relatively minor infractions, such as defective taillights, and members of the community become resentful of such tickets. However, this officer refuses to write a vast quantity of "bogus" tickets, and stresses the quality of the tickets he writes. 25. GAYS / LESBIANS: According to this officer, most police, including himself, are homophobic. He does not look forward to contacts with the gay and lesbian community, and he maintains that some of the calls that he has responded to which have gays and lesbians have been some of the most violent disputes that he has seen. He stresses that it is important to learn to interact with the community; however, he does not believe that the police should hire openly gay or lesbian officers. He believes that hiring openly gay and lesbian officers would create more problems because it would create negative reactions in the Department. [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 7 . .. • • • 26. WOMEN: According to this officer, women police officers handled the technical part of the job well and get along very well with the community. However, he believes that the Department is "going to pay" for hiring so many women. The officer contends that up until now, women have been shielded because they typically are partnered with men. But the officer does not believe that women can handle use of force situations as well as men. 27. RACIAL MINORITIES: According to the officer, racial minorities are distrustful of the police. The black community has more police exposure, and one of the biggest problems with relations with the black community is that blacks frequently are "mis-accused" by police officers. However, this officer could not present any suggestions of how to remedy this problem. With respect to the latino community, the major problem was the language barrier. However, spanish language training alone will not be sufficient to remedy this problem. Even if an officer attempts to communicate with a latino suspect who does not speak english, unless the officer is fluent, the suspect will not believe that he or she can communicate with the officer. The officer contends that what is needed is some form of reliable • translation, but he is not sure how to achieve that result. • 28. ATTITUDES/ OPINIONS RE L.A.P.E.: The officer believes that the L.A.P.D. is still a great organization, but that it needs to straighten out its notion of how to promote its officers. He believes that Gates has mishandled the King beating because he backed down after calling for an investigation. Gates should have used the normal process for the case. 29. REFORM SUGGESTIONS: The best reform for the L.A.P.D. would be to promote policemen based on their time in the field so that the Department is promoting police officers rather than managers. Furthermore, the Department should establish some form of liaison between the patrol officers and the brass. This officers believes that requiring the brass to spend time in a patrol car each month would facilitate this liaison. 30. CODE OF SILENCE: 50. MISCELLANEOUS: [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 8
Object Description
Title | LAPD interviews #3(c) (2 of 2), 1991 Apr.-July |
Description | Los Angeles Police Department interviews #3(c) (2 of 2), 1991 April 16 - July 8. PART OF A SERIES: Materials in the series fall into one of several categories related to the Independent Commission's work product: (1) Commission meeting materials, which include meeting agendas, work plans, memoranda, and articles about police misconduct that were circulated and reviewed during the Commission's internal meetings; (2) public correspondence, which includes citizen complaints against the LAPD in the form of written testimony, articles, and an audio cassette tape, as well as letters drafted by citizens in support of the LAPD; (3) summaries of interviews held with LAPD officers regarding Departmental procedures and relations; (4) public meeting materials, which include transcripts, supplementary documents, and witness statements that were reviewed at the Commission's public meetings; (5) press releases related to the formation and work product of the Commission; and (6) miscellaneous materials reviewed by the Commission during its study, including LAPD personnel and training manuals, a memorandum of understanding, and messages from the LAPD's Mobile Digital Terminal (MDT) system. |
Coverage date | 1991-04-16/1991-07-08 |
Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California |
Date created | 1991-04-16/1991-07-08 |
Type | texts |
Format | 114 p. |
Format (aat) |
memorandums transcriptions (documents) |
Format (imt) | application/pdf |
Language | English |
Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
Part of collection | Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department, 1991 |
Series | Independent Commission File List |
File | Los Angeles Police Department Interviews |
Box and folder | box 24, folder 16 |
Provenance | The collection was given to the University of Southern California on July 31, 1991. |
Rights | This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained. |
Physical access | Contact: Special Collections, Doheny Memorial Library, Libraries, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189; specol@dots.usc.edu |
Repository name | USC Libraries Special Collections |
Repository address | Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189 |
Repository email | specol@dots.usc.edu |
Filename | indep-box24-16 |
Description
Title | Seiling FTO interview 001, 1991-06-10 |
Description | Brad Seillig FTO interviews - Seiling 001 Caucasian male North Hollywood division |
Coverage date | 1991-06-10 |
Date created | 1991-06-10 |
Type | texts |
Format | 9 p. |
Format (aat) | transcriptions (documents) |
Format (imt) | application/pdf |
Contributing entity | University of Southern California |
Series | Independent Commission File List |
File | Los Angeles Police Department Interviews |
Box and folder | box 24, folder 16, item 1 |
Physical access | Contact: Special Collections, Doheny Memorial Library, Libraries, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189; specol@dots.usc.edu |
Full text | • • • RCV 5y:1RELL & MANELLA 2133124224 .. _ .. -- .... ~ . CONFIDENTIAL • l ..l • NAME or INTERVIEWER& Brad Seiling l Li • DATE or INTERVIEW: June 10, 1991 l c.;. LENGTH OF INTERVIEW: 2t houri I ci • NOTES1 2. I. D • CODE: Seiling 001 • :L §!!_: Male 4 • ~: Caucasian 5. ~: ... 6. DIVISION: North Hollywood 1. CURRENT RANK[ASSIGNMENT: PJ; Patrol Di vi"sioo North Hollywood a. MISC. PERSONAL BACKGROUND: • 9. MISC. L,A.P.D. BACKGROUND: l~ki ling 001, June 10, 1991) 1 ... --- -A • • ~ ----- ~ . -·-~- - - - 10. FIELD TRAINING -- SELECTION OF F.T.O.s: Criteria when he applied: 1. All officers had to take a written test before becoming an F.T.O. The test was multiple choice and true and false, and the Department graded the test on a pass/fail basis. The officer believes that the test has become more difficult, but it is still possible for an officer to pass the F.T.O. exam with relatively little time in the field. 2. Oral Exam: The oral exam consisted of an interview by three supervisors, including at least one captain. This officer's oral exam consisted principally of a discussion of an arrest that the officer had just made. The officer was late for his interview because he had to respond to an emergency call and engage in a freeway pursuit, and the interviewers were extremely interested in how he had handled the situation. The remaining questions in the oral exam dealt primarily with basic police work. Each officer who took the oral exam received a rating after the oral exam (outstanding, excellent, or satisfactory). At the time this officer took the exam, you had to receive an outstanding rating in order to become an F.T.O. There was no provision to appeal an adverse decision, and the rating was based on solely the oral interview. The officer believes that the process is basically the same, but he feels that the Department now takes officers who have not received an outstanding rating on their oral exam. 11. FIELD TRAINING -- TRAINING OF F.T.O.s: The officer did not attend F.T.O. school because he does not believe that the Department had such a school when he first became an F.T.O. During his tenure on the force, the officer has attended a variety of education and training courses under Department osmesis. Specifically, the officer has attended in- [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 2 • • • • • service school and tactical awareness school (the officer believes that these two schools essentially taught the same subjects but that the Department changed the name of the training in recent years). Both in-service and tactical awareness school involve a general update on police policies and procedures. The officers who attend these schools are re-certified in C.P.R. and first aid, and the Department updates the new self defense techniques. The officer has also attended Academy sponsored training in narcotics, juvenile procedures, driving, and use of the new .9 millimeter pistols. This training has fulfilled his requirements to maintain POST certification with the state. He still has not attended any formal training courses on field training. 12. FIELD TRAINING -- MISCONDUCT BY/ DISCIPLINE OF F.T.O.s: The officer had no anecdotes regarding misconduct by or discipline of F.T.O.s. However, the officer recounted examples of discipline against probationary officers. The officer could not remember any examples of probationary ' officers being disciplined for excessive use of force. However, he noted that probationary officers frequently can be over zealous in applying techniques learned in the Academy. For example, recruits tend to be a bit over zealous in using a risk lock. This F.T.O. attempts to stress to the recruits that they need not use these control techniques if a suspect has cooperated. The officer also complained that it is very difficult to try to terminate a probationary officer who is incapable or a safety risk. In one instance, he attempted to terminate a probationary officer who consistently demonstrate that she could not perform her job. However, the Department simply sent her back to the Academy for more training. After leaving Foothill, officers in Rampart institute a personnel complaints against the Field Training Officers in Foothill for allowing her to complete the training program. However, to this officer's knowledge, this woman is still on the force. 13. FIELD TRAINING -- EVALUATION OF F.T.O.s' PERFORMANCE: F.T.O. are evaluated on the same basis as regular officers. They receive an evaluation every six months from one supervising sergeant. 14. FIELD TRAINING -- ASSIGNMENT(S) TO PROBATIONERS: Recruits out of the Academy are assigned to a geographical region. Once the recruit is at a division, there crew is assigned to one of the three watches and to a specific car on that watch. Each recruit is assigned to two field training officers, and the three officers rotate to allow for each officer to get enough days off during the month. The probationary officer is assigned the same car for two or three months, and the assignment rarely exceeds three months. According to the officer, this rotation is a fact of life to meet the scheduling demands of [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 3 • • • • • the Division, but he believes that it is a good thing. Individual F.T.O.s play little part in deciding which probationary officers get assigned to them. Training supervisors make the decisions regarding assignment, but frequently the training supervisor will pair a problem recruit with a more skilled F.T.O. 15. FIELD TRAINING -- RELATIONSHIP WITH / TRAINING OF PROBATIONERS: This officer reviews a probationary officer's book before getting a new probationary officer and talks to the former F.T.O.s to get back background on a probationary officer. In particular, the officer is interested in finding out any problems that the probationary officer may have -- specially in the areas of officer safety. If the probationary officer is fresh from the Academy, the officer will review the probationary's officer records from the Academy, but these records typically are not very revealing. According to the officer, during the initial period of field training with a new probationary officer, the F.T.O. is working alone. The probationary officer knows nothing, and this lack of knowledge can make the probationary officer a liability. According to the officer, many probationary officers are excessively formal as a result of their Academy training. One of the key elements that this officer tries to engrain in his probationary officers is that they cannot be so formal in dealing with the public or else the public will not relate to them. The officer treats his probationary officers like any other officer. His goal is to make the probationary officer a full partner in operation car and to treat the officer with the respect of a full-time partner. 16. FIELD TRAINING -- EVALUATION OF PROBATIONERS: F.T.O.s evaluate probationary officers on a daily basis. The F.T.O. keeps a daily diary on the probationary officer, and the probationary officer must sign the diary each day. Every two weeks, the Field Training Officer completes an evaluation form and attaches the daily diary to the evaluation form. The officer discusses the rating with the probationary officer, and the probationary officer must sign the rating. The officer favors simplifying the evaluation procedure. Daily evaluations of the probationary officer constitute "overkill", according to this officer. The officer believes that it is not necessary to document every time a probationary officer does sometime correctly. These daily evaluation forms are merely a "legal paint brush" to make it easier to terminate truly problem However, these forms create so much paperwork that no one in the chain of command has time to read them. Although sergeants, lieutenants, and captains are supposed to review each probationary officer's notebook, a sergeant [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 4 • • • • • generally does not become directly involved in evaluating a probationary officer unless the Field Training Officer has given the probationary officer an unsatisfactory rating. If a Field Training Officer gives an unsatisfactory rating, everyone in the chain of command (the sergeant, lieutenant, captain and EODD) must review the unsatisfactory rating. According to this officer, giving an unsatisfactory rating frequently is more trouble than it is worth. The supervisors who review unsatisfactory ratings always demand additional documentation; however, sometimes it is difficult to document these ratings because they are based on a hunch by the F.T.O. Such instances frequently occur in the areas of cowardice or officer safety because these officers are difficult to document. After review of the unsatisfactory rating, the EODD may make recommendations that the probationary officer receive additional training or may give the probationary officer a new F.T.O. or transfer the probationary officer to another Division. 17. ROLL CALL TRAINING: Roll call training is frequently redundant. The Department has established a trading schedule of topics which must be covered, and roll call training frequently covers the same topics each month. In the area of use of force, the roll call training typically involves demonstrations by one or two officers regarding use of force. Only occasionally will the officers actually practice use of force techniques during roll call training . 18. USE OF FORCE: The L.A.P.D. has used a use of .force thermometer to demonstrate appropriate uses of force every since this officer has joined the Department. Until recently, the _use of force thermometer included the choke hold before the baton. However, as a result of the well-publicized problems, including deaths, resulting from the use of the choke hold, the Department elevated the choke hold to "deadly force" -- the same as use of a firearm. However, this officer contends that the choke hold is a valuable tool to control suspects. The problems with the choke hold resulted from use of the choke hold on suspects or had ingested PCP. According to this officer, PCP eliminates pain, the key element in the effectiveness of the choke hold. Because officers no longer can use the choke hold, they must rely on the baton. The basic teaching point and use of the baton is to "beat them until they stop". Because the inherent properties of the baton, even if justified use of force appears very violent. 19. RODNEY KING INCIDENT: This officer knew all of the officers involved in the King beating except Officer Wen, the probationary officer. He believes that the officers simply failed to use their batons [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 5 • • • • • properly King. According to this officer, they should have broken both of King's arms when he was on his hands and knees, so that he would have been in a prone position and, thus, easier to arrest. However, the officers who attempted to arrest King hit King repeatedly in soft tissues areas. According to this officer, although such a beatings looks terrible, it is extremely ineffective. This officer has used the baton five times in twenty years and has broken four bones, even though he does not think he hit any suspect more than once with the baton. The officer believes that had the officers at the scene properly used their batons, the public would have perceived the use of force as proper, even though the beating may have looked brutal. 20. CITIZEN COMPLAINTS: This officers has never been involved in taking a citizen complaint. He has had three complaints filed against him for excessive use of force, but none of the complaints were sustained. In each instance, the Department investigated the complaint, and in two of the three instances, the officer had other witnesses to support him. 21. INTERNAL DISCIPLINE: The Department's approach towards discipline deperids on the offense. Complaints against patrol officers initially are handled by people in patrol. However, if an investigation goes to internal affairs. Internal affairs evenly investigates all offenses. This officer believes that the L.A.P.D. 's internal discipline system broke down in connection with the King beating. According to this officer, the Department effectively convicted the officer~ involved before it even started its investigation. As a result of this mentality, the Foothill Division has become one of the worst Divisions for an officer to be stationed. All officers in Foothill now receive repeated complaints, some involving incidents which occurred years ago, and the Department is investigating all of these complaints. 22. PROMOTION: This officers does not agree with the L.A.P.D. 's promotion system. This system emphasizes an officer's ability to study and pass tests, both written and oral. However, the Department places no emphasizes on an officer's ability to work in the field. If an officer wants to be promoted, the officer has an incentive to get out of the field as soon as possible. The best way to promote within the Department is to get a job in Parker Center. The recent batch of F.T.O.s demonstrate this deemphasizes on field experience. As a result of the influx of new recruits, the Department had to make new F.T.O.s to train the recruits. As a result, recent Academy graduates took the F.T.O . test and past the test. It is not difficult for a recent Academy [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 6 • • • • • graduate to pass the written test, because it covers much of the same material that the recruit has just learned in the Academy. In the Foothill Division, several of the F.T.O.s were made F.T.O.s only eighteen months out of the Academy. Such officers do not have enough field experience on their own to train recruits effectively. The officer favors changing the L.A.P.D. 's outlook towards promotion to emphasize an officer's experience in the street. This officer believes that no officer should be in a supervisory position unless her or she has had at least five years in the street. Futhermore, all officers, regardless of their rank, should spend no less than one day per month in a patrol car. According to the officer, mulch of the brass has lost touch with the realities of patrol work, and requiring the brass to go into the field every month would eliminate this problem. 23. ASSIGNMENTS / TRANSFERS: This officer favors stability over a planned rotation. In fact, he choose not to promote because he liked his position and didn't want to increase his commute. He believes that the mass of transfers in the Foothill Division have been grossly unfair. These transfers had added to his commute, forced him to learn a new area, and cost him a shot at a promotion. The officer believes that he "didn't do anything wrong other than to be there too long and be white." The officer contends that there has been favoritism in these transfers for non-white officers. 24. COMMUNITY POLICING /COMMUNITY RELATIONS: This officer believes that the biggest enemy of the police Department is the traffic ticket. The hierarchy places great pressures on officers in the field to write tickets regardless of the merit of the tickets. As a result, officers frequently write tickets for relatively minor infractions, such as defective taillights, and members of the community become resentful of such tickets. However, this officer refuses to write a vast quantity of "bogus" tickets, and stresses the quality of the tickets he writes. 25. GAYS / LESBIANS: According to this officer, most police, including himself, are homophobic. He does not look forward to contacts with the gay and lesbian community, and he maintains that some of the calls that he has responded to which have gays and lesbians have been some of the most violent disputes that he has seen. He stresses that it is important to learn to interact with the community; however, he does not believe that the police should hire openly gay or lesbian officers. He believes that hiring openly gay and lesbian officers would create more problems because it would create negative reactions in the Department. [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 7 . .. • • • 26. WOMEN: According to this officer, women police officers handled the technical part of the job well and get along very well with the community. However, he believes that the Department is "going to pay" for hiring so many women. The officer contends that up until now, women have been shielded because they typically are partnered with men. But the officer does not believe that women can handle use of force situations as well as men. 27. RACIAL MINORITIES: According to the officer, racial minorities are distrustful of the police. The black community has more police exposure, and one of the biggest problems with relations with the black community is that blacks frequently are "mis-accused" by police officers. However, this officer could not present any suggestions of how to remedy this problem. With respect to the latino community, the major problem was the language barrier. However, spanish language training alone will not be sufficient to remedy this problem. Even if an officer attempts to communicate with a latino suspect who does not speak english, unless the officer is fluent, the suspect will not believe that he or she can communicate with the officer. The officer contends that what is needed is some form of reliable • translation, but he is not sure how to achieve that result. • 28. ATTITUDES/ OPINIONS RE L.A.P.E.: The officer believes that the L.A.P.D. is still a great organization, but that it needs to straighten out its notion of how to promote its officers. He believes that Gates has mishandled the King beating because he backed down after calling for an investigation. Gates should have used the normal process for the case. 29. REFORM SUGGESTIONS: The best reform for the L.A.P.D. would be to promote policemen based on their time in the field so that the Department is promoting police officers rather than managers. Furthermore, the Department should establish some form of liaison between the patrol officers and the brass. This officers believes that requiring the brass to spend time in a patrol car each month would facilitate this liaison. 30. CODE OF SILENCE: 50. MISCELLANEOUS: [Seiling 001, June 10, 1991] 8 |
Filename | indep-box24-16-01.pdf |
Archival file | Volume81/indep-box24-16-01.pdf |