{"id":910,"date":"2026-01-05T08:00:57","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T08:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timgaspar.com\/?p=910"},"modified":"2026-03-04T08:53:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T08:53:46","slug":"restoring-public-safety-los-angeles-deserves-better","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timgaspar.com\/es\/restoring-public-safety-los-angeles-deserves-better\/","title":{"rendered":"Restaurar la seguridad p\u00fablica: Los \u00c1ngeles merece algo mejor"},"content":{"rendered":"

SAFE AND SECURE – Over the past year, I\u2019ve completed five ride-alongs with the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), including patrols in the San Fernando Valley. I don\u2019t show up to campaign. I show up to listen, observe, and understand what our LAPD officers and our neighborhoods are up against. If I\u2019m elected to City Council, public safety won\u2019t just be a campaign talking point; it will be my top priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because right now, too many Los Angeles families and businesses do not feel safe in their own communities. Violent crime, gang activity, rampant retail theft, and homelessness tied to addiction and untreated mental illness have become daily realities. Response times are too slow. Break-ins go unanswered. And public spaces, our parks, schools, and sidewalks, are not being protected<\/a> the way Angelenos deserve, and the City has stopped enforcing its own rules<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Los Angeles must reaffirm a simple principle: public safety is non-negotiable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What I Saw With LAPD<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After spending hours in patrol cars and responding to real calls, several things have become painfully clear. Our mental health system is broken. Officers repeatedly encounter people in crisis who are dropped off at hospitals \u2014 only to be released within hours because medical staff are not equipped to treat severe mental illness. These individuals end up back on the streets, still sick and still vulnerable. A significant portion of those living on the streets aren\u2019t from here. People come to California for treatment, lose placement when programs fail, and are stranded \u2014 homeless, addicted, and with no path home. This isn\u2019t compassion. It\u2019s neglect disguised as tolerance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Officers feel under a microscope. They tell me they feel less supported in Los Angeles than in neighboring cities like Beverly Hills or Culver City. Younger officers are leaving, or choosing not to join the LAPD at all, because City Hall has created a culture of distrust rather than one that values and respects the people sworn to protect us.  We don\u2019t have enough police cars, and many are in disrepair. During one ride-along, the patrol vehicle had a \u201ccheck engine\u201d light that had been on for days. There are not enough operational vehicles to meet the force\u2019s needs. That is unacceptable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gang violence is active and escalating. Warring gangs continue to terrorize neighborhoods, and families know the sound of gunfire far too well.  Quality-of-life enforcement has become nearly impossible. When a sidewalk encampment blocks a business or threatens a family\u2019s safety, officers often have few tools and even fewer resources to take action. The process is slow and bureaucratic, and it frequently leads nowhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One message I hear again and again: the job has changed, and not for the better. Instead of being empowered to stop crime and maintain order, officers feel they\u2019re being managed by fear \u2014 fear of retaliation, fear of discipline for honest mistakes, fear of being publicly vilified for doing their jobs. That\u2019s not how you build a functional police department. That\u2019s how you drive good officers away.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What We Need to Do<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We don\u2019t have to accept rising disorder as the new normal. We can choose a safer future, one that protects both public safety and civil liberties. Here\u2019s where we start:<\/p>\n\n\n\n