By WILLIAM J. BRATTON
In the last seven years, the most serious crime in Los Angeles has fallen to levels not seen since the 1960s. Violent crime is down 51 percent, homicides are down 55 percent and so-called Part 1 crime generally is down 37 percent when compared with 2002.
The most significant benefit of the crime reduction in the city of Los Angeles is that there are more than 63,000 fewer victims of crime today when compared with 2002. These major achievements are not by happenstance, but are due in no small measure to the hard work and focused community policing approach taken by the Los Angeles Police Department to reduce crime.
My constant refrain that “Cops Count Police Matter” is supported by the fact that when properly led, well trained and sufficiently equipped, the police can modify the behavior of the criminal element in our communities. And as a result, they can significantly reduce crime, fear and disorder. Beyond saving lives and reducing crime and the number of victims, we can also appropriately take credit for helping inject new quality-of-life benefits and initiatives into our inner cities, while spurring economic development and returning large tracts of the urban landscape to the law-abiding.
While these are impressive results, we still face many challenges. With dark economic times affecting city budgets throughout the nation, we are relying on businesses to help deter crime and capture criminals in unprecedented ways.
In fact, the business community can contribute in many ways. Crime prevention has become a shared responsibility that will eventually pay significant benefits for both the business world and the communities they serve. These benefits include reduced crime, safer neighborhoods and enhanced business opportunities.
One example of this is the Los Angeles Police Department’s partnership with Target Corp. Given its size, visibility and commitment to Los Angeles, Target is fast becoming a community leader and partner here, with multiple programs to help prevent, reduce and solve crimes in the Southland. Target, along with many other businesses in Los Angeles, provides significant support to the Los Angeles Police Foundation, which allows us to respond to emerging needs of the department for equipment, training and youth programs that are not provided for in our publicly funded budget.
Community assist
In addition, as a large retailer, Target has aggressively pursued crimes in its stores with anti-theft cameras and forensic labs that allow its anti-crime team to analyze video and audio. But beyond resolving crime in its own stores, the retailer supports cases unrelated to its business at the request of local law enforcement. In fact, Target reports that its labs have analyzed more than 10,000 hours of forensic audio and video for police around the country, helping to solve several high-profile violent crimes including some in the Los Angeles area.
Through the Police Foundation, Target is also a major funding source for the Hydra Simulation Training Suite, which is a technology-driven learning environment that simulates the complexity and chaos of critical incidents, such as major crime and terrorism investigations and disasters. Realistic scenarios challenge participants’ leadership skills and their ability to react under pressure. The LAPD will have the first Hydra site in the United States and we intend to invite private partners such as Target to participate in the training it offers. In addition, Hydra will help to develop joint community, law enforcement and business partnerships in training initiatives that will ultimately save lives and property during major incidents.
Recently Target, through the Police Foundation, also donated $200,000 to fund development of the Los Angeles Citywide Crime and Resources Dashboard, a new software program to help us track crime reports and other data in real time. This partnership helps us monitor our operations in a more sophisticated way and allows the LAPD to deploy our officers more effectively to lessen the number of victims and crimes.
The future of law enforcement, in order to sustain reductions and in some cases to further reduce crime and the fear of crime, lies not only with police leaders and the criminal justice system, but also with our counterparts in the private sector. Businesses have a role and a responsibility to join with their communities to deter crime and to support local police departments. I firmly believe that with a continued emphasis on public-private partnerships, such as those we have formed with Target, we can achieve another significant drop in crime in 2009 in Los Angeles a decline that will benefit all who live, visit and shop here.
To paraphrase a great leader, Mahatma Gandhi, “To create change you must become the change.”
William J. Bratton is the Los Angeles police chief.
