INSIDER TRACK – Transit police is a unique force requiring specialized training, a prerequisite ignored by both the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department when they snatched a funding stream established for transit safety on the Metro system.
In truth, the in-house police force vanished because of a grab for money and politics played on the back of passengers whose safety was compromised.
Metro already had a Transit Police, and Sharon Papa was the chief. Officers were specifically recruited, screened, and hired to work exclusively for the transportation system, received precise transit police training, and were State-certified. They not only policed the system, but they also added an effective high-profile foot-beat team…