A new chief is at the helm of the Los Angeles Police Department. What does that mean for the future of the department?
Outgoing Interim Chief Dominic Choi and the new Chief Jim McDonnell both joined Chief Correspondent Charles Feldman for a KNX In Depth special to examine what’s ahead for the department.
Listen here:
Before he was even sworn in, McDonnell’s appointment was plagued by concerns about his views on immigration. As Los Angeles County Sheriff, McDonnell allowed immigration agents into county jails, and in 2017 he opposed a bill to make California a sanctuary state.
McDonnell pushed back on those concerns, pointing to a long-standing LAPD policy that prohibits officers from stopping someone to determine their immigration status and saying it’s “really not in our interest at all” to work with ICE.
“I think that in order for a police agency to operate effectively, you have to have the trust of the people that you serve,” he said. “If a big percentage of the population believes that the Los Angeles Police Department is working to do, as has been speculated, roundups, or working with ICE to determine immigration status and assisting them in their efforts in that regard, that erodes trust.”