City of Compton may re-establish its police department

The Compton City Council may vote Tuesday night on whether to revive an institution that’s been gone for 10 years – its local police department. KPCC’s Cheryl Devall says the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has handled law enforcement there this decade.

Spiraling violent crime rates, tensions between municipal agencies and a busted city budget contributed to Compton’s decision to dissolve its stand-alone police department. Under the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department, the number of homicides has dropped from 55 in 1999 to 37 last year.

Still, Compton elected officials maintain that a locally-controlled police department could restore a sense of pride to the small city in south L.A. County. That’s why the city council’s allocated $20 million to help revive a local department.

It’s also sponsored a quartet of public hearings on the matter. The Compton City Council vote would authorize the first steps toward creating a new local department. City officials have told people in Compton that if they re-establish the department, it will not automatically welcome back the officers who worked there last time around.