One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This archival content was originally written for and published on KPCC.org. Keep in mind that links and images may no longer work — and references may be outdated.
City of Compton may re-establish its police department
Listen
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.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
