Metal Detectors Proposed for Security at City Hall

LOS ANGELES — Alarmed by the shooting of Riverside city officials last year, a Los Angeles City Council panel recommended Wednesday that metal detectors be installed at City Hall.

The devices would be placed at the entrance to Los Angeles City Hall and the City Council Chambers as part of a security plan endorsed by the council’s Information Technology and General Services Committee.

“It will provide several levels of deterrent,” said Tony DeClue, who oversees security for City Hall.

On Oct. 6, 1998, a gunman walked into Riverside City Hall and wounded six people including the mayor and two City Council members.

The city of Los Angeles has already armed the security officers at City Hall and increased foot patrols in the Civic Center after the Riverside incident, DeClue told the council panel.

Metal detectors would be placed at the Main Street entrance to City Hall and at the front entrance to the City Council chambers. Hand-held metal detectors would be used by guards at the rear entrance of the council chambers, where city employees and the press enter.

The security measures would cost $208,000 to implement, DeClue said.

The plan depends on the closure of the first floor entrances to City Hall so that all visitors enter on the 2nd Floor at Main Street.

DeClue said the metal detectors would probably be installed in March if the council approves the proposal.