Ruling in teen’s killing spurs outcry

Angered by an administrative panel’s secret decision not to punish the Los Angeles Police Department officer who fatally shot a 13-year-old boy, City Council members and community leaders called Wednesday for increasing civilian oversight of misconduct cases and reopening them to public scrutiny.

“People are always going to have different views on how cops should be punished for shootings, but all the facts should be out in the open and there ought to be accountability for the ultimate decision-makers,” said Councilman Jack Weiss, head of the city’s Public Safety Committee.

Weiss said he would hold a joint hearing with the Police Commission in upcoming weeks to discuss ways to make LAPD discipline “more transparent.”

Other city officials, including Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, also said they were disappointed to learn that an internal LAPD disciplinary panel meeting held behind closed doors this week rejected the civilian Police Commission’s findings that Officer Steven Garcia should be punished for the Feb. 6, 2005, shooting of Devin Brown.

“I supported the Police Commission decision in this matter,” Villaraigosa said. “That should tell you my feelings about this.”

Some city leaders were even more outraged that the decision was shrouded in secrecy.

“This lack of public disclosure deepens suspicion in the African American community that the LAPD is more interested in protecting officers than in curbing police abuse,” said Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of the Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable.

Councilman Bernard C. Parks, who led the LAPD from 1997 to 2002, said holding disciplinary hearings in private undermines confidence in the Police Department.

“After 30 years of progressive efforts to make the public aware, we’ve had a complete reversal,” Parks said. “This is unraveling decades of hard-fought battles.”

Although disciplinary hearings have historically been open to the public, police officials changed department policy late last year in response to a state Supreme Court ruling that restricted access to law enforcement personnel records in a San Diego case.

Parks said the LAPD is going beyond what the court decided in that case -- Copley vs. Superior Court -- noting that the ruling “specifically says it does not address meetings.”

Police Chief William J. Bratton and Police Commission President John Mack said they support greater public openness, but were compelled to close hearings because of legal advice from City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo, who has interpreted the court’s ruling as giving officers broad privacy protections. A spokesman for Delgadillo’s office declined to discuss the advice, saying such matters were confidential.

Even though Bratton and commission officials touted their desire to provide greater public access, in many ways they have been more secretive about police conduct than past LAPD leaders.

Last year, for example, the Police Commission changed a decades-old policy and began issuing public reports without the names of officers involved in shootings. At that time, state Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles) offered to sponsor legislation to ensure that names would not be struck from public police records if commission members had concerns about potential court restrictions.

On Wednesday, Romero said she had not heard from commission officials since the court decision.

“My offer still stands,” Romero said. “If the city of Los Angeles, from the mayor to the City Council to the commission, want help, I can carry the legislation.... It’s a sad day for those of us who believe that policing should be done in the public.”

Romero said the developments in the Brown case also show that the commission needs greater power over officer discipline. Under the City Charter, the commission has the authority to set broad policy, but cannot independently impose discipline.

“On paper, there is civilian oversight, but this illustrates that the commission has no teeth. Its teeth got kicked out inside a closet.”

Several council members said they would support any legislative remedy to reopen boards to the public, whether by state legislative action or a change in the City Charter.

“Boards,” Parks said, “should always be open.”

Councilman Greig Smith, a reserve LAPD officer, was one elected official who believed that the disciplinary panel was right to exonerate Garcia.

“The Police Commission is the one that erred,” Smith said.

Smith also supported closed discipline hearings, saying it protects the rights of the innocent.

“I understand their concerns,” Smith said after hearing Hutchinson’s comments. “But these are the same people who have been criticizing the Police Department for as long as I can remember, and no matter what we do they will not be satisfied.”

Two years ago, when the Brown shooting occurred, community activists accused Garcia of using excessive force.

The officer mortally wounded Brown near 83rd Street and Western Avenue in South Los Angeles as the boy backed a stolen Toyota Camry toward a police car after a brief car chase. Police said Brown was driving erratically and that they suspected him of drunk driving.

Garcia, who was unaware at the time that the vehicle was stolen, fired 10 shots, hitting the youth seven times. The Police Commission, in a 4-1 vote, determined that the shooting violated department rules, saying that evidence showed Garcia was outside the path of the vehicle and in no danger at the time he opened fire. Commissioners said they expected Garcia to be punished. The city also agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by Brown’s family.

Although police sources confirmed to The Times that the LAPD administrative panel found that Garcia’s actions were justified, the rationale for the decision remains secret.

On Wednesday, as elected officials voiced concern over the panel’s vindication of Garcia, residents in South Los Angeles expressed disappointment but were less surprised.

“This is so unfair,” said Mollie Bell, a local activist. “In this profession, they never mess up. They never make a mistake. Every day you hear about lawyers or politicians. They make mistakes on the job. They screw up. Doctors get fired for malpractice. Everybody gets punished except the police. They always come out on top.”

Ed Brimmer, a 69-year-old retired LAPD detective who was awarded the department’s Medal of Valor in 1971, saw the incident through the eyes of a veteran police officer.

“It’s sad, it’s very tragic,” said Brimmer of the shooting. “But I don’t think the officer got up that day and said, ‘I’m going to go kill a black child.’ Police officers are afraid too. They have to protect themselves too.”

Rod Wright, a former assemblyman, said he’s seen cases like this before.

“In this case everybody loses,” he said. “The Police Commission said the shooting was out of policy, the council approved a settlement, the police chief said it was justified and now there’s no punishment. Who’s in charge?”

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Times staff writers Tony Barboza, Duke Helfand, Patrick McGreevy, John Mitchell and Jim Newton contributed to this report.