Welcome, Chief Williams : The man from Philadelphia will need a lot of patient support

At long last Los Angeles has a new police chief. And suddenly there is hope.

Willie L. Williams takes over after 14 years of Daryl F. Gates, a police careerist who did many good things to modernize the Los Angeles Police Department but who stayed on too long, made too many mistakes, antagonized too many people and finally had to be forced out. As a result, Williams takes over a force deeply divided and unsure of what is going to happen next.

Williams will first need to gain control of the department. That won’t be easy: There are always pockets of resistance. However, there also are many officers who are eager for new leadership.

Williams will need the support of the City Council and the Police Commission. Most of all he will need the patient support of the public. No aspect of municipal government is ever a snap to reform, and a police department, with its paramilitary tendencies toward tradition and secrecy, is a more difficult challenge than most.

Still, Williams does enter office with several clear advantages. He has the very useful report of the Christopher Commission to build on. He comes to the job with a fine record of achievement in Philadelphia. And of course he will benefit tremendously from a vast reservoir of goodwill and hope within a public eager to move on.

Even so, the public will need to appreciate that much of what Williams needs to do will take time--and money--and that whatever his virtues, he doesn’t claim to be able to walk on water. He may make some mistakes, misread some situations. The public must be understanding and realize that true reform will take years of sustained, gritty effort. Our best judgment is that Williams is very much the right man for the job. But even miracles can take time.