Parks Hangs Up His Badge

Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard C. Parks said Monday that he plans to step aside within days to allow an interim chief to take the helm of the Police Department and confirmed rumors that he is contemplating a run for City Council.

Parks, whose request for a second term was rejected by the Police Commission earlier this month, also said he will not sue the city because of his ouster. Although the outgoing chief said he believes he has legal grounds for a lawsuit, he said he doesn’t want Los Angeles taxpayers to foot the bill.

Looking strikingly relaxed and good-humored in a suit and tie--a sharp contrast to his tense demeanor at many points in recent weeks--Parks officially ended his 37 years with the LAPD with a brief afternoon speech in front of LAPD headquarters at Parker Center.

His statement was largely devoid of the contentiousness that characterized the political debate around his failed request for reappointment. The issue of whether he had earned a second five-year term had unfolded amid a racially tinged political storm that came to a close late last week when the City Council, by an 11-3 vote, decided not to move to overturn the commission.

Parks, the city’s second African American chief, was widely credited with breaking racial barriers at the LAPD by rising steadily through the ranks after entering the force in the late 1960s.

He failed to win support for his reappointment from Mayor James K. Hahn, who rode into office with considerable backing from black voters. Black activists later said they felt betrayed by the mayor’s position, and Parks subsequently suggested that maneuverings by the LAPD officers union, the Police Protective League, were instrumental in ousting him.

Parks only made passing references to these allegations Monday, saying that the proceedings had exposed obvious deficiencies in the reappointment process.

Instead, he focused on possible political plans, thanking the city for “a rewarding and fulfilling career.” He said he plans to take a few days off to rest before returning briefly while the commission goes about deciding on an interim chief. The commission will then make recommendations on a permanent chief to Hahn.

Parks, 58, whose term as chief was due to end in August, said he expects his official retirement date to be sometime next week. But he said, “it is my expectation to continue to be involved in public life,” and is considering running for the 8th District City Council seat in South Los Angeles now held by Mark Ridley-Thomas.

Ridley-Thomas, who is leaving the City Council due to term limits, is running for a state Assembly seat. If he wins that seat, he would leave the council in January 2003 and if he loses, he would officially vacate the seat in June 2003. His successor will be chosen in the election of March 2003.

Plans to Study Secession of San Fernando Valley

If Parks chose to run, he would have to officially declare his intent by early November. Six people so far have filed with the city’s Ethics Commission to raise funds in that race: Assemblyman Roderick Wright (D-Los Angeles), Robert Cole, Sherri L. Franklin, Kevin Melton, Mervin L. Evans and Karen Bass.

Parks said he was still weighing whether to run, and is assessing his prospects. In the meantime, he said, he will devote his time to volunteering on voter registration efforts and studying San Fernando Valley secession, which he said represents a fundamental voter revolt against political leadership in the city. Parks stopped short of voicing opposition to secession Monday, saying he needed to study the issue further.

If Parks chooses to reenter public life as a politician, he would be treading in the footsteps of another LAPD chief-turned-lawmaker: his friend and mentor Ed Davis. Chief until 1978, Davis ran unsuccessfully for governor. Eventually, he served three terms as a Republican state senator.

Former Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley, the city’s only African American mayor, also rose from the ranks of the LAPD to a career in city politics.

Longtime political consultant Rick Taylor said Parks would be a shoo-in for the City Council seat if he chooses to run.

“If Chief Parks decides to run for any council district, I believe it’s his,” Taylor said. “I can’t image anyone beating him. Bernie is a figure in the African American community. He’s very, very popular.”

Police Commission President Rick Caruso said commissioners will consider a list of internal candidates to appoint as interim chief today. However, commissioners will want to interview several candidates before making a final decision on a temporary replacement, he said.

In explaining why he voted against Parks’ reappointment earlier this month, Caruso had made critical public comments that clearly rankled the chief, who countered that Caruso had unjustly attacked his character and reputation.

When Parks appeared at a news conference shortly after accompanied by two attorneys, it appeared that Parks might sue the city for a monetary settlement, as did his predecessor, Willie L. Williams. Although Parks’ attorney, Gloria Allred, gave a statement at Monday’s news conference detailing why she thought the chief was entitled to sue, Parks said he has no intention of doing so.

Despite their rift over the reappointment decision, Parks and Caruso spoke briefly by phone before the news conference. Caruso described it as a short but cordial conversation.

“I appreciate the fact that he called me,” Caruso said. “And I frankly appreciate the fact that he did take the high road.”

Old Opponents Join Ranks to Praise Chief

Caruso and Parks were not the only ones to put aside acrimony Monday. Parks’ announcement seemed to put his most vehement critics in a magnanimous mood.

“I want to thank Chief Parks on behalf of all the people of Los Angeles for his service of 37 years with the LAPD. We all owe him a great debt of gratitude,” said Hahn in a news conference after Parks’ announcement.

Hahn had strongly and repeatedly attacked the chief as he sought to keep his job in recent months.

Even leaders of the Police Protective League, who had campaigned vehemently against Parks, chimed in, releasing a written statement thanking the chief for his years of service.

Parks was uncharacteristically brief in his comments Monday, cutting short reporters’ questions. Afterward, he was mobbed by friends and family members. He hugged and shook hands with many of them as he made his way out the back of Parker Center, joking and smiling.