Former Police Chief Daryl Gates debates enforcement and illegal immigrants
A controversial rule, Special Order 40, that Gates helped draft has received renewed attention since the killing of high school football player Jamiel Shaw II.
Tanned, toned and looking as if he's aged little in the 16 years since he left office, former LAPD Chief Daryl F. Gates returned to City Hall today to wade into a contentious debate over the issue of police enforcement and illegal immigrants.
Gates helped craft Special Order 40, the 1979 measure that limits when police officers can inquire about the immigration status of crime victims and suspects.
The rule has long been controversial, but this year, there has been a push by some at the City Council to amend it amid concerns that Special Order 40 prevents police from effectively dealing with illegal immigrant gang members.
Special Order 40 became the subject of intense debate earlier this year after the slaying of high school football player Jamiel Shaw II.
Shaw was allegedly gunned down by a reputed gang member who was in the country illegally. Pedro Espinoza, who awaits trial on a murder charge, was released from Los Angeles County jail the day before the killing.
Led by Shaw's parents, opponents of Special Order 40 say the killing of the teenager illustrates how LAPD officers are limited by the policy.
Responding to those concerns, Councilman Dennis Zine proposed modifying Special Order 40 with more specific language proposing that police notify immigration authorities if that individual was not in the country legally.
But today, Gates appeared to suggest there was nothing wrong with the policy, just that politics had muddled the meaning behind the rule.
Dressed in a beige suit and, at times, showing glimpses of his acerbic wit and combative style, Gates said blaming the police department for not doing it's job was "a public relations problem with this council and this city."
"When Councilman Zine asked me about Special Order 40 and whether or not it prohibited police officers from doing something about gangs, I said absolutely not. It doesn't," Gates said.
"Built into [the] special order is a part that, if somebody violates the law and the officer brings them in, the first thing they're supported to do is notify immigration if they believe they're undocumented," Gates said. "That's in Special Order 40. But somewhere it was lost. Never, ever, ever was Special Order 40 designed, written to keep law enforcement from enforcing the law against a criminal."
After two hours of testimony and public comment, the committee put off a vote on the policy so the LAPD could prepare a report for the council on its training.
