In the poll, a third of all respondents agreed with that position, 16% said police are tougher on Latinos, and 34% said all races are treated equally. Compared with 2005, fewer respondents said the police were tougher on blacks, but the number saying police were rougher on Latinos has gone up.
The general approval of the LAPD plays out in city politics as well, the poll showed. "Fighting crime" was the topic cited most frequently in the poll as Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's most important accomplishment. And, despite the city's estimated $529-million budget deficit, those polled strongly rejected the idea that the city should save money by halting the current push to add 1,000 officers to the force.
"I'm not some kind of law-and-order maniac, but I want more cops. I want more of them literally walking the beat, more of them that you can say 'Hi' to and get to know," said Ty Geltmaker, a 57-year-old living in the Echo Park area.
Attitudes on the city's quality-of-life issues and public schools were far less encouraging.
Among the 40% who said they had seriously considered leaving the city, the high cost of housing was by far the most commonly cited reason. Among whites, traffic congestion was the second reason. Blacks and Latinos cited crime second.
The poll made clear that large numbers of people in the city have been hurt by the economic recession.
In addition to job losses and foreclosures, a quarter said they or someone in their family had delayed retirement because of the financial meltdown. Roughly the same number reported having lost health insurance. Nearly half of those polled were from families in which wages or hours at work had been cut.
In interviews, several people said they had dramatically changed their lifestyles, putting off large purchases, delaying dental work and eating at restaurants far less frequently.
Latinos reported the greatest effects of the recession but were also the most optimistic about the economy's future. Half of Latinos said that they expect the economy to be better in six months, but only about a third of blacks or whites said they feel such confidence.
Latinos were also slightly more upbeat about the state of the Los Angeles Unified School District than others, although support for the public school system was tepid at best.
About a third of those polled said they felt the district had stagnated in the last four years, failing to make any progress on teaching basic skills, stemming the dropout rate and preparing students for college or work. Ratings of the schools, however, were noticeably higher among those who have children enrolled.
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joel.rubin@latimes.com
