"We're committed to helping residents solve them." "Compton has a long history of problems," he said. But the department remains committed to Compton, Alerich said. The deputies union criticized him, and he faces four serious challengers in Tuesday's election. You can tell they run the city, not the gangs."īaca endured some backlash. "This block used to be a war zone," Compton native Maria Amador, 30, said as she stood outside her parents' home on 152nd Street. But on a recent visit, nearly all of those interviewed praised the deputies and noted the improvement. Some complained the new deputies were unfamiliar with Compton. Tucker, on the other hand, is struggling to bring his department up to the 803 officers approved under Measure Y.Ĭompton disbanded its police department in 2000 after a series of corruption scandals and turned law enforcement over to the Sheriff's Department. Just like that, he increased the number of deputies in Compton from about 80 to 175.īaca has about 8,000 deputies spread across Los Angeles County. There are years of statistics to back that up."Īnd unlike Oakland, where officials worked for years before voters approved Measure Y to increase taxes and hire more police, Baca simply transferred deputies from other areas. "It's no secret that crime happens on nights and weekends. "There's no point in having deputies go home right when the bad guys get active," Alerich said as he spent Mother's Day on patrol. This includes gang investigators, homicide investigators and community impact teams."Īlerich said the department also changed deputies' schedules - a controversial issue in Oakland, where Tucker found himself in trouble with the union after trying to juggle schedules - to ensure "seven-day-a-week coverage in the toughest areas." "We've added a whole new group, a task force that is devoted to violent crime. Mike Alerich, who recently discussed his agency's strategies with an Oakland police lieutenant. "It's all about the resources - if you have more bodies, you can be proactive with bad guys," said Los Angeles sheriff's Lt. Deputies in Compton have briefed Oakland police on what they did to get a handle on things. He dispatched the officers in patrol cars and community "impact teams" that address complaints such as graffiti, loitering and street-corner drug sales.īaca's response is remarkably similar to what Tucker wants to do - if he can afford it. The turning point came when Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca, without fanfare, flooded the streets with 100 deputies and detectives, more than doubling the number assigned to the city. Gang-related assaults, shootings and attempted killings have fallen about 50 percent, authorities said. This year, Compton is on a pace to record just 25 homicides - it had 10 as of Saturday night. Violence was commonplace last year, and this city of about 100,000 people recorded a staggering 73 homicides. Beyond their reputations for crime, Compton - a suburb of mostly single-family homes 15 miles south of downtown Los Angeles - and Oakland share similar demographic trends as Latino immigrants move in and Latino gangs become more violent and claim turf.īut, like Oakland, the city still has deeply entrenched black gangs that dominate street-corner drug sales.
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