The Rampart Scandal - Essay Example

RUNNING HEAD: The Rampart Scandal The Rampart Scandal Joshua Goodlow www.acadmeia-research.com 12/19/08 The Rampart Scandal The city of Los Angeles is a city of international fame, prestige, and recognition for it's famous shopping centers, sports teams, and Hollywood movie stars. With a population of approximately 10,363,850 people, there are sure to be any number or demographic of people who may feel disenfranchised from the system. Furthermore, within such an exceedingly large municipality, there are sure to be various criminal minded individuals and elements ruling an underworld where lawlessness, racketeering, and corruption reign supreme (Los Angeles Almanac, 2008). But what happens when the men and women who are sworn to protect and serve become the rouge villains thereof In the case of the Los Angeles Police Department, the Rampart Scandal emerges as one of the most shocking cases of police corruption and foul cover up of the 20th century. History of the LAPD The LAPD's motto is 'To protect and serve' (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). However, through numerous occasions involving corruption, obstructions of justice, racially motivated beatings and officers drug dealing, the city's police force's image has been tarnished and re-tarnished again and again as being recognized as an law enforcement agency unlike any other the country or the world has ever seen. Lawlessness as it would seem, has always been one of the key ingredients that keeps this law-enforcing agency a household name in the city of Los Angeles. The concept of a police department came after the city's second City Marshal Jack Whaling was murdered in 1853 (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). His killer met his death at the hands of a bounty hunter, thus prompting the city's first chief, Dr. A.W. Hope to organize the Los Angeles Rangers. The Los Angeles Rangers volunteered to help the County Sheriff and Marshal. A white ribbon identified these new rangers, which had the words imprinted, "City Police - Authorized by the Council of Los Angeles (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). The culture and behavior and the LAPD The city's police department has always had a sense of vigilantism when responding to obstructions of justice. Evidence of such blatant works of anarchy surfaced in 1854 when Stephen C. Foster was mayor. The mayor saw it fit to lead a mob of people, which removed a criminal suspect from jail and hang him (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). Mayor Foster was promptly reelected. Such actions were looked upon as normal, even praised at the times. However, an event such as this was just the fist step on a journey through the LAPD's history of its brand of no holds bar, Wild West type of judgment, when policing the community. Racial tensions between the LAPD and its constituents have seemed to be the social norm for the city Los Angeles. A look at a law in 1850 revealed that racial tension was protected under the state's statutes and was upheld by California's Supreme Court. According to Los Angeles Police Department, (2008), No black or mulatto person, or Indian, shall be permitted to give evidence in favor of, or against, any white person. Every person who shall have one-eighth part or more of Negro blood shall be deemed a mulatto and every person who shall have one-half of Indian blood shall be deemed Indian (p.1). Asian Americans suffered the same fate of persecution under the law, as this law extended to them as well. The racially motivated violence perpetuated in the city did nothing to reform the laws that governed the community. As more and more Chinese settled in the city looking for work on the railroads and in the mines, tension between White and Asian began to escalate at an alarming rate. The Los Angeles Massacre, which occurred on October 24, 1871, was believed to have been a dispute between two Chinese named Yo Hing and Sam Yuen (Los Angeles Massacre Site, 2004). The two men arguing led to Yo Hing being shot. The dispute continued in to the next day, as Officer Bilderrain addressed the scene in an effort to diffuse the situation. A citizen named Robert Thompson came to help the officer end the confrontation. Consequently however, the officer lost his life to accidental gunfire, while two others were wounded. It was unsure of who did the shooting, but the hand full of spectators that were there, were inspired to take the law into their own hands (Los Angeles Massacre Site, 2004). Leading raids, and kicking in doors of the adobe buildings that the Chinese lived in, mobs of vengeful Whites overpowered Chinese, dragging them out in the streets and hanging them on site. While shots rang out and ropes savagely subdued the necks of Chinese citizens, thieves and robbers looted the stores of the merchants. Nineteen Chinese were murdered and it was even believed that none of them were actually involved in the shooting (Los Angeles Massacre Site, 2004). Furthermore, because of the laws at the time, none of the witnesses of the onslaught could have ever testified against the perpetrators. Between the period of 1876 and 1889 the turnover rate of police chiefs was at an all time high. Fifteen came and went, unable to cope with the stress and turmoil of serving in the position (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). Nevertheless in an attempt to racially diversify, the department hired its first two African American police officers in 1886. Their names were Roy Green and Robert William Steward (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). Finally, the department reached a new level of professionalism when in 1889 John M. Glass became the chief of police. He served as chief for 11 years, in which he moved the headquarters from city hall to West 1 Street. Under his administration, a code of standards were developed and used to bring in new police officers (Los Angeles Police Department, 2008). LAPD unethical behavior in the 20th Century August 11, 1965 will be among one of Los Angeles' darkest days in history as the city erupted into utter chaos and violence in the Watts Riots (African Americans, 2008). The arrest if a 21-year old African American male named Marquette Frye, by California Highway Patrol motorcycle officer Lee Minikus, triggered the racially fueled incident where according to eyewitnesses, another officer who came to assist Officer Minikus, struck Marquette with his baton (African Americans, 2008). This act of police brutality spread quickly through the neighborhood, which when combined with neighborhood overcrowding, racial tension, and an unprecedented heat wave that summer, escalated into citywide violence. The Los Angeles Police Department has had its fair share of infamous officials, corrupt police officers, and crooked sheriffs. One character in the story of LAPD stands out the most. His name will be remembered throughout history as the man who publicly labeled the people he saw involved in the riots as, "...monkeys in the zoo." (Answers.com, 2008). His name was William Parker. He served as police chief for 39 years. Although Parker made this racial comment, his is credited with turning the LAPD into a world-renowned professional crime fighting organization, while at the same time incorporating more brutality than ever, conducting Gestapo type raids on the houses of African Americans who living in the South Central and Venice sections of the city (Answers.com, 2008). In an effort to reshape the image of the LAPD, Parker fired back using the media to create a show called Dragnet, released in 1951 that displayed the everyday life of cops on the beat (Liberman, 2008). The show was successful in boosting the public opinion and image of the LAPD to the public. The Rampart Scandal The Rampart Scandal was perhaps the biggest, most significant case of police corruption within the LAPD. The scandal involved a special division of the police department called the Rampart Division. Within that division, there was a specialized unit of the LAPD called CRASH or the Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums. According to Rampart Scandal, (2008), CRASH--Community Resources Against Street Hoodlums--was a group of elite anti-gang units within the L.A.P.D. set up to tackle increasing gang-related crime. CRASH officers were required to get to know gang members--their names, habits, friends--to keep on top of gang activity. The Rampart Scandal broke out in the late 1990's when CRASH Officer Rafael Perez was arrested for stealing cocaine, which was estimated to have a street value of $1,000,000, away from the evidence lockup room in the police station (streetgangs.com, 1998). The case took a dramatic twist when Officer Perez cut a deal with the prosecutor, in exchange for immunity from all charges. His plea barging cased stemmed from another incident involving a member of LA's 18th Street Gang, in which another officer, his partner Officer Nino Durden, framed the gang member for shooting at them with a riffle in another unrelated incident. As a result, the gang member received 23 years for attempting to assault a police officer, and there was enough evidence that was surfaced to bring a total of 58 officers to trial. (Wisegeek, 2008). According to Wisegeek, (2008), "Of those 58, five were ultimately fired, while seven resigned and additional 12 officers were placed on suspension" (para.1). This single scandal was one that brought the LAPD to a new level of corruption. The reason being: the unit was created specifically to combat gang activity and their narcotics trafficking networks. Not only was this officer caught stealing drugs from the evidence lock up room, but also the officers that were associated with him were dealing drugs with gang members. It seemed to be a mistake to make an organization to combat the evils of narcotics; while its members sold the very drugs they claimed to have crusaded against. It would seem as if the CRASH unit sold and dealt more narcotics than the very gangs they were supposed to be fighting against. The Feds take over the LAPD Finally, the city of Los Angeles and the country had had enough with these rouge cops turned renegade drug dealers. The first action taken on by LAPD police Chief Bernard Parks was the dismantling of the CRASH Unit into smaller anti-gang units (Rampart Scandal, 2008). In an effort to police the police, the feds took over the LAPD on November 3, 2000 (Rampart Scandal, 2008). Under the new decree, the Federal Government would now oversee the dysfunctional police department for a period of five years (Rampart Scandal, 2008). Furthermore, in exchange for the Federal takeover, the Justice Department which had been investigating the excessive force and violations of the infamous police department would agree not to pursue any other law suits against the municipality (Rampart Scandal, 2008). Conclusion In every society or organization, there will always be individuals who feel that they are overworked and underpaid when fighting on the righteous side of the law. Furthermore, there will always be people who are tempted to take a cut of money on the side and off the record in an illegal fashion. The Rampart Scandal is just another example of how a city's finest can fall victim to the temptation of illegal drugs and money. Crime does not pay. References African Americans.com. (2007). The Los Angeles Riots of 1965. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from www.africanamericans.com Answers.com. (2008). Watts Riots. Retrieved December 16, 2008, from http://www.answers.com Connell, R., & Lopez, R. (1999). Rampart Probe may put gang injunction at risk: LAPD Officer's testimony called fabricated. Retrieved December 13, 2008, from www.streetgangs.com. Liberman, P. (2008). Dragnet the tales drawn from LAPD files burnished the department's image: Jack Webb mirrored Chief William H. Parker's militaristic style and contempt for subject's rights. LA Times Articles. Retrieved December 15, 2008, from http://articles.latimes.com Los Angeles Almanac. (2008). City of Los Angeles Population by Zip Code and Race 2000 Census. Retrieved December 14, 2008, from www.laalanac.com Los Angeles Massacre Site. (2004). A History of Chinese Americans in California. Retrieved December 16, 2008, from www.cr.nps.gov National Master. (2005). Timeline of Scandal. Retrieved December 16, 2008, from www.nationmaster.com Rampart Scandal. (2008). Cover Up. Retrieved December 17, 2008, from www.pbs.org The Los Angeles Police Department. (2008). History of the LAPD. Retrieved December 16,2008. from www.lapdonline.org Read More