Not only is Los Angeles defunding the police—it was also announced that the city will replace police with unarmed trained crisis responders for nonviolent calls. It was a move that was unanimously approved by the city council.
Calls that qualify for community-based responses are neighbor disputes, substance abuse and mental health crises. These will all be handled by people who are trained crisis responders.
Mayor Garcetti stated,
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“We must act to reform public safety in our communities — and today, we took an important step forward, thanks to Councilmember @CMHerbJWesson, Council President @CD6Nury and our City Council. We will keep working together to change how we respond to nonviolent 911 calls.”
We must act to reform public safety in our communities — and today, we took an important step forward, thanks to Councilmember @CMHerbJWesson, Council President @CD6Nury and our City Council. We will keep working together to change how we respond to nonviolent 911 calls.
— MayorOfLA (@MayorOfLA) July 1, 2020
As reported by The Grio, the new system will be developed by the Chief Legislative Analyst (CLA) and the City Administrative Officer (CAO), with assistance from the Los Angeles Police Department and the city’s Housing Services Authority.
Council President Nury Martinez, tweeted,
The Los Angeles City Council has just approved the first step in our plan to replace LAPD with a community-based, unarmed emergency responders for non-violent calls for service. This is the dawn of a new era of public safety in Los Angeles.
— Herb J. Wesson, Jr. (@HerbJWesson) June 30, 2020
The bottom line is that the way things have been going is not working for our communities. This last month has made that crystal clear. We have a responsibility to listen to our people, and our people have spoken.
I look forward to continuing this work alongside @BLMLA.
— Herb J. Wesson, Jr. (@HerbJWesson) June 30, 2020
This plan is the first of its kind in a major U.S. city.
