The Los Angeles City Council rejected Mayor James K. Hahn’s plans to add hundreds of new police officers. It was the first time in Hahn’s two-year tenure that the council had overridden a veto, reports the Los Angeles Times. The vote was 11 to 3. The city’s $5.1-billion budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 will include a modest police hiring plan.
Hahn promised work “to ensure that the City Council’s vote is not a permanent setback to our efforts to combat crime and reduce gang violence in Los Angeles.”
Capitalizing on Police Chief William J. Bratton’s popularity, the mayor made joint appearances with the chief, who said he needed the extra officers to fulfill his crime-reduction promises. Bratton suggested that council members were oblivious to crime in their neighborhoods. His pugnacious style backfired, and he wound up writing an apology to all 15 members.