Williams Attends LAPD Open House

Following a recommendation made by the Christopher Commission more than five years ago, Los Angeles Police Chief Willie L. Williams on Thursday presided over a public open house at a new Valley satellite office of the department’s Internal Affairs Division.

The office, located in a building at 15545 Devonshire St. in the Foothill Division, opened its doors in July, officials said, to provide Valley residents with better access to the LAPD unit responsible for investigating officers.

“We handle all the IAD complaints from the Valley. We take walk-in complaints and we conduct the interviews here,” said Lt. Candace Brady, who runs the office.

The Valley office is the third IAD satellite office to open since the commission released its findings in 1992. The other offices are in the Hollywood and Southwest divisions, and plans are underway to open two more by June, officials said.

Convened in the wake of the Rodney King beating, the Christopher Commission was charged with examining the issues of excessive force and racism at the LAPD. The commission recommended that the IAD rather than the police officers’ assigned division investigate citizens’ complaints of misconduct and that IAD investigators make themselves more accessible to the public.

“Being able to do the interviews here saves people from having to drive downtown, and it also saves the officers being interviewed from having to go downtown, which allows them to spend more time on the job,” Brady said.

Los Angeles City Councilman Hal Bernson, whose 12th District includes the new office, could not attend Thursday’s dedication but said he was glad to have an IAD presence in the Valley.

The new office is open from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday, officials said. It can be reached at (818) 894-1109.