Chief Michel Moore reappointed to second term
The Board of Police Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday, Jan. 31 to reappoint Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore to a second five-year term — but he will not serve the full term.
Moore announced his desire to run for a second term in December. In a letter to the board, he wrote that he wanted to continue building on work around "use of force, enhanced training and expanded transparency and accountability."
Moore, a 40-year veteran of the department, has served as chief since 2018 when he was appointed by former Mayor Eric Garcetti.
"My promise going forward, my commitment, is to lead this organization as I have in my first term," Moore said on Tuesday. "That is to build on the community trust and build on community safety."
Commissioner William J. Briggs II, president of the board, said he looked forward to continuing his work with Moore to ensure that Los Angeles remains safe from both crime and "actions that would harm our own department."
Moore said he is committed to leading the organization. "Though we've seen improvements in the last three years, we can see further improvements," said Moore. He also indicated he will not serve the full term, to allow a new chief to handle the planning for the 2028 Olympic Games.
In a statement after the vote, Mayor Karen Bass' office confirmed that plan, saying that "in line with discussions between the mayor and Chief Moore, he will not serve a full five-year term."
"At the appropriate time, in advance of global events like the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Olympics, a nationwide search will commence and a new chief will be selected."
Moore earlier stated the continued need to build community trust. "We've remained committed to be highly visible and accessible, to ensure that we're not just focused on enforcement, enforcement, enforcement," Moore said. "But rather, we're focused on building community cohesion."
There was some uncertainty on Moore's reappointment as Mayor Bass did not immediately commit to supporting Moore when he requested a second term, noting only that she would meet with the chief.
But the mayor sent a letter to the commission Monday saying she supported Moore's reappointment, with the mayor listing a series of expectations for the department, including mental health training for all officers, increased availability of Mental Evaluation Units and elimination of all-civilian panels in Board of Rights disciplinary hearings for officers.
The use of force has been the focal point among critics of Chief Moore. During the commission meeting's period of public comment regarding the reappointment, many callers criticized Moore and urged the board to vote down the request. The LAPD is facing scrutiny over the deaths of three men following encounters with police in the first three days of the new year.
Cofounder of Black Lives Matter L.A., Melina Abdullah stated her disapproval of the reappointment. "I am beyond outraged. I think it is completely tone-deaf on the part of the mayor, who comes from community organizing. He's engaged in full fledged assassination of the characters of Takar Smith, Oscar Leon Sanchez and Keenan Anderson, releasing heavily edited footage," said Abdullah.
"As the process of my reappointment has unfolded, I have listened intensely in my conversations with the Board of Police Commissioners, and more recently with Mayor Bass, on the description of the work that remains. I have heard the countless voices of encouragement as well as calls for rejecting my application. I am grateful for those who have called out my leadership and success. To my critics, I acknowledge all my efforts have not been without missteps," said Moore.
Moore joined the Los Angeles Police Department in 1981. He was promoted to captain in 1998. His assignments included assuming command at Rampart Area following the arrest of Rafael Perez and during the 2000 Democratic National Convention.
"My commitment is to keep going at this," Moore said. "To have an optimism that we can continue to see the evolution of policing, where we'll see communities that trust us at a greater level."
Moore also stated he seeks to restore "depleted staffing levels" as Los Angeles prepares to host the World Cup and Olympics in the coming years.
