LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Chief Jim McDonnell Tuesday called details of a whistleblower’s complaint alleging racism and discrimination by officers in the Los Angeles Police Department’s Recruitment and Employment Division a “major setback” and pledged that appropriate action will be taken.
During Tuesday’s Los Angeles Board of Police Commission meeting, McDonnell noted he was made aware of the complaint several weeks ago, where “inappropriate” comments were being made in the workplace. He added audio of those conversations was recorded.
“Once we became aware of that we immediately pulled the involved officers out of that unit and assigned them to home with no police powers,” McDonnell said.
According to McDonnell, the department is back-filling the positions left by those officers being investigated, so the division can continue its work and bring people on board.
Commissioner Maria Lou Calanche asked McDonnell to clarify the department’s internal due process and whether the officers could be terminated on the spot.
McDonnell said the process will happen and won’t occur overnight. He added it’s “certainly being taken very seriously, the investigation. We’ve dedicated significant resources to it, and it’ll be expedited as quickly as possible.”
Commissioner Teresa Sanchez-Gordon said it was “disheartening” when disparaging comments are made not just within the lower ranks of the department but also with those in authority.
“I hope that this investigation is really one that will have an impact and will also send a message that our department cannot continue with that toxic environment,” Sanchez-Gordon added.
Meanwhile, the president of the board, Erroll Southers, noted the department would be losing 100 officers over the next year due to retirement. He applauded the recruitment division because “every month there’s about 100 people that are applying.”
He expects the investigation to address alleged discrimination some applicants faced when applying to the department.
During public comment, Jason Reedy, an activist and critic of the LAPD, said the alleged racist remarks are common at “every station, every division at every level of the department.”
“Now, LAPD is saying they’re going to investigate whether the latest recordings were made illegally, and the concern of this commission, the LAPD and the media, is that this scandal is a roadblock to grow — roadblock to growing the ranks of this department, but the concern of the public is what these pigs did when you had them deployed in our communities,” Reedy said.
On Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported details of the complaint which included roughly 90 recordings of officers and supervisors making disparaging remarks against potential recruits and colleagues based on race and sexual orientation.
The Times reported the names of four officers — Lt. Louis Lavender, Sgt. Denny Jong, Officer Shirley Burgos and another identified only as McKay. The complaint accused Jong of leading such conversations.
Jong, who is Asian and was assigned to the Recruitment and Employment Division, was heard in conversation with subordinates talking about legendary Dodger pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who died in 2024 from septic shock. Jong allegedly said, “I know why he died. He ate too much tacos,” according to The Times.
The complaint also alleged Jong made comments that a female civilian supervisor looked like a man and made a crude joke about Asian women. Additionally, officers allegedly made derogatory comments about Black applicants, female colleagues, and LGBTQ+ co-workers.
Burgos, a Latina officer, allegedly offered advice in one conversation about how to fight Black individuals, saying “You hit Black people in the liver; I heard they got weak livers,” according to The Times.
Details of the complaint prompted a response from Mayor Karen Bass who reaffirmed her position on the issue.
Bass maintained that growing the LAPD’s size is a top priority, as well as ensuring the safety of residents. She described the remarks as “outrageous and unacceptable.”
“The Chief (McDonnell) and I are on the same page about the urgent need to fix the recruiting and hiring process and make sure that officers stuck in the past don’t tarnish the badge for everyone else,” Bass said in a statement.
The Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the union representing LAPD’s rank-and-file officers, also called for accountability.
“We are appalled by the reports of officers speaking in this manner about potential recruits, co-workers, and supervisors. This reprehensible language is beyond unacceptable and those identified to be on these recordings should question their own ability to conduct themselves to the high standards we, as police officers, must abide by,” the Board of Directors said in a statement.
“After a thorough, fair and transparent investigation of this alleged misconduct, any officer found to have broken the public trust must be held accountable,” the statement continued.
The LAPPL also noted that several officers and supervisors from the field were removed pending the outcome of the investigation. Board members questioned why Deputy Chief Marc Reina, who is in charge of the recruitment unit, had not been relieved as well for “what appears to be his complete lack of oversight,” the board added.
Greg Smith, the attorney representing the whistleblower, told The Times they are cooperating with the inspector general because of concerns about retaliation and personal safety.
The officer has also alleged that time cards were misrepresented to show more hours than were actually worked, that confidential information was disclosed to other agencies and that racial and sexual biases were applied to the selection of officers, The Times reported.
LAPD officials told The Times they would investigate whether the recordings were made illegally.
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