Third in a series.
Re: “Take My Hand, and I Will Take Yours”
Asst. Chief Chris Gutierrez’s nearly 30 years with the Culver City Police Dept. is down to hours. Tomorrow is Closing Day.
As time grew near, Mr. Gutierrez was asked if, when he started in January 1987, he could have envisioned today’s wide-open, sympathy-seeking attacks on uniformed police officers.
“It was completely different then,” the chief said. “When I started, it was more about street-level crime, street robberies, gang shootings.
“It has completely morphed into what you see today. Law enforcement’s biggest concern is much bigger than street-level crime.”
Except, perhaps, in Culver City.
Years ago, proud residents used to boast they could walk across the darkened quiet city at midnight without fear of apprehension by bad guys.
That still is true today, in the view of Mr. Gutierrez.
Old-fashioned safety still exists elsewhere in America, “in other communities, especially in rural areas,” he said.
“But in Los Angeles County, I truly believe we are as safe as anywhere.”
Citizen oversight commissions have become the rage around the country.
“There are departments that do need that,” Mr. Gutierrez said.
As for Culver City, “we already do a lot of things that an oversight commission would provide. We already involve the community. We have input from the community. We reach out. We do consider them when we make decisions.”
Chief Gutierrez said that “a lot of the need for (oversight) internally in our organization, it is not as needed as in some troubled departments.
“Our department is strong. We have a lot of support from the community.”
