First in a series
With the sexual harassment probe of the Police Dept. reportedly having been quietly concluded, perhaps the108 ladies and gentlemen of the department can return to the marquee entertainment diversion of the summer season:
The bitter rebellion by the five-man board of the Police Officers Assn. against Police Chief Don Pedersen, whom they have been actively trying to oust since last year.
Sources inside the Police Dept. maintain that Mr. Pedersen, an honorable man of his word, even to most union officers who now regard him as an enemy, the chief’s firm-jawed pushback against intense, very personalized, heat by the rebels, ultimately will prevail.
They give two reasons:
The stoutness of the chief’s personal resolve after surviving pre-Culver City brushes with death and a “gigantic political miscalculation” by the union.
“They were certain they had the three votes they needed on the City Council to dump him,” one veteran told the newspaper. “These are very aggressive officers who have brought on this trouble. They see Pedersen as soft, which, they should know he isn’t.”
“Don’s modern-style,” said another officer, “doesn’t suit these union guys who grew up under (the retired Ted) Cooke.”
Armed almost invulnerably with the unanimous backing of his bosses, the five members of the City Council, buttressed by a written four-year record that will withstand withering scrutiny and an impressive core of popular support inside of City Hall, say these sources, Mr. Pedersen will remain solidly employed. The revolution,” they predict, “willfade away.”
The latter projection may come as a surprise to many, given the union’s hard-nosed, publicly declared intention to force out the chief.
“In my opinion,” said one source, “the leaders of the POA are guilty of two gaffes — they were flatly wrong about the City Council. That miscalculation is almost egregious.
“The other wrong guess was that by going public, they would earn broad communal support. From where I stand, their tactics have not won over anybody.
“Were you at the Fiesta last week? Did you see the big sign in the POA booth, about how the overwhelming number of union members have voted for the ouster of Pedersen? All of that show didn’t raise a ripple from the community. Since they went public in July, I have not noticed the tiniest uptick in support for their stance.
“Those are huge errors.”
“Don may be physically slight,” said one of his department supporters, “but he has the heart of a giant that saw him through two threatening bouts with cancer. Beating cancer twice is a monumental accomplishment. He is not going to let something like this — four guys with personal grudges — drive him away.
“I don’t want to trivialize what is going on now, but cancer is life-and-death. He is much stronger than some think he looks.”
If the revolt is destined to peter out, no external signs are evident. Lately, emboldened anti-Pedersen officers, notably detectives, sources say, have begun openly confronting the chief, regardless of who is watching.
The chief’s reaction? “He looks unflappable to me,” one witness said.
(To be continued)
