LAPD Chief Michel Moore to Resign at End of February

Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore announced Friday that he will leave his position as LAPD chief at the end of February, and city and department officials are expected to soon begin the process of finding a new leader to take on one of the most challenging jobs in law enforcement.

At a news conference with Mayor Karen Bass, Moore said he was proud of his career with the department and held back tears.

“During my tenure, I know I have made mistakes and missteps,” Moore said. “But I am also confident that my work has been successful on a broad spectrum of issues that no other law enforcement agency in this country can match.”

Bass praised Moore and thanked him for his work, saying he made the decision to leave recently.

“Chief Moore let me know that his schedule was moving forward to spend more time with his family,” Bass said. “This means, of course, that the police commission will have to appoint an interim chief and now there will be a nationwide search because his schedule was moved up and that was unexpected.”

Bass said he had asked Moore to “serve in a consulting capacity to assist an interim chief” and that he had accepted the offer.

Moore has endured a series of controversies in the department in recent months, including a series of incidents of officer misconduct and a whistleblower complaint alleging that two detectives were ordered to investigate Bass shortly after his election. Moore vehemently denied the allegations.

Before his reelection in January 2023 to a second five-year term as the city's top cop, Moore said he would serve for two to three years before handing the department over to a new chief before the 2028 Olympics.

Moore said at the time that he wanted more time to finish the work he started when he took over the department in 2018. Moore said he wanted to continue use-of-force and diversity reforms and avoid a “haphazard” transition before the Olympic Games, which are to begin shortly after his second full term had expired. He said he would spend the next few years laying the groundwork for a succession plan.

At Friday's news conference, Bass said Moore approached her last month to discuss his future. He expressed interest in moving in with his wife to be closer to his daughter. Bass said Moore's consulting role would be “very important” to the department.

The Police Commission will likely choose an interim chief to replace Moore.

“It has been my honor and privilege to serve for more than four decades in the best police department in the world and for the last five and a half years as chief,” Moore said. “About six years ago, when the opportunity arose to seek the position of police chief, I was filled with enthusiasm, humility and a genuine belief that my leadership and ability to serve the people of this great city, as well as The members of this department were there.”

Bass reappointed Moore to a second five-year term over concerns from critics who argued that the scope of scandals that have plagued the department during his tenure reflected a poor record for any leader.

Moore's supporters say the department has adopted reforms in the wake of the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and other flashpoints in 2020, including expanding community outreach efforts and imposing new limits on pretextual traffic stops that, According to Moore, “they undermined public confidence, but also added little merit from a law enforcement standpoint.”

The LAPD has become more diverse under his leadership, Moore said. She has also defended her record of promoting female officers, pointing to a series of recent appointments of female officers, including one as deputy chief.

The latest LAPD data indicates that crime is trending downward, and Moore had had the public support of Bass and the Police Commission. Bass praised Moore for coming up with innovative strategies in response to the post-pandemic crime surge and said he acted to quell home burglaries.

Former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said Moore had had a “great career” and “did a very difficult job very well.”

However, in recent months, the department has been roiled by accusations that one of Moore's deputy chiefs surreptitiously tracked down an officer with whom he had been romantically involved, and by a scandal involving officers in the police unit. gangs suspected of robberies and illegal detentions.

The episodes renewed questions about the management and oversight of the nation's third-largest police department.

Then last month, two LAPD Internal Affairs Division detectives filed complaints alleging they were ordered to investigate Bass, possibly at Moore's behest. The allegations are being investigated by the inspector general's office.

Moore denied the allegations, telling The Times: “I have no such knowledge of any alleged investigation nor would I initiate any such investigation.”

Moore, 63, landed the police chief job in 2018 after nearly four decades with the LAPD, rising through the ranks and becoming known for his statistics-based approach to policing. He was at the helm at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw a sharp increase in violent crime and homicides in Los Angeles.

Art Acevedo, former head of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, who led departments in Austin, Texas, Houston and Miami, said Moore's retirement would be “well-deserved.”

“The work he's done in Los Angeles when it comes to policing best practices is important,” Acevedo said, noting that Moore, like his predecessor, Beck, has kept the door open to other departments and shared knowledge to improve the situation. police surveillance at the national level.

Moore promised a more compassionate approach to policing following his appointment by Mayor Eric Garcetti. Early in his tenure, he faced harsh criticism for his handling of mass protests in Los Angeles over the death of Floyd and other Black Americans killed in police custody. Officers were repeatedly accused of using heavy-handed tactics against protesters who took to the streets.

Moore has also faced the challenge of leading a department that is several hundred officers short of its assigned strength of 9,500, a gap that has made it more difficult to keep police on the streets.

Bass, who took office in December 2022 after campaigning on a promise of greater police accountability and transparency, previously said he believed Moore shared his desire for the department to improve its recruitment of “reform-minded” officers. ” and will change the way you respond to calls. involving mentally ill people.

But Moore's leadership has been thrown into doubt as several of his top commanders and closest confidants have become embroiled in scandals. A deputy chief retired under a cloud of suspicion after being caught having sex with a subordinate in a government car.

LAPD Chief Michel Moore was appointed to a five-year term by Mayor Karen Bass, but will retire at the end of February.

(Luis Sinco/Los Angeles Times)

Another LAPD captain was discovered to have leaked confidential details of a sex crime victim and her police report to the alleged perpetrator, then-CBS head Les Moonves.

In 2022, a jury awarded a Los Angeles police commander $4 million in damages in a sexual harassment lawsuit against the city over a nude photograph that was doctored to look like her and shared throughout the department.

In 2021, a botched fireworks explosion by the department's bomb squad leveled a South Los Angeles neighborhood. Moore faced harsh criticism for the incident. Last July, he issued a statement promising to improve the department.

“This neighborhood is resilient and we will continue the work of repairing our relationship with this community that we have sworn to protect and serve,” Moore said at the time. Residents whose homes were severely damaged have filed several lawsuits and claims against the city.

Times legal affairs writer Kevin Rector contributed to this report.