Villaraigosa Wants Charlie in Charge

Deputy Chief Charlie Beck is the mayor's choice for the next chief of the Los  Angeles Police Department.

Beck is a 33-year veteran of the department. He is said to have strong support from the department's rank-and-file officers and civil rights advocates.

"He is the right man to lead the department at the right time," Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at an 11 a.m. announcement. "He spent most of his career in some of the most challenging areas of our city. In every case, communities were better off because of his creative problem solving... and his ability to bring diverse groups of people together to work together."

The mayor made an official announcement at 11 a.m.

Beck currently supervises specialized detective divisions, including robbery, homicide, gang and narcotics, vice, commercial crimes and juvenile crimes.

"This is not just a job for me," Beck said. "This is who I am."

Beck's father, George Beck, retired from the Los Angeles Police Department as a deputy chief in 1980.

Beck's daughter, Scimone, is a patrol officer in the Hollywood area. His wife, Cindy, is a retired LA County deputy. His son, Martin, is scheduled to graduate from the police academy in December.

Beck was born in Long Beach. He has a Bachelor of Science Degree from California State University, Long Beach.

The final three candidates were chosen unanimously by the Police Commission. They were Beck, Asst. Chief Jim McDonnell and Deputy Chief Michel Moore.

"This process was the most exhaustive examination I've ever been through," Beck said. "I cannot believe the effort the mayor and his staff put into this. I spent hours in his living room trying to convince him I was the right man for the job."

The mayor's pick arrived Monday night at Getty House -- the mayor's official residence. The mayor interviewed the three candidates last week.

Beck would start out free from a federal consent decree that stemmed largely from the  Rampart scandal. In 2002, Bratton assigned Beck, then a captain, to clean up the mess that involved rogue anti-gang officers, frame-ups and cocaine ripoffs.

Beck's anti-gang experience includes running the old CRASH program in  South Los Angeles.

In 2006, he was elevated from commander to deputy chief. In an interview last week, Beck told City News that gangs and the budget  were going to be the biggest challenges.

"How do we continue to drive down gang crime which constitutes over  half of our murders and a great number of our violent crimes; and also, how do  we manage to do more with our budget, stay within our budget, and be more  effective?" he said. "There's a smarter way to manage money than we do. It's not  just reducing cop salaries or not giving raises. A lot of it is about business  processes. As an example, our black-and-white fleet is worth about $50 million  and we sell it for $2 million at the end of its service life. That's not the  best way to do this."

In a recent article, "LAPD Chief Candidates Are Far From Three of a Kind" the Los Angeles Times documented the vast differences in the leadership styles of the three candidates.

"One of the strengths that they all share is that they are their own person," outgoing Chief William Bratton told the Times reporter. "They have their own ideas."

Former Chief Bernard Parks also had some advice for the new guy.

"It is honesty that will keep you warm when the politics and the critics attempt to leave you out in the cold," Parks, who served as chief from 1997 to 2002, said.

The city council must vote whether or not to confirm the mayor's choice. The earliest that could happen is Nov. 10.

"The mayor has a tough decision ahead because he has three great candidates," Bratton said. "I've worked with all of them for the last seven years -- all of them are intimately involved in the reformation of the LAPD and our movement forward. They're very intimate with what has occurred. They were instrumental in how they occurred."

Bratton said he won't be wasting any time as he will board a plane to New York City on Sunday morning, and begin his new job on Monday.

Bratton handed over his stars and his office keys during the weekend in a ceremony symbolizing the end of his seven years at the Los Angeles Police Department.

The 1:30 p.m. ritual was billed by the LAPD as Bratton's "final act as a sworn member of the Los Angeles Police Department before assuming his new role as a civilian in the private sector."

Bratton gave his Chief's Stars and his keys to recently named Interim Chief Michael Downing.

On Aug. 5, Bratton announced his resignation and surprised many, including the mayor. Bratton was only two years into his second term as Los Angeles' police chief.