Police chief asked to resign
About the article
This is a digitised version of an article from The Cayman Compass's print archive. Occasionally, the digitisation process introduces transcription errors, or other problems.
See the article in its original context from April 1991.
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At a press conference after a meeting between the mayor and Gates, Bradley said, "I have asked (Gates) to show the uncommon courage to retire for the good of the (Los Angeles Police Department) and the welfare of all of Los Angeles."
Bradley said that at their meeting, Gates responded to the resignation call by saying, "Mayor, I think you're wrong, and I will not resign."
Since the March 3 beating of Rodney King, 25, Bradley, who is black, has hinted that Gates should resign but had said it was up to the chief. Gates is white. On Tuesday Bradley said he was tired of waiting.
Since I legally cannot remove the chief, I have waited patiently for him to see that by remaining on the job he is hurting the men and women of the police department he loves.
"I have reluctantly concluded I can no longer wait for Daryl Gates to do what is best for the LAPD...(and) all of Los Angeles. That is why, today, I called upon Daryl Gates to resign," he said.
The mayor repeated his call in his statement to the press.
"When the public begins to lose confidence in the chief and in the police department, the chief has only one choice. He must step aside," Bradley said.
The 64-year-old police chief has steadfastly refused to step down over the beating, calling it an "aberration."
After Bradley's statement, Gates repeated his intention to stay on to provide "leadership out of this situation."
"I don't believe that 8,300 police officers will follow the mayor anywhere," he said.
In the two-minute videxe taken by an amateur, the officers, wielding batons, are seen hitting King 56 times and kicking and stomping on him. The tape was shown on television worldwide and led to a cry for Gates's resignation.
Four officers have been charged with assault and using excessive force. Twelve others who were present but did nothing to stop it are being investigated.
King, who was seriously injured in the beating, is suing the city of Los Angeles for 83 million dollars.
