We all seem to think we know what is wrong with the Los Angeles Police Department, especially the Rampart Division. We are a city of grumbling cynics, preoccupied with lambasting Rampart, sometimes unfairly berating all Los Angeles Police Department officers.
Current hysteria ignores the distinction between collective guilt and collective responsibility.
It is just and reasonable to demand that the Los Angeles Police Department confront those who have engaged in criminal activities and dismiss or discipline those guilty of misconduct. It is neither just nor reasonable to subject all LAPD officers to the almost daily vitriolic criticism now being imposed on the men and women in blue. The recent public distrust of police officers is the negative side of recognizing their necessity in society. Chief Bernard C. Parks and his staff are trying to rid the department of rogue officers and resolve the moral tension that exists in the Los Angeles community. The department is reviewing and revising its code of professional responsibility.