document: While the commission stopped short of blaming Chief Gates for these problems , it said that no chief should serve more than two consecutive five-year terms , and that Mr. Gates , having served 13 years , should therefore turn in his badge following a transition period . But the chief , who has remained steadfast through repeated calls from community leaders for his ouster , said later : `` I do n't expect to just run away '' from the job . Nearly one-quarter of 650 officers responding to a commission survey agreed that `` racial bias on the part of officers toward minority citizens currently exists and contributes to a negative interaction between police and community , '' and in some cases `` may lead to the use of excessive force , '' the report said . A scant eight hours is devoted to cultural awareness training at the Los Angeles Police Academy , and many officers who train new recruits in the field openly perpetuate the `` siege mentality that alienates patrol officers from the community , '' the commission concluded . Officers commonly typed racial epithets to one another on their patrol car computer systems , such as : `` Sounds like monkey slapping time '' and `` I almost got me a Mexican last night . '' Yet supervisors made no effort to monitor or control these messages , evidence of a `` significant breakdown in the department 's management responsibility , '' the report found . The Los Angeles Police Department has long been emulated by others around the country because of its reputation for being efficient and corruption-free . But the commission called for a shift away from the force 's paramilitaristic , us-against-them style , and said the department must embrace the `` community-based '' policing style that encourages officers to spend less time in their cars and more time interacting with citizens in the communities they serve . `` This report will be a must-read for police chiefs around the country , '' said Hubert Williams , executive director of the Police Foundation , a Washington , D.C. , law enforcement research group . `` The word is clear : the public expects high quality law enforcement within the parameters of the law . '' Mr. Williams likened the report to the Knapp Commission , a 1970s blue-ribbon study that exposed widespread corruption in the New York Police Department and led to significant improvements there . `` As troubling as some of our findings are ... they are not unique to Los Angeles , '' said John A. Arguelles , vice chairman of the 10-member Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department . Among the commission 's recommendations are : -- A commission appointed by the mayor that oversees the department should be reorganized and strengthened , and made responsible for handling citizen complaints . It also should be `` reconstituted '' with members not linked with the current controversy , in the interest of a `` fresh start . '' -- A `` major overhaul '' of the police disciplinary system and the process used by citizens to file complaints against LAPD officers , especially in excessive force cases , is needed . The current system is `` skewed against complainants , '' by allowing officers ' station-house colleagues to investigate complaints , perpetuating a `` code of silence '' among officers . -- A new community-based police force should focus on `` service to the public and prevention of crime '' as primary tasks rather than amassing arrest statistics . However , the commission did n't address how Los Angeles would pay for this major overhaul , though Mr. Christopher said that `` when you see the costs of settlements accelerating '' in police misconduct lawsuits as they have in recent years , `` I 'm not sure there will be a net cost '' increase to implement the changes . But with the city still sharply divided over the future of Chief Gates , and a general feeling that taxes are high enough already , it 's questionable whether there will be a popular groundswell to immediately fund changes . Over the years , the city council and the mayor have been reluctant to even add additional officers to the LAPD . Of the six largest police departments in the U.S. , the nation 's second largest city has the fewest officers per thousand residents . There are 8,450 officers here for more than 3.5 million people ; Chicago , with a smaller population , has 12,000 . However , Michael Yamaki , one of the city 's five police commissioners , believes that given the systemic problems in the department that have come to light , `` citizens now will be more willing to fund police issues . '' The commission 's recommendations will now be reviewed by the City Council , which will weigh whether to adopt them in whole or in part . Ultimately , voters must decide several issues , including whether to set term limits on the chief 's tenure . The commission intends to reconvene in six months to assess the progress . Even before the commission 's report was issued , community groups that monitor the LAPD noted a decline in brutality complaints . The harsh tone of the report was welcome vindication for community leaders who have claimed that police brutality is widespread . The report `` proves once and for all that the Rodney King incident was not an aberration , '' said Ramona Ripston , executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California . `` Any fair reading of the report constitutes an ` F ' for -LCB- Chief Gates 's -RCB- job performance . '' The report shows a particularly damning pattern of acceptance , and even encouragement , of officers who violate the rules governing excessive force . One officer who had seven complaints against him that had been sustained -- as well as numerous others that had n't been -- was described in his performance evaluation this way : `` His contacts with the public are always professional and positive and his attitude with the citizens is one of concern . '' The report also reveals that racially derogatory remarks are made on an ongoing basis within the department ; racist jokes and cartoons appear from time to time on bulletin boards in station locker rooms . Sexism and homophobia abound . Minority officers complain that whites dominate managerial posts within the LAPD , possibly contributing to these problems . More than 80 % of the black , Hispanic and Asian police officers in the force are in the entry-level ranks , the report said . But the most surprising part of the report was its recommendation that Chief Gates resign , after a transitional period in which he would begin implementing the commission 's proposals . `` We 're not startled by any of the things in this report , '' the chief said a few hours after its release . He added that he has worked on his own to accomplish some of what the commission suggested , but has often been stymied by budget cuts . As for the recommendation that he step down , the embattled chief said he will wait until the voters sanction a move to limit a police chief 's tenure . Overall , Chief Gates added , `` It 's a good report . There 's a lot of thoughtful recommendations . '' And the chief said he will stay to implement them . Mayor Bradley said he hopes that Chief Gates 's will `` follow the commission 's recommendations '' to `` commence the transition to a new chief of police . '' The mayor , who appointed Gates but lacks the authority to fire him , has previously called for Chief Gates 's resignation .
extractive_keyphrases: police brutality rodney king incident excessive force brutality complaints racial bias lapd officers los angeles