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CITYWATCH TODAY—The LA County payouts to resolve Sheriff’s Department lawsuits rose tenfold in five years the Times reported Sunday. The County Supes are trying to figure out how to cover these unplanned-for multi-million dollar costs.
The City of Los Angeles debated the same issue a few days ago. How to cover $60 million in payouts for wrongful shootings and other misdeeds. The LA Council decided, against mucho expert advice, to tie the people of LA to a bond to cover this short-term budget overage. The interest alone on the bond would pay for some City departments. Council members who disagreed with the bond idea still voted for it. Wonder why the public gets confused?
It occurs to me, however, that the real issue is … the dollars won’t fix anything. In other words, it will not end the bad management habit of being on the wrong end of law suits. In both cases, the County and the City … all the debate was about finding the dollars to cover the costs … of mistakes and misbehavior. Not a single word about fixing the cause. Better training programs, better management, better modeling. Not a word.
If that doesn’t tell you something about the qualifications of those who govern our city and county today … you’ve been absent from class. A $60 million band aid is not a cure. And … friends … I don’t know about you, but I can’t afford any more band aids. I’m lookin’ for a fix!
Ken Draper-Editor, CityWatch
