Christians Demonstrate in Support of Vernon : Inquiry: Assistant police chief, who is being investigated for the role religion plays in his job, says First Amendment is under attack.

By DEAN E. MURPHY

June 20, 1991 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

Proclaiming “I love you all,” Robert L. Vernon joined several hundred supporters Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles at a rally of his fellow Christians, who showed support for the embattled assistant police chief.

“Christians are becoming an endangered species in political life,” said Mary Jordan, a retired teacher from Sunland. “I really think our days are numbered. We have to support people in leadership who stand on principle.”

The crowd, estimated by police at 300, sang “God Bless America” and chanted “We love Bob” during an hourlong rally on the lawn outside Parker Center, the Police Department headquarters.

Vernon, who is under investigation for allegedly allowing his fundamentalist religious beliefs to improperly influence his decisions at the Police Department, used the opportunity to make a brief but impassioned defense of his conduct.

“I see recent events as a very serious attack on . . . our First Amendment rights and a first step toward what happened in (Nazi) Germany,” Vernon said. “We can’t allow that to happen in America. It must not happen in America. It shall not happen in America.”

Wearing sunglasses and a sport coat, Vernon told the story of a recent trip to Israel, where he visited a memorial to children of the Holocaust. He described the visit as a “profoundly emotional experience” that pointed to the importance of religious tolerance.

“What America is all about is racial and religious tolerance, not exclusion,” Vernon said. “And that is what I see here today, and for that I am very grateful.”

Vernon was one of several participants in the rally who likened criticism of him to events in Nazi Germany. When told about Vernon’s remarks, Councilman Zev Yaroslavsky, who had asked the city’s Police Commission to investigate Vernon, said he was offended by the analogy.

“I think most people who have a historical view of the Nazi Germany experience would be offended by that,” he said. “It really trivializes that horrendous historical event.”

The rally was organized by John Stewart, a radio talk show host. who has been promoting the event on his daily KKLA Christian show, “Live from L.A.” Stewart called on the Police Commission, the City Council, Mayor Tom Bradley and others to halt the investigation into Vernon, which he called an “inquisition” and “religious McCarthyism.”

At the direction of the Police Commission, Chief Daryl F. Gates is conducting the inquiry, which the commission requested be completed by the end of the month.

“What seems to be on trial here is religion in general, Christianity in particular,” Stewart said. “The inquisitors want you to keep your religion inside your church or inside your synagogue, and it must not influence your life, especially if you are in public service.”

Vernon has come under attack for allegedly allowing his religious beliefs to influence his professional judgment, with much of the criticism focusing on his views against homosexuality and women’s rights. Lance Quinn, an associate pastor at Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, where Vernon is an elder, drew cheers and applause when he described homosexuality as a sin “deserving of eternal judgment.” He received a similar response when he declared husbands “the protectors and providers of their wives,” who in turn “are to submit to this gracious authority and devote themselves to their husbands, children and care of the home.”

Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich was the only elected official to address the crowd, but his remarks were disrupted by a gay-rights activist blowing a high-pitched whistle. Protester Bob Rucker carried a sign mocking Vernon’s anti-gay beliefs, as well as one that included profanity.

Some Vernon supporters unsuccessfully tried to persuade Rucker to leave before the rally began. When he started blowing the whistle, several supporters converged on him, including one man who allegedly struck Rucker. Several police officers intervened and carried him away.

Police Capt. Norman Roullier said the police officers’ involvement resulted from a “misunderstanding” between Rucker and the officers. He said Rucker was immediately released and permitted to make a citizen’s arrest on the man who allegedly struck him. No one was arrested by police.