Willie Williams

* I find it staggering that Chief Willie Williams would display his short-term memory loss in light of his upcoming evaluation by the Police Commission (Jan. 8). Has the chief found Los Angeles so appealing that he would distort the truth about public opinion polls to stay another five years? Or did he really think that a gathering of a thousand of his closest friends and supporters is a valid assessment of his present approval rating?

KENNETH R. CRAIG

Rancho Palos Verdes

* The accomplishments of Williams are remarkable in view of his opposition from a hostile mayor and a substantial bloc of the LAPD itself. Expansion of the LAPD at an unrealistic rate was a major plank in Richard Riordan’s campaign. Shortly after the election, Riordan fired off a memo to Williams directing him to formulate a plan to implement his promises within 60 days. The mayor has criticized Williams at every opportunity since.

But opposition from the mayor has been nothing compared with the difficulty the chief has faced in reforming the LAPD. Old habits die hard. Williams’ increased emphasis upon community-based programs has caused some officers to cynically and publicly paraphrase the LAPD slogan “To Protect and to Serve” as “To Drive and to Wave.” That is what Williams is up against in trying to turn around the militaristic methodology that was LAPD tradition.

We should be delighted that arrests are down as long as crime figures are too. Complaints against officers for misconduct and use of excessive force are about half what they were under Daryl Gates. The LAPD under Williams is much better organized and prepared to quell potential civic disturbances with speed and minimum force.

PAT TOBIN

Granada Hills