LAPD defends new discipline system

Defending significant changes in how it punishes officers, LAPD officials told the civilian Police Commission on Tuesday that a disciplinary system that gives supervisors greater discretion will better hold cops accountable for misconduct.Rachel Uranga in the Daily News.

The system, slowly being implemented by Deputy Chief Mark Perez over the past year, is guided by the principles of changing behavior with warnings for first-time offenses. It relies on character development rather than punishment.

"The history of the LAPD has been too much focused on the process of the personnel complaint ... and they miss the essence of the event," Perez told the commission. "`Why did this happen? What is the cause and how do we change this?' And that is the focus of the department: Change the causes."