Jim McDonnell, who served as chief of the Long Beach Police Department and sheriff for L.A. County, was named the next chief of the Los Angeles Police Department on Friday.
Mayor Karen Bass made the announcement during a press conference at City Hall.
“I’m appointing Chief McDonnell because he and I have aligned in our desire to change the direction of Los Angeles by preventing crime in the first place, responding urgently when crime takes place, and to hold people accountable, and bring down crime,” she said.
Bass also called him a “leader, an innovator, and a changemaker,” which she said are needed in L.A.
“I trust that Jim McDonnell will make sure that we are prepared and vigilant for anything that comes our way,” she said.” This day is the culmination of a national search for the right leader to partner with me and the officers of the LAPD to reduce crime and take L.A. in a new direction.”
During the press conference, McDonnell shared the goals he has as the new police chief.
“My goals are to enhance public safety, to grow our department back to full strength through a solid recruitment and retention campaign, to strengthen public trust - the foundation of all we do,” he said. “To further develop community relationships and to be able to take that to new levels, to ensure respectful and constitutional policing practices in all that we do, and to prepare our organization and our partner agencies for the many challenges that face us ahead.”
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According to the Los Angeles Times , the 65-year-old was with the LAPD for 28 years. He then served as the chief of the Long Beach Police Department from 2010 through 2014 and went on to become the sheriff of Los Angeles County from 2014 to 2018.
As of 2023, McDonnell serves as the director of Safe Communities Institute at the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy .
Former L.A. City councilman and LAPD officer Joe Buscaino told KNX News McDonnell’s experience makes him prepared for the job.
“I know Chief McDonnell understands the specific needs of the communities in Los Angeles and the complexities of policing in a large city,” he said.
He called McDonnell’s hiring “the right move.”
“It was a tough decision I know for Mayor Bass,” he said. “But knowing that we will be hosting as a city two mega events -the upcoming Olympic games, [and] of course the World Cup games, I believe Mayor Bass wanted someone who had the wealth of knowledge, the experience, and someone who is best equipped to lead the agency in preparation for these mega-events, exciting times for the LAPD, and I believe that the rank and file will embrace Chief McDonnell.”
In a statement, L.A. County Supervisor Janice Hahn wrote that McDonnell “brings the integrity, cool head, and steady hand to this job that our communities and the rank and file officers deserve.”
“Jim also has a long history of working with Sheriff Robert Luna and I'm confident that with him at the helm of LAPD, our two largest law enforcement agencies will start a new chapter of close cooperation,” she wrote. “When the safety of our communities is on the line, we can't afford anything less than that.”
The board of directors for the Los Angeles Police Protective League sent the following statement:
“Mayor Bass led an exhaustive and thorough process that relied, in part, upon honest input and feedback from rank and file police officers about the dire need for a new direction for the LAPD. Her selection of former County Sheriff Jim McDonnell as the next chief of police confirms the mayor’s commitment to improve historic lows in officer staffing and officer morale and to fix LAPD’s broken discipline process. We have every confidence in Chief McDonnell’s ability to hit the ground running to improve public safety in Los Angeles and to appoint an upper command staff that will do away with the status quo and turn a new page for the LAPD. We pledge our support to Mayor Bass and Chief McDonnell to improve our department, and now it’s time to get to work.”
Former police chief Michael Moore retired on February 29 . Interim LAPD Chief Dominic Choi was sworn in on March 1 .
Other contenders for the chief position included LAPD deputy chief Emada Tingirides and former assistant chief Robert Arcos, according to the Los Angeles Times .
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