Bratton: Special Order 40 not going anywhere
LAPD Chief William Bratton came to the Daily News this afternoon, mostly to talk about how different the Mayday march will be from last year's breakdown, in which several members of the media were hurt. But the real interesting thing, to me, was his thoughts about everyone's favorite scapegoat: Special Order 40.
"I'm sorry, it's here to stay."
Last week the parents of murdered high school star Jamiel Shaw Jr. pleaded with the City Council to change the LAPD policy, which simply requires officers not to initiate action with the purpose of checking someone's immigration status. Councilman Dennis Zine reacted with an ordinance requiring officers to check status in certain cases. Bratton today dismissed the calls for revision or repeal (and Zine's ordinance), noting that Special Order 40 isn't going anywhere. He and his top staff said they already work with ICE agents and do everything they can to deport violent criminals and gangsters. Nevertheless, he said he is developing a clarification for Special Order 40 so that the misinformation will stop.
He also speculated that if SheriffJoe Arpaio in Maricopa County, Ariz, who is rounding up illegal immigrants himself, is already probably putting quite the strain on the federal government's deportation resources.