Response times improve, more cops needed

Assailed by critics who say the number of San Fernando Valley police officers has slipped dangerously low amid rising gang violence, LAPD officials said Tuesday that response times have dropped by more than 30 percent and overall crime is down. Rachel Uranga in the Daily News.

But while Deputy Chief Michel Moore said he will do everything he can to keep response times low, data provided by the Los Angeles Police Department also showed that the number of permanently stationed officers in the Valley has dropped to its lowest level in four years.

"The results speak of a balanced score card," Moore told the Los Angeles Police Commission while presenting a 15-page report on the issue.