Exclusive | LAPDs top cop reveals staggering extent of police shortage

The Los Angeles Police Department’s officer shortage has gone from bad to worse — with the city’s top cop revealing that he has lost hundreds of officers in recent months while trying bolster the beleaguered force by a staggering 4,000 more.LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell exclusively told The California Post that the department’s uniformed force currently stands at about 8,550, down about 200 officers from February when the LAPD had more than 8,700 cops.McDonnell also revealed that the LAPD currently needs about 12,500 cops to ideally safeguard the city, updating a previous estimate of about 12,000 officers that he cited to the Post in February.“We would be able to provide the best coverage possible with 12,500 officers.We’re not even in that ballpark.

We currently have 8,551 for officers that are on the job today,” he said.“When somebody comes into this organization from another organization as a lateral, they can’t believe what we get done with the number of people we have,” he added.California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton called the revelation “shocking and scandalous.”“It is totally unacceptable for America’s second city to be starved of law enforcement in this way,” he told The California Post.“This is what happens with years of a far left ideology that tries to systematically undermine law enforcement in the name of ‘criminal justice reform’ — defund the police, close the prisons, catch and release.

It all adds up to massive demoralization of the brave men and women who put themselves at risk to keep us safe.”In February, McDonnell said LA needed 12,000 officers just to function safely — a staggering 38% increase, or roughly 3,300 more cops from staffing levels at the time.The new 12,500 figure represents an ideal level, he said, enabling the department to achieve the best possible results with major events like the 2028 Summer Olympics expected to bring millions of people to the city.Instead, the City Council a...