LAPD Police Chief Position To Open Up Following Michel Moore Retirement Announcement

Over the weekend, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Chief Michel Moore announced that he will be retiring in February, opening up a rare slot for the chief of police that has led many groups across the city to demand for a reform-minded chief.

A graduate of the University of Redlands, Moore joined the LAPD in 1981. He first gained notability in 1998 when, as a Captain, he took over the Rampart Division following the aftermath of the Rampart Scandal. He moved up the ranks from there and was nearly chosen as the Dallas Police chief in 2016. In 2018, then-Mayor Eric Garcetti appointed him as Chief.

In his nearly 6 year stint as Chief, Moore focused on community policing. However, he frequently made the news through several of his actions. In 2020, there was a call for his resignation following comments he made on the George Floyd protests, saying “We didn’t have people mourning the death of this man, George Floyd. We had people capitalizing. His death is on their hands as much as it is those officers.”

This was followed by his decision to fire an LAPD officer a year later following them posting a meme mocking the death of George Floyd. His most recent scandal, however, was his most infamous to date. In December 2023, it was alleged that Moore had looked into Mayor Karen Bass’ USC scholarship corruption scandal with LAPD internal affairs officers. Moore denied these claims, but the resulting fallout led many to call for his resignation once again.

This all led to the announcement over the weekend that Moore would be retiring to spend time with his family.

“Last year, when the board of police commissioners unanimously voted to grant me a second term, I remarked that I did not intend to stay the entire time,” said Moore during a press conference with Mayor Bass. “My intention was to provide stability and continuity, to provide Mayor Bass with the time to orient herself to the city and its many challenges and opportunities. It has been my distinct honor and privilege to have served for more than four decades on the finest police department in the world, and for the last five-and-a-half-years as chief.”

“During my tenure I know I’ve made mistakes and missteps. But I’m also confident that my work has seen success across a broad spectrum of topics, unmatched by any other law enforcement agency in this country. I’m here to ensure that this department is successful and that this mayor and this city is successful. There’s any needs, or consults, or information, or perspective or background, whatever it is, i want to see this city continue. I want to see this transition as smooth as possible while also allowing me to move onto the next volume of my life. With my announcement today, Mayor Bass now has the ability to search and identify the next chief of police for this great department, who will lead this department through the World Cup and the 2028 Summer Olympics and Paralympic Games.”

While many groups, such as Black Lives Matters, claimed that it was a “people’s firing,” experts told the Globe on Monday that it was far from that.

Michel Moore Retires

“Moore likely just had enough,” said police administration advisor Rodrigo Warren to the Globe. “There was some heat on him lately, especially for that Bass thing, but he had already told everyone he was going to be on his way out the door, then he left. This isn’t a surprise. Spending time with family is the number one excuse out there for stepping down when there are other big things out there looming over them, so it was a mix of things. The people had little to do with this.”

With Moore now set to stay for another month to help give time for transition and city leaders to get a new Chief, discussion are now ranging wildly on who will be picked. The most common word surrounding the potential pick, as experts told the Globe, is “Reform.”

“Everyone is talking about reform right now,” added a former LAPD officer turned security supervisor who wished to remain anonymous. “A lot of community groups and neighborhood groups, you know, they just got through the brunt of George Floyd and many reforms made in the four years after. They see the LAPD still not being up on reform, so they are pushing for someone who does.”

“Strange thing is, or not so strange I guess, is how divided people are on candidates. There is a push for a female chief, a black chief, a Latino chief, and an LGBT chief, along with a lot of LAPD command staff looking at the job and a lot of outside candidates looking at it. The LAPD is a prestige police department, and despite problems in LA and California, most would jump at it. So that’s what we are looking at candidate-wise. Bass and the others likely have a list of names they are comparing right now or have been talking about for some time. A Latino chief is most likely, but it is really unknown right now all things considered too. No matter who they pick, they are going to make a lot of groups mad, who will then claim that the city isn’t looking out for their interests or that they don’t care about diversity or having a unique first of a group becoming Chief.”

“Most people you ask, they just want a Chief who will get the job done and keep the streets safe. They aren’t asking for the world. But, as we all know, it is also more complicated than that.”

An announcement of a new Chief is likely to happen in the next several weeks.