We need more police before the Olympics — no more excuses

The Olympics are coming — and LA doesn’t have enough police.

That was already clear to anyone who lives in LA, but the point was driven home by LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell, who said that the city needs 12,500 cops on an ordinary day.

There are only about 8,551 on the beat — about two-thirds of what is needed.

And 2,400 are going to have to be diverted to guarding the Olympic venues. That means LA will only have half the force it needs to keep the peace in the rest of the city.

You can imagine the chaos: street takeovers, home invasions, homeless encampments spreading everywhere — while the world is watching.

The challenge LA faces is to grow the current force by 50% in the next two years.

It’s not impossible. But it will require a sharp move away from the incremental growth under Karen Bass — which is just managed decline — and the “defund the police” approach that socialist Nithya Raman embraced until it became politically toxic to do so. 

LA needs a surge of cops the likes of which the city has never seen. And good for Chief McDonnell for raising the issue in the face of likely opposition from the left.

McDonnell is right, and is leading by example: The only way forward is to tell the truth.

Ignore the radical activists; ignore the professional protesters. This is about basic public safety. 

The best part is: we likely have the money.

LA already spends about $3 billion per year on homeless services. Much of that is wasted, judging by the latest (rising)  homeless count. What isn’t wasted is often stolen. 

If we just took a portion of that $3 billion, and redirected it from homeless services to policing, we could meet the 12,500-officer target that McDonell has prescribed.

As it is, policing only takes up $2.1 billion in the city’s budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year. 

Shift $1 billion over from homelessness to law enforcement. And see what happens.

Most likely, homelessness would actually go down. That’s because one of the reasons there are still so many homeless encampments is that LA does not have enough police to enforce the anti-camping laws.

Nature abhors a vacuum — and homeless tents love an empty lot or a quiet street corner that police don’t have time to patrol.

Investing in better policing is investing in LA’s future. It makes the city safer for homeowners, business owners, tourists — anyone who invests or spends in the city.

Two years to the Olympics. We still have time. We have enough money. What we don’t have is excuses. 

Not anymore.