The city council of Los Angeles, California has passed a motion to begin the process of abolishing the Los Angeles Police Department, which it seeks to replace with “unarmed community responders,” as reported by Fox LA.
The motion was written by council president Nury Martinez and councilman Herb Wesson, both Democrats. Speaking out after the motion was unanimously passed on Tuesday, Wesson falsely claimed that “the way things have been going is not working for our communities,” also falsely claiming that “our people have spoken” in favor of the radical move of abolishing the police.
The motion seeks to replace the LAPD with “unarmed emergency responders,” who will be designated specifically to respond to “non-violent calls for service.” The motion directs the LAPD to work more closely with the Los Angeles Department of Mental Health in responding to non-violent incidents regarding such matters as homeless people, drug addicts, and the mentally ill, while also directing responsibility for non-violent calls away from the LAPD and towards “appropriate non-law enforcement agencies.”
Wesson declared his intentions to see “cities and counties across the nation follow our lead” and take similar action. The vote comes after Mayor Eric Garcetti (D-Calif.) had already pledged to cut $150 million from the LAPD budget earlier this month. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-N.Y.) similarly pledged to cut the NYPD budget by $1 billion.