Public Safety Commissioner Nika Soon-Shiong continued her crusade against the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department in a piece she authored for the blog knock-la.com titled Enough Audits. Contract Cities Are Paying More for Less LASD Service.
“The largest sheriff’s department in the world is price gouging 42 cities,” she begins in the article published Thursday, based largely on data she herself commissioned and presented to the Public Safety Commission.
The privately researched report influenced the commission’s much-maligned decision to recommend slashing the number of Sheriff’s deputies from the city budget, sparking significant public backlash.
“The LASD fears what will happen when we see the bigger story of their complete data,” she claims. “There is no correlation between crime reduction and law enforcement spending. “
“There is no time to wait for an additional fiscal audit, as cities will finalize their service agreements in June,” she says. WeHo’s City Council has explicitly shown support for regular audits of the Sheriff’s Department and other public safety agencies its contracts. June is also when voters will choose whether or not to re-elect the sheriff.
Read the full article here: https://knock-la.com/lasd-west-hollywood-overcharge-contract-public-safety/
Seems to me that city government officials should be vetted FIRST and thoroughly before they assume their seats. Little things like residence for example, matter a lot, if this is a city requirement. If someone fudges on one thing, the next one is even to easier to fib about. Ask any first grader. Let me advance a little hypothetical example: a sitting council member … maybe one with further ambition…realizes they have friend who is SUPER well connected and comfortable? And this friend is all of a sudden involved in the same city government in another but different position of… Read more »
The Sheriff is not the only game in town. The city could and should contract for police services from an alternate entity. There is no democracy of law enforcement in this arrangement. If the city doesn’t fix this then I will sue for specific performance. I have experienced a wall in my pursuit for justice for my family. When I visit the station the nasty lady in the back turns off the intercom. I am not kidding. All I want is missing persons reports and a proper investigation into asset thefts. I try to call the FBI and the calls… Read more »
Nika Soon-Shiong needs to be removed from her position. She is NOT GOOD for WeHo.
She seems to be a horrible and stupid person with no clear ties to West Hollywood. Why is she being allowed to threaten our Public Safety? The blame falls squarely on Lindsey Horvath for appointing this jerk.
Thank You WeHoville for allowing us all to chat and hear the facts. If you were in attendance at the City Council meeting as 4C was discussed you would have heard from WeHo Sheriff’s Department that the outside expert for Public Safety Commissioner Nika Soon-Shiong did not request the complete facts … the outside analysis is incomplete. That is why a WEHo audit was requested even though the Sheriff’s department recently went through a detailed audit.
Why are we listening to a typo filled “hit piece” that fails at its own premise that she worked to endorse Kenneth Mejia?
Gulfstream baby….
Somebody overpaid for something.
please do tell how more officers increase public safety? They do not do anything useful they can’t even find stolen cell phones! Nika is doing the work that the city should be doing- actually diving into the exploitative contracts of LASD.
How about you WeHoville posters pay for the 400k/year per officer out of your retirement funds you’re living off of?
WeHo sheriffs sit in their cars and creep in bars and are an absolute waste of $.
I’m totally fine with paying deputies $400/year if it means that they can live in West Hollywood. Having deputies that are a part of our community would go a long way to improving law enforcement. This is why Ms. Soon-Shiong is so tone deaf, she isn’t part of our community. She doesn’t understand that most people can’t afford to live in West Hollywood, and live paycheck to paycheck. Enough with rich people with privilege swooping in, thinking they know better. Another thing, I haven’t had the same experience with deputies here, they’ve always been kind and respectful. Do you even… Read more »
Oh please. You’d be the first to call the sheriffs if you have a problem!
No, she has private security team: about 24 of them.
Simple math will tell you, with 60 Sheriffs, 8 hour shifts, 40 hour work week, there would be 14 Sheriffs on staff at a time. Of course it’s not that simple, as we need more Sheriff on the Weekends when people are visiting the bars. A handful at any given time are also manning the station, processing arrests, testifying in court. So our understaffed Sheriff is only able to react to crimes, not prevent them. If we were able to increase the number of Sheriffs, then they would be able to do foot and bicycle patrols, where a visible police… Read more »
I have a suggestion since Ms.Soon-Shiong does NOT even live in West Hollywood but in Culver City why doesn’t she get her nose and butt out of our city? I also was under the assumption that the PSC was a Commission that requires a resident to sit on it. I do know an exception was made for the Business License Commission so the business owners would be involved. Right now the issue is crime and ensuring the safety of our residents, packages continue to be stolen from our buildings, people are still being robbed or shot. As far as our… Read more »
LA Mag is retracting that Nika lives in Culver City. What happened to their fact checker? Asleep?
Can you post the link or send the information to Brandon Garcia as that information would be relevant to a lot of people
Thanks!
We did a public records search on Nika for her Public Safety application a couple of months back, and it had a West Hollywood address. We never published it because it was a simple form, and did not want to single her out. Was suprised when saw this story suggesting she lives in Culver City. Maybe one of her neighbors will speak up.
Have you considered that city administrator/constituent or deputy-detective/constituent is a conflict of interest? It actually blows my mind that administrators.or “law enforcers” are able to live in their jurisdiction. This is not appropriate at all. She is actually in the RIGHT!
I was always told that residence by SOMEONE who lived in Weho was mandatory. No? If an appointed bestie of a council member is in fact not a resident …what I am I missing???? Sounds to me as if a closer look needs to be taken regarding full compliance.
I’ve politely asked to meet & discuss various public safety issues with this commissioner, and offered to help familiarize her with our local scene many times. But sadly Nika sees addressing the public as beneath her station.
I might have a reputation as WeHo’s l’enfente terrible, but my offer to help you get oriented is sincere. Take me up on it, Nika, it seems you could really use the help from a long time local activist. You have me email
Why would she deign to engage the actual residents of West Hollywood, whose public safety she is using as a pawn in her games and radical fringe agenda? Robert Oliver, another public safety commissioner, engaged me briefly until I clearly became a thorn in his own radical agenda. Now, as a candidate for council, he steadfastly refuses to answer my direct text questions. These public servants are clearly not interested in doing the people’s work, at least not for the people who are residents and voters of West Hollywood. Take the two of them, add one Horvath, and you have… Read more »
The entitlement is naked for all to see.. thanks for your voice Alan, a true “people’s saint”!
I’ve politely asked to meet & discuss various public safety issues with commissioner, and offered to help orient her with our local scene many times. But sadly Nika sees addressing the public as beneath her station.
I might have a reputation as l’enfente terrible, but my offer to help you get oriented is sincere. Take me up on it, Nika, you could use desperately use the help from a real local activist. You have me email
Commissioner Soon-Shiong has certainly brought attention to the Public Safety Commission that it never had before.
The next Public Safety meeting is May 9th at Plummer Park’s Community Center, starting at 6pm. We need West Hollywood residents to show up in person and let the Commissioners understand our desire for more policing.