LAPD detective rips city’s ‘reckless’ proposal to use unarmed civilians to enforce traffic violations

Los Angeles may soon be enlisting unarmed civilians to enforce traffic violations as the number of traffic deaths on L.A. city streets hits a two-decade high.

An LAPD detective slammed the “reckless” city draft proposal obtained by the L.A. Times that would sideline the Los Angeles Police Department and potentially risk the lives of civilians.

“I don’t understand who comes up with these ideas, but it’s really a subtle form of still defunding the police,” Detective Jamie McBride said on “Fox & Friends” Friday. “This is reckless behavior.”

The L.A. Times acquired the unreleased report detailing the city’s plan which is based on conclusions from a three-year-study conducted by an outside firm for the city council.

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The report recommends following other major cities like Berkeley, Oakland and Philadelphia in using unarmed city workers to enforce “safety-related traffic violations” such as speeding.

McBride warned that with traffic stops, “a lot can go wrong.”

“I have recovered scores of guns during traffic investigations and violent suspects. I also remember an incident where I tried to stop somebody for going through a stop sign and we had a pursuit. During the pursuit, the passenger leaned out, was firing rounds at me,” McBride shared. 

“What are they going to do, these unarmed people, when somebody pulls a gun on them? Are they just going to poke him in the eye with their pen?”

312 people were killed in traffic collisions in 2022 in the city, up 5% from 2021 and 29% from 2020, according to Los Angeles Police Department data.

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Along with civilian policing, the proposal recommends investing in “self-enforcing infrastructure.” Narrower streets, dedicated bike lanes and more clearly marked pedestrian crosswalks would naturally slow traffic and discourage drivers from speeding, the report said.

The study also recommends Los Angeles give traffic violators vouchers instead of tickets to repair broken tail lights, for example. This measure would make the streets safer while avoiding perpetuating “enforcement disparities,” the report said.

The LAPD told the Times they’d “welcome” another government agency helping with traffic violations, but enforcement was key and had to be weighed with safety risk issues, the department said. 

LAPD Chief Michel Moore said that “finding alternatives to a police response [to certain incidents] is something that the department is very much interested in.”

“If DOT [Los Angeles Department of Transportation] were to pick that work up, I think we’d welcome it,” he said.

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McBride called out Chief Moore for his comments.

“I hate to say this on national news, but, you know, Chief Moore has 42 years on the police department. I think he’s finally showing early signs of dementia because this is just reckless for him to even consider doing this,” he said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the LAPD for comment on the proposal. The LAPD told Fox that they have “no statement at this time” as the proposal “has not been approved.” 

Fox News’ Kristine Parks contributed to this report.