Police Say Outreach Transforms Latino Area

PANORAMA CITY — The leading edge of a new community outreach program in a largely Latino neighborhood here is a simple phrase police say is helping residents fight off drug dealers, gang members and other thugs.

“I speak Spanish.”

Those are the words Los Angeles Police Officer Jose Maldonado has been coaching residents to say, in English, when they call police to report a crime.

The phrase, taught as part of an overall community policing campaign, has become a powerful tool for Spanish-speaking residents who are calling the Van Nuys station in record numbers with tips and complaints.

As a result, police say, overall crime in the neighborhood north of Parthenia Street has fallen by 30% over the past six months. Crime in this area, which traditionally ranked first in the Van Nuys Division, has now fallen to fourth among 53 reporting districts.

Police hope to expand the program to predominantly Spanish-speaking neighborhoods throughout Van Nuys, and perhaps the rest of the city.

Officer Maldonado, a native of Puerto Rico, is credited with originating what he named the Amigo program, which begins with meetings to assure residents that police are not concerned with their immigration status.

“The first thing I tell them is that I work for the LAPD, not the [Immigration and Naturalization Service],” said Maldonado, himself a resident of Panorama City. “That seems to put everyone at ease.”

Maldonado, who is leaving the LAPD this week to take a law enforcement job in the San Diego area, was handpicked to launch the program in May, said Capt. Richard C. Wemmer, commander of the Van Nuys Division.

“We were at a loss with residents in that area,” Wemmer said. “We needed to take another approach.”

Before Maldonado began his efforts, many residents were afraid to call the police, Wemmer said.

Some were fearful of being deported. Others, many of whom newly arrived from El Salvador, Nicaragua and Mexico, brought with them mistrust of the police. Others were simply afraid to speak to an English-speaking operator who might hang up or ignore their call.

The result was that many crimes went unreported.

And the neighborhood’s troubles were not limited to gangs and drugs. Spouse abuse and child abuse went unchecked in many families, police said.

In one case, five children were left alone in their father’s apartment for 21 days, stealing food to stay alive. Neighbors said they tried to report the problem to police but could not get past the English-speaking officer on the other end of the line.

“I called the police, but the police didn’t come,” said Edith Tluizar, who moved to California from Mexico nine years ago but still struggles with English.

But Tluizar and some of her neighbors said this week the Amigo program, and especially Maldonado, have had an undeniable effect on the neighborhood.

“There were a lot of problems here with gangs and drugs,” said Maria Acosta, who manages an apartment building on Willis Avenue. “But now the building is calm.”

A few blocks away, on Rayen Street, another apartment manager agreed.

“Everything is different now,” Clara Soqueira, a Nicaraguan immigrant, said in Spanish. “When I came here you couldn’t walk on the street any time of the day. Now, more or less, it’s better.”

Soqueira said she is still afraid to leave her apartment at night because of the young men who sometimes congregate on the street corner.

Indeed, on a recent evening as a reporter accompanied Maldonado on his patrol, about half a dozen youths were gathered at Willis Avenue and Rayen Street.

A half-hour later, however, after a neighbor had called police, a trio of police cars converged on the intersection.

“That wouldn’t have happened before,” Maldonado said, as he rolled past the scene. “People are learning that they can make a difference.”

In the dozens of talks he has given over the past six months, Maldonado has addressed topics such as what to do if pulled over by the police and when to dial 911.

He also explained that some types of behavior, such as drinking in public, playing loud music late at night and spousal abuse, which may be tolerated in some parts of Latin America, are crimes in the United States.

“I tell them there’s a new set of rules,” Maldonado said. “Once they understand that, things seems to get better.”

Among the most potent weapons in Maldonado’s arsenal is his easy-going nature.

“What he tries to do is say, ‘Hey, we’re all in this together,’ ” said George Flores, an LAPD colleague. “His message is that he’s there to help.”

In a neighborhood where cops once drew chilly stares, Maldonado seems to have made friends.

“You got baseball cards?” asked Robert Rodriguez, 11, as Maldonado made the rounds in the building where Robert lives.

“You know I do--that’s why you always ask,” Maldonado said. “C’mere.”

After getting four cards, including one featuring Gary Sheffield of the World Series champion Florida Marlins, Robert had only good things to say about Maldonado.

“I think he’s pretty cool,” the Sepulveda Middle School student said. “I think I want to be a cop one of these days.”

Elsewhere, kids and their parents smile and wave as Maldonado rolls slowly through the streets.

But that relationship is coming to an end. Although Wemmer has vowed to continue the Amigo program, Maldonado has accepted a job as a police officer in the San Diego County city of Vista.

“It’s so sad he’s leaving,” said Acosta, the Willis Avenue apartment manager. “I don’t think they’re going to get anyone as good as he was.”