LAPD Chief Apologizes for Police Conduct at May Day Melee

Los Angeles' Police Chief has done something he was hardly known for when he was Chief of Police in New York. William Bratton has publicly apologized, for his own failures and those of his command staff. On May Day, 6000 peaceful protesters were routed from MacArthur Park by baton-wielding officers of the LAPD's elite Metro Squad. TV news stations recorded numerous incidents involving women, children and reporters being struck, with some falling to the ground. Yesterday, Chief Bratton made a "self-critical" report to the civilian Police Commission. Is it an isolated incident or a new trend in law enforcement? Eugene O'Donnell, a former officer in the New York Police Department, is Professor of Law and Police Studies at New York's John Jay College of Criminal Justice.