Which Way, L.A.?

LAPD Chief Parks: Should He Stay or Should He Go?

After nine hours of interviews and considerable public input, LA's Police Commission is about to decide the future of Police Chief Bernard Parks. Their decision will determine who will lead LA law enforcement for the next five years. The man who appointed them, Mayor Jim Hahn, has called for new leadership. But the City Charter gives the commissioners the power to decide for themselves, and with all five yet to make up their minds, even Parks' supporters agree their man still has a chance. We speak with the LA Urban League's John Mack, a Parks supporter, and USC law professor Erwin Chemerinsky, who thinks it's time for a change, about crime prevention, police reform, LA's chief disciplinarian, and the recent federal consent decree. Reporter's Notebook: Los Angeles Cardinal Mahony Faces Scandal The scandal over sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests reached America's largest Archdiocese when leaked e-mails revealed the strategy of Cardinal Roger Mahony for dealing with the Los Angeles police and his fear of being called before a grand jury. Richard McBrien, professor of theology at the University of Notre Dame, defends Mahony's resolve to get the story out while causing the least possible damage to the Archdiocese.