Rampart Scandal Analysis

Police officers have their own set of characteristics that make up a unique culture separate from society. They are leaders who are looked at in times of need, and idolized for their honor, integrity, dedication, and self-sacrifice. Citizens look to law enforcement to be the enforcers of the law, and to role model what is right and what is wrong. However their honor and solidarity can compromise their integrity little by little and lead to corruption. Here we will discuss the Los Angeles Police Department CRASH Unit and the ultimate Rampart Scandal and how police characteristics aided in its corruption.

During the early 1990’s, The Los Angeles Police Department thrived on their work done within the CRASH (Community Resources against Street
Even though they had much success in bringing down crime rates, they soon gained criticism for their own gang-like behavior. The Rampart Unit allowed officers to move around freely with their activity and with little supervision, which ultimately created a subculture within the unit that tolerated harassment, abuse of suspects, falsifying reports, and stealing. Over a spread of 5 years, law enforcement began to unravel one of the biggest police scandals every known, the Rampart Scandal. It all started in 1997 when two officers from CRASH were involved in a road rage altercation that lead to the fatal death of one Officer, one of which many believed was a racially motivated attack. Next was a Bank robbery of a Bank of America branch which turned out to be masterminded by one of the officers within the CRASH unit. Then, in 1998 there was evidence of a gang member being brutally beaten during an interrogation. The two arresting officers who knew about the incident but failed to report it were later fired for their omission (Frontline, 2016). Another incident which ultimately lead to the investigation of the
Authorities believed he used it for either personal sale, to implant as false evidence, or to negotiate with (The Crime Network, 2016). It was Rafael Perez who was the central figure in the LAPD Rampart scandal, and it was because of him that the department sparked an internal investigative task force, the Rampart Corruption Task Force. This task force sought out his prosecution for his multitude of corruption endeavors. Once Perez was under scrutiny and a main suspect in the cocaine theft, he decided to work with authorities and cut a deal. He provided information about how he and his partner Nino Durden, fatally shot and left for dead a gang member Javier Ovando, and then committed Perjury to warrant his arrest. Ovando was left paralyzed from the shooting and sentenced to 23 years in prison under false testimony. However, once Perez admitted to perjury, Ovando was released from prison and granted 15 million dollars in restitution (The Crime Network. 2016). Perez also implicated 70 other officers with misconduct, which ignited hundreds of overturned cases similar to Jorge Ovando’s. During Perez’s prosecution, he made a statement that threw blame at his first