Los Angeles Police Department
| City of Los Angeles Police Department | |
|---|---|
Patch of the LAPD, used exclusively for Traffic Assignment | |
Seal of the LAPD | |
LAPD officer badge, with number omitted | |
Flag of the LAPD | |
| Common name | Los Angeles Police Department |
| Abbreviation | LAPD |
| Motto | To Protect and to Serve |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | December 13, 1869 |
| Employees | 12,000 (2020) |
| Annual budget | $1.9 billion (2023) |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| Operations jurisdiction | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Map showing the LAPD's jurisdictional area | |
| Size | 503 sq mi (1,300 km2) |
| Population | 3,979,576 (2019) |
| Governing body | Los Angeles City Council |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Overseen by | Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners |
| Headquarters | 100 West 1st Street Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Police officers | 8,802 of 9,500 (2024) |
| Unsworn members | 3,000 |
| Commissioners responsible |
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| Agency executives |
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| Divisions | 39
|
| Bureaus | 10
|
| Facilities | |
| Cars | 6,000 |
| Boats | 2 |
| Helicopters | 26 |
| Planes | 3 |
| Horses | 40 |
| Dogs | |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly referred to as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the primary law enforcement agency of Los Angeles, California, United States. With 8,832 officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-largest municipal police department in the United States, after the New York City Police Department and the Chicago Police Department.
The LAPD is headquartered at 100 West 1st Street in the Civic Center district. The department's organization and resources are complex, including 21 community stations (divisions) grouped in four bureaus under the Office of Operations; multiple divisions within the Detective Bureau under the Office of Special Operations; and specialized units such as the Metropolitan Division, Air Support Division, and Major Crimes Division under the Counterterrorism & Special Operations Bureau.
Independent investigative commissions have documented a history of police brutality, corruption, misconduct and discriminatory policing within the LAPD. In 2001, the United States Department of Justice entered into a consent decree with the LAPD regarding systemic civil rights violations and lack of accountability that stretched back decades; following major reforms, the decree was lifted in 2013.