The Los Angeles Police Department welcomed a new class of officers on Friday, July 26, when 23 LAPD recruits graduated from the Los Angeles Police Academy.
The addition of 19 men and four women to the LAPD force brings the number of sworn officers in the nation’s third largest police department to just over 8,830. The new officers include 17 Latinos, three whites, two Blacks and one Asian.
The officers completed 904 hours of training over 24 weeks.
For years, the department had about 10,000 sworn officers, but that number has dwindled. And like other police departments around the country, the LAPD has struggled to recruit and retain officers in more recent times.
There were 8,808 sworn officers on the LAPD’s payroll as of Tuesday, July 23, according to a spokesperson for the LAPD. L.A. Mayor Karen Bass last year set a goal to increase the number of sworn officers to 9,500.
Months later, the City Council approved a contract with rank-and-file police officers that included a hefty bump to starting salaries, annual raises and additional bonuses aimed at recruiting and keeping more officers from leaving the department. That contract is expected to cost the city nearly $1 billion in extra costs over four years.
The council subsequently approved another contract with LAPD’s high-ranking officers.
In addition to the 23 new LAPD officers, Friday’s ceremony also celebrated the graduation of one L.A. Park Ranger and two Inglewood Police Department officers.
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