Rams finally return today; Security is tight, costly

LOS ANGELES (CNS) – Four Los Angeles City Council members urged Rams
owner Stan Kroenke today to commit to covering all of the public safety costs
incurred at games played at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The return of the Rams to Los Angeles from St. Louis was a “clear
lucrative move,” the council members wrote in a letter to Kroenke.
“Today, we write to you on behalf of your fans and our constituents, to
request that you fully fund the public safety contingent which includes
members of the Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles Fire Department, Los
Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol among
others,” according to the letter.
The letter also goes on to say that “it is imperative that the costs be
fully covered and that only off-duty officers be employed.”
The council members who signed the letter were Mitch O’Farrell, Nury
Martinez, Curren Price and the panel’s president, Herb Wesson.
The Los Angeles Police Protective League, the union that represents more
than 9,900 rank-and-file Los Angeles police officers, has been demanding that
the Rams fully pay the estimated $2 million a year needed to cover the cost of
police services during home games at the Coliseum.
“ LAPD has critically low staffing levels and the city of Los Angeles
has experienced a dramatic increase in violent crime and property crime over
the past two years,” according to LAPPL spokesman Dustin DeRollo.
The Coliseum is being used as the temporary location of the Rams as
their permanent stadium in Inglewood is being built, creating a need for more
than 200 police officers to ensure adequate safety at every home game at the
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, DeRollo said.
The Rams issued a statement earlier this month saying the team is
“working with the LAPD to find solutions that work for everyone — in fact, we
have a few meetings already scheduled with LAPD and USC leadership in the
coming weeks.
“The safety of fans attending our games is a priority and we are
appreciative of the great team at LAPD and other agencies that will be part of
our game-day security operation for helping ensure a safe environment for our
guests.”