'CHIEF BRATTON' THE TARGET OF WEEKEND VANDALISM.

Byline: Ryan Oliver Staff Writer

A life-size mannequin resembling Police Chief William Bratton was vandalized over the weekend in front of the LAPD's Devonshire Division, the mannequin's owner reported Monday.

``Chief Bratton was dismembered in front of the police station - what kind of society are we living in?'' said Bert Boyer, who had been using the mannequin to promote his security company.

Boyer, owner of Lone Star Security based in Canoga Park, is responsible for the signs that are familiar to many San Fernando Valley motorists: ``LAPD will not respond to your alarm in one to two hours.'' The signs, mounted on trailers parked on the streets, have been the focus of a long-running battle with city officials.

The sign gives the phone number of Lone Star, which Boyer says can respond to a customer's home alarm in an average of 10 minutes.

Boyer said the sign was a paraphrase of a quote by Bratton reported last year when the chief was referring to the police department's treatment of home alarms as low-priority items, since the vast majority of them turn out to be false and a waste of officers' time.

Boyer said he recently affixed to the sign the uniformed mannequin resembling Bratton and put up the display on Devonshire Street near the Devonshire Division on Saturday. By Monday morning, a Lone Star employee noticed Bratton's upper half missing.

Boyer, who said he would offer a reward in the case, was scheduled to meet with Devonshire supervisor Capt. Joe Curreri today to discuss the case.

Curreri was unavailable for comment on Monday. LAPD spokeswoman Sgt. Catherine Plows said she wasn't personally aware of the case, but was sure Curreri would give it his attention.

Ryan Oliver, [phone]

ryan.oliver(at)dailynews.com