CHIEF: WHERE'S LAPD ON PANEL? SAYS INPUT NEEDED ON HOMELESS ISSUE.

Byline: Dan Laidman Staff Writer

LAPD Chief William Bratton supports Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's appointment of former opponents of city homeless policy to an official panel, but he is unhappy about a lack of police representation there.

In an interview this week, Bratton echoed the mayor's contention that it is wise to include critics in the city's process.

``I'm a great believer that the more people in the tent than outside the tent the better off we are,'' Bratton said.

But, he added, ``they forgot a major component - that's us.''

Some City Council members have questioned the mayor's selection of Ramona Ripston, the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, which has sued the city over homeless policy, to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority.

Villaraigosa has also tapped attorney Doug Mirell for LAHSA, a city-county agency that works with homeless service providers. Mirell was a plaintiff's attorney, along with the ACLU, in a 2000 lawsuit in which a federal judge limited sweeps of homeless people by the Los Angeles Police Department.

The debate over the appointments comes as the city is renewing its focus on the homeless problem.

On Wednesday, Villaraigosa said he was directing $50 million from various city agencies into an affordable housing fund, part of which will go to services for the homeless.

While Los Angeles steps up its financial commitment, it is also grappling with differing views on how to balance intervention with civil liberties.

Some have advocated an expansive role for law enforcement in getting people off the street, while much of the ACLU's past litigation has sought limits on such action.

The ACLU has accused police of conducting searches without probable cause and violating other civil rights in the course of homeless sweeps.

Bratton said that police must work with aid agencies to protect vulnerable homeless people and reach those who might not otherwise have access to services.

``It is a complex problem and police aren't the solution to it, but they're an essential component,'' Bratton said, adding that he plans to talk to the mayor about the lack of a police representative on LAHSA.

The mayor can appoint five members to the authority's board, and Villaraigosa has chosen four.

Dan Laidman, [phone]

dan.laidman(at)dailynews.com