CITY ALARMED BY AD CLAIMS, MAY SUE FIRM.

Byline: Mariel Garza Staff Writer

The Los Angeles City Council voted Friday to consider legal action for false advertising against a security company that has posted trailers around the San Fernando Valley declaring: ``LAPD will no longer respond to your alarm! Lone Star Security will!''

The official city policy adopted by the Police Commission - but under review because of pressure from the City Council - states that as of July 1 the Police Department will stop responding to residential and commercial burglar alarms unless they are personally verified.

Even so, West Valley Councilman Dennis Zine sees the ads as a big lie.

He claims they are false and misleading and he has got the council to back him in calling for legal action.

The City Attorney's Office, however, was unsure what authority the city has over such an issue.

``The signs have sprung up through the San Fernando Valley and caused great concern and distress to many of my constituents,'' Zine said. ``It's not only false advertising but a disservice and disrespectful to the dedication of the LAPD men and women.''

The message on the mobile roadside billboards is intended to drum up business for Lone Star Security, a company owned by Bruce Boyer, a former mayoral candidate for a San Fernando Valley city.

Boyer and company representatives were not available for comment Friday, but earlier in the week he said he was unconcerned about the city's scrutiny.

``Our official response is, bring it on,'' Boyer said.

In January, the Police Commission adopted a policy that officers had been wasting too much time responding to false residential and commercial burglary alarms.

Chief William Bratton had called for the policy, saying that responding to false alarms wastes 15 percent of patrol officers' time.

The commission said LAPD officers would no longer be dispatched to burglar alarm calls unless the incident was verified in person - a change prompting a firestorm of protest from residents and from the alarm industry.

The City Council formed a task force and ultimately supported its recommendation, which was to allow three false alarms at an address before police would stop responding.

That proposal is pending before the Police Commission - which is why Zine asserts that the Lone Star ad is clearly false.

Deputy City Attorney Lauren Park said her office is investigating the question of what, if anything, the city can do.

Staff Writer James Nash contributed to this report.

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Photo:

The City Council is considering legal action, citing false advertising, against a security company's posted claim that the Los Angeles Police Department no longer responds to burglar alarms.

Phil McCarten/Staff Photographer