EDITORIAL : IMPROVEMENT NEEDED LAPD LAGS IN IMPLEMENTING CHRISTOPHER COMMISSION REFORMS.

Five years after the Christopher Commission issued its recommendations for reforming the Los Angeles Police Department, a new report finds much remains to be done.

The progress report released last week by the Police Commission indicates that the LAPD needs a clearer plan for implementing reforms.

And the report raises questions about how much reform actually has been achieved, because its statistics can be interpreted in various ways.

For example, the progress report shows use of force is down, in terms of the number of incidents involving force.

But, total arrests have been falling steadily since 1990 - down by 40 percent in 1995 compared to five years earlier - and yet the percentage of arrests involving use of force was virtually unchanged (1.1 percent in 1990, and 1.2 percent in 1995).

Likewise, the percentage of arrests involving shootings remained relatively constant in the five-year period.

So, are police officers more judicious in using force? Or, are they avoiding contact with potential suspects in all but the most egregious cases?

Those are important questions, and we're not convinced that the new report provides a clear answer.

Even so, it's plain that the need for change goes beyond the police department. For example, it is past time for the City Council to follow the advice of the Christopher Commission and seek a city charter amendment to take away the council's power to meddle in the administration of the police department.

But the council hasn't done that, and continues to micromanage the LAPD. For example, it recently delayed a pilot project on enforcing the curfew for juveniles until enforcement could begin simultaneously in all parts of the city.

That underscores how much reform still needs to be done, and not all of it is under the control of the LAPD.