MAYOR SCOLDS D.A., CHIEF: GROW UP, BOYS RAMPART SCANDAL IN LIMBO AS OFFICIALS ARGUE.

Byline: Greg Gittrich, Beth Barrett and Rick Orlov Staff Writers

Tension between Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard C. Parks and District Attorney Gil Garcetti over the Rampart Division scandal probe exploded into open warfare and personal attacks Wednesday, leaving critical questions about how - and whether - they will cooperate unanswered.

Mayor Richard Riordan attempted to mediate the dispute, but Garcetti passed up the meeting and held a news conference to accuse Parks of obstructing his investigation and refusing to cooperate with prosecutors - actions he vowed to answer with subpoenas.

Parks responded by accusing Garcetti, who faces a tough re-election fight after running second in the primary, of political grandstanding and dragging his feet in prosecuting rogue anti-gang officers in the Rampart Division.

After meeting with them separately, an angry Riordan publicly chided both men, telling them to grow up and act like responsible leaders.

``This isn't a children's game and the chief of police and district attorney have been acting like children,'' Riordan said, tossing aside his prepared remarks and banging his fist on the podium.

``They have to start acting like adults and put the city first. The people of the city have to have confidence in the district attorney and the chief of police.''

The feud, which has marred the probe for months, inflamed critics of the LAPD both in and out of City Hall in large part because the District Attorney's Office got to put the first spin on the issue of cooperation by leaking its version of the situation.

Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski typified the reaction at City Hall, saying, ``I've never heard of anything like that . . . I think what the chief did was grossly improper.''

Left unclear was whether Parks' plan to use U.S. Attorney Alejandro N. Mayorkas' office as a clearinghouse for investigative information to be shared with the District Attorney's Office would be acceptable to Garcetti.

Parks called Garcetti's claim that the LAPD was freezing the district attorney out of the investigation ``blatant and false material.'' He insisted he had more confidence in the U.S. Attorney's Office than in Garcetti, whose office has only sought two minor pieces of information in the past month.

``We certainly have some lack of confidence in their (District Attorney's Office) ability to deal with this case,'' Parks said at an evening news conference at the Rampart Division station.

``I talked to him personally and explained that the D.A.'s Office has never been denied any information and never will, regardless of our frustrations. It makes no difference to me as to which agency prosecutes the case.''

Referring to Garcetti and his statements, Parks added, ``That is not an individual who is trying to resolve the issue. This signifies self-service to us.'' In taking his own frustration public, Garcetti told a noontime news conference that Parks had no legal basis for withholding investigative information from his office.

``There is no legal authority for the chief to thumb his nose at us and I can't accept it,'' he said. ``I won't tolerate it. We cannot permit anyone to obstruct our effort of getting to the bottom of this.

``Any refusal by the management of the Los Angeles Police Department to provide investigative reports and investigative assistance to our prosecutors is unacceptable and contrary to law. If we do not receive LAPD reports, we will subpoena them, and we'll subpoena every single officer involved in the Rampart investigation if necessary.''

On March 8, Parks sent a letter to Garcetti's office to ``advise and educate'' prosecutors on a process worked out with the U.S. Attorney's Office to speed up the investigation.

Other letters were exchanged between the LAPD, district attorney and U.S. attorney in the following days, culminating in what Garcetti said was his conversation with Parks on Tuesday in which the chief flatly refused to cooperate.

Although the letters from the LAPD never explicitly said investigative material would be withheld, Garcetti said Parks told him orally that the LAPD no longer intended to provide either investigative reports or investigative assistance.

At that point, Garcetti sent a letter stating that the process Parks proposed was unacceptable - and then he went public with his version of the dispute.

Parks said he believed that Garcetti, in conference with Attorney General Bill Lockyer, had as recently as Monday agreed to protocols that would sort out how the respective agencies would handle the investigations and prosecutions.

City Attorney James Hahn, whose mayoral campaign, like Garcetti's re- election campaign, is managed by Bill Carrick, weighed into the controversy by saying Parks is required by state law to work with the District Attorney's Office about the Rampart case.

``There is no authority for a chief of police to refuse cooperation with a public prosecutor,' Hahn said.

Hahn said he was disturbed by the lack of cooperation caused by ``petty personal differences.''

``Obviously, nerves have been rubbed raw and we are allowing personalities to get in the way of the truth,'' Hahn said.

After talking with the chief and hearing his explanations, Hahn said there could have been a misunderstanding, and that the LAPD intended to cooperate fully with Garcetti's office.

Lockyer, in a statement, also urged cooperation, saying the D.A.'s Office is the best agency to prosecute cases arising under state laws, while the U.S. Attorney's Office, with its subpoena power of the federal grand jury, is better able to prosecute possible violations under federal civil rights laws.

``All of these important resources should join forces to ensure justice and necessary reform for Los Angeles by sharing information and coordinating investigative efforts,'' Lockyer said.

Parks has grown increasingly frustrated with Garcetti for not filing charges against three officers whose cases were referred for prosecution. Garcetti has not said whether any of the cases was strong enough to charge, and that he intends to try to develop a conspiracy case against a larger number of officers.

``This is the biggest case in Los Angeles in 60 years, and Garcetti sits on it,'' said one source close to the investigation and the politics surrounding it. ``Now he's doing damage control.''

Ramona Ripston, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, said, ``We have an imperial chief in Los Angeles. The refusal of Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard Parks to work with the L.A. County District Attorney's Office on the Rampart corruption scandal is another reason why it is essential to appoint an independent commission to examine the systemic problems in the LAPD. Parks is trying to grab more authority, rather than be held accountable for his actions and those of his department.''

BY THE LETTER

Here are excerpts of a March 8 letter from LAPD Deputy Chief Martin Pomeroy on behalf of Chief Bernard Parks to Asst. District Attorney Michael Tranberger outlining the LAPD's position on the criminal investigation growing out of the Rampart Division scandal:

The recent expansion of the Los Angeles Police Department's Rampart Corruption Task Force to include the United States Attorney, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the California Attorney General has had a dramatic impact on the momentum of the criminal cases... In light of their participation, I would like to explain how the Department plans to proceed from this point.

First, it is our intention to present all information gathered by the Task Force to date to the United States Attorney as our first priority. We feel that promptly bringing those police officers who currently stand accused of criminal misconduct to justice will help us restore the community's faith in its police department and the entire criminal justice system. Continued delay endangers criminal prosecutions and our Department's administrative disciplinary process. As you know, statutory time limitations in administrative cases as well as several criminal cases are precariously near.

The United States Attorney currently has review teams and prosecutorial teams in place and has quickly established protocols to review each criminal case. We have been assured that decisions regarding prosecutorial strategies and potential indictments are imminent...

Second, personnel from the California State Attorney General's office are currently reviewing all of our information and the Attorney General has agreed to consider the filing of cases deemed most appropriate for handling by his office.... We believe that the State Attorney General is a viable option for our investigation.

We value our partnership with your office and expect to continue working with you on this case. Obviously, there are criminal prosecutions that you should pursue...

HERE ARE EXCEPTS of a letter Tuesday from District Attorney Gil Garcetti to LAPD Chief Bernard Parks on the lack of cooperation between their offices:

I understand from our conversation that you no longer intend to provide investigative reports and investigative assistance to our office in our analysis of state criminal charges. Your refusal to cooperate with our potential prosecutions of crimes committed by members of your department is unacceptable and contrary to your legal responsibilities and the chief of police. If we do not receive these reports, we will subpoena them...

The Attorney General has stated to you and to me that the Attorney General's Office is not taking over the Rampart investigation...The Attorney General expects the District Attorney's office, not the Attorney General's Office, to be the first line prosecutor for cases arising from our Rampart investigation, and we intend to fulfill these obligations...

We have no objection to sharing all investigative reports with the United States Attorney's Office. This does not relieve you of the responsibility to cooperate with our prosecution efforts.

To repeat, we are committed to getting to the bottom of the Rampart corruption scandal to restore public confidence in the Los Angeles Police Department.

CAPTION(S):

5 photos, box

Photo:

(1 -- color) no caption (Mayor Richard Riordan)

(2 -- 3 -- color) PARKS: CLAIMS D.A. SLOW TO REACT

GARCETTI: COMPLAINS OF BEING LEFT OUT

Police Chief Bernard C. Parks, left, doesn't think District Attorney Gil Garcetti, right, is working hard enough to prosecute crooked cops in the LAPD's Rampart Division scandal.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer

Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press

(4 -- color) no caption (Bernard C. Parks)

(5 -- color) no caption (Gil Garcetti)

Box: BY THE LETTER (See text)