ZINE REVS UP TO TRAIN BIKER COPS COUNCILMAN TO GET SCHOOLS' FORCE UP TO SPEED.

Byline: James Nash Staff Writer

Los Angeles Councilman Dennis Zine, who already moonlights as a reserve Los Angeles Police Department officer, is adding another line to his resume: trainer of Los Angeles Unified School District motorcycle officers.

Zine will receive no pay for helping to train the district's eight new motorcycle officers, said Alan Kerstein, chief of the LAUSD police.

Zine is paid $143,838 a year as the council member representing the southwestern San Fernando Valley. He also works about 16 hours a month as a Los Angeles reserve officer, for which he is not paid.

He said mentoring school motorcycle police won't detract from his service on the City Council. He said he made no specific time commitments and would try to work on weekends or days when the council does not meet.

``This won't sacrifice my duties on the council,'' Zine said. ``This is something I have time for. Some of my colleagues who have young children may not have time to do this.''

Some residents of Zine's district said the councilman has fulfilled his council duties while remaining visible in the community. Last year, Zine made an aborted bid for a seat on the West Hills Neighborhood Council, an advisory panel, prompting criticism that he was meddling in the local council's business.

A neighborhood council member who criticized Zine at the time, Ed Youngblood, said he has no problem with Zine moonlighting as a motorcycle safety instructor for the school district.

``I can't say he's stretched himself too thin without knowing his schedule,'' Youngblood said. ``I wish I had as much energy as he does.''

Zine's new role at the LAUSD grew out of his friendship with Kerstein. The school police chief worked alongside Zine in the early 1970s and supervised him for a time when both were motorcycle officers for the LAPD.

Kerstein said Zine is ``a natural'' candidate to help train the LAUSD's new squad of motorcycle officers to patrol areas near schools that have experienced traffic and safety problems.

``You've got to have the time to do that, you've got to have the special skills and you've got to have the drive,'' Kerstein said. ``That alone probably takes out 90 percent of the people out there.''

Ethics experts said Zine does not have a legal conflict of interest because the school district is not paying him and the council has no authority over the LAUSD.

Robert Stern, president of the Center for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles, said voters knew of Zine's law enforcement background when they elected him in 2001. ``He's going to have the same conflict - whether he volunteers or not - because he's a former police officer. I don't see this as a big problem unless he's taking time out of his council duties.''

James Nash, [phone]

james.nash(at)dailynews.com

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