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34 Loy. L.A. L. Rev. 829 (2000-2001)
Incubating Monsters: Prosecutorial Responsibility for the Rampart Scandal

handle is hein.journals/lla34 and id is 861 raw text is: INCUBATING MONSTERS?: PROSECUTORIAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR TLE RAMPART SCANDAL Gary C. Williams* I. INTRODUCTION When disgraced former Los Angeles Police Officer Rafael Perez made his statement to the court after pleading guilty to stealing co- caine from a police storage locker, he uttered words that reverberated throughout the City of Los Angeles as it wrestled with the enormity of the scandal enveloping its chief law enforcement agency. After reciting in sordid detail his descent into a life of deceit, crime, and debauchery, Perez concluded his statement by declaring: Whoever chases monsters should see to it that in the process he does not be- come a monster himself.' The Rampart scandal, and the resulting investigations of the conduct of officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), raise a disturbing question: Have the actions, or inaction, of the Of- fices of the District Attorney and of the City Attorney of Los Ange- les, created an atmosphere that allows the incubation of monsters like Rafael Perez? Stories appearing in the press in the wake of the Rampart scan- dal indicate that many officers in the LAPD develop a callous indif- ference toward the truth as they fight the war against crime, drugs, and gangs.' These stories have revealed that some LAPD officers * Professor of Law, Loyola Law School. I want to express my gratitude for the outstanding work done by my research assistant Min Tak. His work provided much of the backbone of this Article. I also want to thank my friend and colleague Laurie Levenson, for her commentary on these critical ethical issues and for her input on this Article. 1. Rafael Perez, I Succumbed to the Seductress of Power, L.A. TIMES, Feb. 26,2000, at A25. 2. See Matt Lait & Scott Glover, DNA Evidence in 4 Drug Cases Refies

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