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Los Angeles’ police chief is warning the city is not prepared to secure the 2028 Olympics, citing staffing shortages and a lack of dedicated funding.
The warning comes amid heightened security concerns surrounding large-scale public events across the country.
Speaking during a City Council Budget and Finance Committee meeting Wednesday, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said the department lacks dedicated funding beyond a shared security pool with other agencies, the New York Post reported.
“LA28 confirms that they have zero police or other safety budgets,” McDonnell said. “While they do have a security budget, it doesn’t cover law enforcement.”
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Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg perform at the LA28 Olympic Games Handover Celebration in Los Angeles. (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for LA28)
“The funding that exists is for all agencies involved in the Olympics, not just the LAPD, and it will be restricted primarily to police officer overtime,” he added.
The Olympics Special Events Unit has determined Los Angeles will need roughly 6,700 officers across eight venues during the 2028 Games, according to the report.
Police will also require an additional 700 to 800 patrol vehicles — a need that is not fully funded.
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Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell warned city leaders that the department may not have enough resources to secure the 2028 Olympic Games. (Jim Vondruska/Getty Images)
Officials warned the department is already losing more than 500 officers per year to attrition, driving up overtime costs.
The LAPD expects to log roughly 1.4 million hours of overtime this year, contributing to a projected $16.5 million deficit, the report said.
While Olympic organizers have said the federal government will help handle security, given the Games’ designation as a National Special Security Event, LAPD officials pushed back on that claim, calling it “inaccurate.”
Democratic Socialists of America member and Los Angeles City Council member Eunisses Hernandez questioned whether the scale of police deployment is necessary.
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LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell sounds the alarm on security challenges facing Los Angeles ahead of the 2028 Olympic Games. (Jim Vondruska/Getty Images; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
“Do they all need to be cop cars?” she asked. “Can we not use school buses?”
Digital has reached out to the LAPD and LA28 for comment.
