Los Angeles Police Department

"LAPD" redirects here. For other uses, see LAPD (disambiguation).

Not to be confused with Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Los Angeles General Services Police, Los Angeles School Police Department, or Los Angeles Airport Police.

City of Los Angeles Police Department
LAPD shoulder patch
Seal of the LAPD
LAPD officer badge, with number omitted
Flag of the LAPD
Common name	Los Angeles Police Department
Abbreviation	LAPD
Motto	To Protect and to Serve
Agency overview
Formed	December 13, 1869 (1869-12-13)
Employees	About 10,900 funded sworn and civilian positions (2026–27)
Annual budget	$1.99 billion (2025–26 adopted); about $2.11 billion proposed for 2026–27
Jurisdictional structure
Operations jurisdiction	Los Angeles, California, United States
Map showing Los Angeles, the LAPD's primary jurisdiction
Size	468 sq mi (1,210 km2)
Governing body	Los Angeles City Council
Constituting instrument	Los Angeles City Charter, Article XIX
General nature	Local civilian police
Operational structure
Overseen by	Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners
Headquarters	100 West 1st Street Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Police officers	About 8,555 funded (2026–27)
Unsworn members	About 2,338 funded civilian positions (2026–27)
Police Commission presidents responsible	Rasha Gerges Shields, President Daniel K. Tabor, Vice President Fabian Garcia, Commissioner Jeff K. Skobin, Commissioner Heather Aubry, Commissioner
Agency executives	Jim McDonnell, Chief of Police Dominic Choi, First Assistant Chief / Chief of Staff Emada Tingirides, Assistant Chief, Director of Office of Operations Michael Rimkunas, Assistant Chief, Director of Office of Special Operations Timothy "Scott" Harrelson, Assistant Chief, Director of Office of Support Services Brian G. Maxey, Director, Constitutional Policing and Policy Bureau
Geographic areas	21 community police stations
Facilities
Vehicles	More than 4,700
Helicopters	17 at full capacity
Fixed-wing aircraft	1
Website
Official website

The City of Los Angeles Police Department, commonly known as the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California, United States. It is one of the largest municipal police departments in the country. The city's 2026–27 budget plan provides funding for about 8,555 sworn officers and 2,338 civilian positions.

The LAPD is headquartered at 100 West 1st Street in the Civic Center district. The department divides Los Angeles into 21 geographic patrol areas grouped under four geographic bureaus. Other parts of the LAPD handle investigations, traffic and transit policing, counterterrorism, training, technology, internal affairs, aviation, SWAT, and other specialized work.

Independent commissions, courts, historians, journalists, and government investigations have documented a long history of police brutality, corruption, misconduct, racial discrimination, and problems with accountability within the LAPD. After the Rampart scandal, the United States Department of Justice entered into a federal consent decree with the City of Los Angeles in 2001 over systemic civil-rights and accountability problems. Federal court oversight ended in 2013 after major reforms.