Dozens of self-proclaimed experts have weighed in one what happened at MacArthur Park on local blogs, with many apologists for what happened coming out of the woodwork and offering up excuses or even bizarre conspiracy theories as to what went wrong on May 1. In the past, one of the chief defenders of outrageous actions was likely to be the Chief of Police, but no more. The Los Angeles Times reports today on Chief Bratton's view of what happened:
"I feel comfortable apologizing…. Things were done that shouldn't have been done," Bratton told a group of journalists who gathered at the KTLA-TV Channel 5 studios in Hollywood. "I'm not seeking to excuse it…. As one human being to another, there were things that shouldn't have been done."
Bratton said the 60 or so members of the Metropolitan Division's Platoon B have been "stood down" and won't return to active street duties until they have undergone retraining that meets his level of comfort.
"Some of them in all likelihood won't be returning to the Metropolitan Division as a result of our findings," he said.
Hopefully, this will shut up the often racist and always uninformed internet commentators whose claims are diametrically opposed to what we all witnessed and what the city's Chief has now confirmed.
Videos of the scene are available here.
