LAPD ends protection of former Vice President Kamala Harris amid internal criticism, sources say

Isn't Los Angeles one of those safe Blue cities?  As long as Harris stays away from Memphis, she should be okay.

S E E D E D   C O N T E N T

• LAPD discontinued protection for former Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday amid criticism that officers were being diverted from crime suppression duties.
• The temporary security arrangement began when President Trump revoked Harris's Secret Service protection, forcing California agencies to scramble for coverage.
• Police union criticized pulling officers from protecting "everyday Angelenos" to guard a "multi-millionaire" who can afford private security.

The Los Angeles Police Department on Saturday discontinued its protection for former Vice President Kamala Harris after heavy criticism within its own ranks that officers were being diverted from crime suppression, sources told The Times.

LAPD Metropolitan Division officers had been assisting the California Highway Patrol in protecting Harris and were visible until Saturday morning outside her Brentwood home.

Both California police agencies scrambled this week to protect Harris after President Trump, her rival in November's election, revoked Harris's Secret Service protection last week. President Biden had extended that protection for Harris beyond the six months after leaving office that vice presidents traditionally get.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass had directed the LAPD to provide the security team to assist the CHP in the short term. According to sources, those Metro officers had to be drawn away from crime suppression work in the San Fernando Valley this week.

"Pulling police officers from protecting everyday Angelenos to protect a failed presidential candidate who also happens to be a multi-millionaire... and who can easily afford to pay for her own security, is nuts," its board of directors said.

The statement continued, "Mayor Karen Bass should tell Governor Newsom that if he wants to curry favor with Ms. Harris and her donor base, then he should open up his own wallet because LA taxpayers should not be footing the bill for this ridiculousness."

Newsom, who was required to sign off on CHP protection, has not confirmed the arrangement to The Times, but a spokesperson for Newsom added: "The safety of our public officials should never be subject to erratic, vindictive political impulse."

Bass, in a statement last week, commented on Trump scrapping the security detail for Harris, saying: "This is another act of revenge following a long list of political retaliation in the form of firings, the revoking of security clearances, and more. This puts the former Vice President in danger and I look forward to working with the governor to make sure Vice President Harris is safe in Los Angeles."

On Saturday the mayor's office said: "The plan was always to provide temporary support and I thank LAPD for protecting former VP Harris and always prioritizing the safety of all Angelenos."

Deploying LAPD officers to protect Harris was a source of controversy within the department in years past.

During L.A. Police Chief Charlie Beck's tenure, when Harris was a U.S. senator, plainclothes officers served as security and traveled with her from January 2017 to July 2018. Beck said at the time through a spokesman that the protection was granted based on a threat assessment.

Beck's successor, Michel Moore, ended the protection in July 2018 after he said a new evaluation determined it was no longer needed. The decision came as The Times filed a lawsuit seeking records from then-Mayor Eric Garcetti detailing the costs of security related to his own extensive travel. Garcetti said he was unaware of the police protection until Moore ended it.

Former vice presidents usually get Secret Service protection for six months after leaving office, while former presidents are given protection for life. But before his term ended, then-President Biden signed an order to extend Harris' protection to July 2026. Aides to Harris had asked Biden for the extension. Without it, her security detail would have ended last month, according to sources.

The curtailing of Secret Service protection comes as Harris is going to begin a book tour next month for her memoir, titled "107 Days." The tour has 15 stops, which include visits to London and Toronto. The book title references the short length of her presidential campaign.

Harris, the first Black woman to serve as vice president, was the subject of an elevated threat level — particularly when she became the Democratic presidential contender last year. The Associated Press reports, however, a recent threat intelligence assessment by the Secret Service conducted on those it protects, such as Harris, found no red flags or credible evidence of a threat to the former vice president.