Talk about strange bedfellows.
The Los Angeles Police Department says a new ordinance to keep paparazzi away from the stars is unenforceable and urged city officials to scrap the rule.
In a report presented to the Police Commission on Tuesday, Chief William Bratton states that such a crackdown on shutterbugs was unnecessary as long as the LAPD enforced the rules that are already on the books.
"Vigilant enforcement of these laws should deter paparazzi from creating circumstances that potentially endanger the life of the subjects being photographed and/or the surrounding community,'' writes Bratton.
City lawmakers have been pushing for the law since learning that $25,000 in taxpayer money was spent on a police escort as an ambulance transported Britney Spears from her Studio City home to UCLA Medical Center when she was hospitalized in January. The police ostensibly made sure paparazzi would not thwart the safe transit of the "Toxic" songbird.
The proposed ordinance by L.A. City Councilman Dennis Zine aims to place stricter controls on overzealous paparazzi by creating a "personal safety zone" around celebrities, preventing photos from getting too close while snapping away.
While that would undoubtedly be a relief to Hollywood types whose every action is tracked daily by a swarm of tabloid-fueled cameramen, the LAPD says the ordinance would likely violate constitutional rights.
For one, police say it would lead to an "inequitable" situation in which officers would be forced to define who is a "celebrity" and who is a "paparazzo." Also, the rule would likely create a public backlash for favoring celebrities over the general public.
In the report, Bratton argues that the department already has a number of laws on the books, including speeding, jaywalking and battery, to deal with the such problems, and if unruly shutterbugs break the law, they will be prosecuted.
The LAPD's stance is a setback for lawmakers who say current laws are failing to address serious safety problems that are arising involving paparazzi.
"For the police department to issue a report saying we have laws that say you can't speed, you can't drive reckless, you can't jaywalk, you can't park in a red zone, we know these laws already exist. That is not deterring the paparazzi from causing havoc in the community," Zine, a former LAPD motor officers, told the local ABC7.
The Police Commission, the civilian overseers of the Police Department, voted to approve the recommendation and forward it to the City Council. Zine's motion has not yet been scheduled for committee review.
Civil-rights groups, led by the American Civil Liberties Union, have also gone on record against the proposal.
The Police Commission agreed with Bratton's report and endorsed his recommendation to nix the ordinance. Before becoming law, the proposal would still need to be vetted by the city attorney and go before the full council for approval.