Metro Names New Chief for In-House Police Department

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) is taking major steps in public safety, as the LA Metro announced it had appointed a new Chief of Police for their new in-house police department.

The announcement was made on Wednesday, March 7, during a press conference held at LA Metro’s security operations headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. During this press conference, LA Metro officials stated the person appointed as their new in-house police chief would be none other than William “Bill” Scott, a now former police chief for the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD).

Scott served as the SFPD’s police chief for about eight years and officially resigned from his post early that Wednesday. Scott has also spent 27 years serving in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), as well as spending a brief period overseeing the LAPD South Bureau.

“In my mind, this isn’t just about designing uniforms or writing policy,” said Scott during the press conference. “This is about creating something truly meaningful. It’s about building a department that reflects the values of Los Angeles – Community, Safety, Progress.”

Scott continued: “When I first learned about Metro’s vision to create this multi-layer safety model based on accountability and built around people, I saw something that felt ambitious and necessary.”

LA Metro’s new police chief also stated that he believes the purpose of this new police department will not just about out ensuring the safety of Metro passengers, but also the employees and operators of Metro stations and vehicles.

“This department won’t just be about responding to incidents – It’s about preventing them,” said Scott. “It’s about ensuring that our riders feel safe and supported, and it’s about making sure our own Metro employees, like our bus operators, rail operators, station workers, feel secure in the jobs that they do every day, because when our people are safe, they can focus on the mission, and when writers feel safe, they ride of course.”

LA Metro’s decision to form an in-house police department was made after the transit organization experienced a massive increase in reported crimes, within the past few years.

According to official data reports, the LA Metro received a total of 1,034 reported crimes in March 2023, and received 1,719 reported crimes in March 2024. The Beachcomber could not find a recent mapping of crimes committed in areas the LA Metro passed through, but it should be known that Metro’s Blue Line passes through the city of Long Beach.

On June 23, 2023, LA Metro’s board of directors made a vote to pursue the creation of an in-house transit police department, with the aim of replacing contracts with its current law enforcement agencies: LAPD, LA County Sheriff’s Department and Long Beach Police Department.

“Everyone deserves a safe Metro, and we needed to do something different to ensure safety on our system,” said Metro Chief Executive Stephanie Wiggins, during the press conference. “For many years, we’ve been operating under a multi-agency model – a system involving several law enforcement partners across jurisdictions. And while this model has served us well for many years, the question we had to ask ourselves was clear: Is this still the right approach for Metro today?”

William Scott will assume his new role as police chief on June 23. Scott says he expects to hire just under 700 officers for the new department and will oversee training and staff selection. Scott will also reportedly be tasked with leading security coordination for the 2026 World Cup, 2027 Super Bowl (which is expected to be hosted at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood) and the 2028 Olympics.

According to recent data reports, LA Metro stated that crimes against people had risen by about 17% from January to February, but that February’s numbers were down 9% from February 2024.

For information about LA Metro’s monthly informational reports, including their total crime summary reports and data, you can visit their official website at https://boardagendas.metro.net. For general inquiries, including LA Metro bus and train schedules and maps, you can visit https://www.metro.net.