Brief

Councilmember Monica Rodriguez, seconded by Imelda Padilla, introduced a motion on May 21, 2026 to allocate General City Purposes funding for Project Therapeutic Unarmed Response for Neighborhoods (TURN). The program aims to dispatch trained unarmed responders—rather than police—to handle certain community crisis situations. The motion was immediately referred to three committees: the Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services; the Budget and Finance Committee; and the Public Safety Committee. It remains pending committee review.

Full summary

Councilmember Monica Rodriguez moved to amend the Mayor's Proposed Budget for 2026-27 to provide $1,919,071 for Project Therapeutic Unarmed Response for Neighborhoods (TURN), a crisis response initiative designed to deploy unarmed civilian responders to neighborhood calls that do not require police intervention. The motion is a budget amendment to the General City Purposes section, and it is budget-neutral: the $1,919,071 for TURN would be funded entirely by a 5 percent reduction to the Gang Reduction and Youth Development Office's allocation. The program would be administered by the City Administrative Officer. The underlying policy direction reflects Los Angeles's broader push to divert low-risk or mental health crisis calls away from the LAPD toward trained, non-police responders skilled in de-escalation and therapeutic support. By carving funding out of an existing violence-prevention line item and redirecting it to an unarmed response model, Rodriguez's motion represents a direct reallocation of public safety priorities rather than a request for new spending. The motion was introduced on May 21, 2026 and immediately referred to three committees for review. The Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services will lead the policy evaluation; the Budget and Finance Committee will assess the fiscal mechanics and the impact of reducing Gang Reduction and Youth Development funding; and the Public Safety Committee will examine implementation and departmental coordination. The motion is currently pending in all three committees and has not yet advanced to a Council vote. With an expiration date of May 21, 2028, the file remains active.

Activity (1)

• 2026-05-21 Motion referred to Ad Hoc Committee on Unarmed Crisis Prevention, Intervention, and Community Services; Budget and Finance Committee; Public Safety Committee.

Documents (1)

• 2026-05-21 Motion · motion