Many of the city's most violent, gang-infested neighborhoods are no longer being policed by special gang officers, after members of entire units quit their assignments over rules requiring the disclosure of their personal financial information.

Los Angeles Police Department officials said they were confident the drain of officers would have little effect on gang crime, even though re-staffing of the units could take several months.

Some rank-and-file officers said they were already seeing signs of rising gang activity.

"More gang members are being seen walking around in public, crossing out each other's graffiti and going into each other's area a lot more," said Senior Lead Officer Bobby Hill, who works in the Northeast Division. "There's less pressure on them, they become more brazen."

Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger said Wednesday that all but one gang officer in the Northeast, Hollenbeck, 77th Street and Southeast divisions had quit their assignments over the financial rules.

The officers have not left the Police Department but instead have been returned to regular patrol duties.

"The last thing we want to do is create fear and trepidation in the hearts and minds of the community," Paysinger said. "I am very strong in my belief that the community is going to be OK."

Many of the officers will be patrolling the same neighborhoods they did while in the gang units. But they can't photograph gang members or access a statewide gang database. They will also be required to answer radio calls instead of focusing purely on gangs.

The officers quit ahead of a March deadline requiring narcotics and gang officers to reveal bank and other personal financial information as administrators try to snare corrupt officers in units frequently handling cash or drugs.

The rules were mandated by the U.S. Department of Justice after a scandal in the late 1990s involving corruption alleged against anti-gang officers in the LAPD Rampart division.

Gang officers are concerned the rules will jeopardize their safety if the information finds its way into the hands of gang members or their defense lawyers.

To ease gang officers' fears, several command staff members, including Paysinger and Chief Charlie Beck, signed the financial disclosure forms.

Paysinger said all LAPD gang units would be fully staffed with new officers by midsummer, when the weather heats up and gang activity typically increases.