The 32-year veteran of the department is supported by both the rank-and-file and civil rights advocates and will take command at a time of uncertainty for the department.

Los Angeles Deputy Police Chief Charlie Beck has been selected to serve as the next chief of the Los Angeles Police Department. (Photo: Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has selected Charlie Beck, a 32-year veteran of the Los Angeles Police Department with strong support from rank-and-file officers and civil rights advocates alike, to serve as the next chief of the LAPD.

The choice, which the mayor announced at a news conference this morning, comes at a time of uncertainty for the department with its budget battered by the city's fiscal crisis and morale of rank-and-file officers wavering in the face of a new contract that offers no pay raise. [For the record: An earlier version of this story incorrectly said the mayor spoke at a news conference Wednesday morning.]

"He's a man who understands the past, a man who is an important part of the present and a man who will shape this department in the future," Villaraigosa said to a bank of television cameras transmitting the announcement live. "Charlie Beck will lead the charge to make Los Angeles the safest city it can be."

Beck, 56, has risen quickly through the department's command ranks in recent years and was widely viewed as the favorite to be tapped as the mayor's nominee.

He first made a mark as an up-and-coming commander by rehabilitating the LAPD's Rampart Division, which had been at the center of a corruption scandal, and later earned praise as head of the department's forces in South L.A. Throughout, Beck has managed to win kudos from both cops and onetime critics of the LAPD for blending a tough stance on crime with a progressive approach to bettering the LAPD's relationship with city residents.

An emotional Beck said he was "humbled" by his nomination, which must still be ratified by the City Council in a vote expected in the coming weeks, although no serious opposition is anticipated. "I pledge that I will not disappoint this city," said Beck, who choked up repeatedly while talking about his deep family ties to the LAPD, which include a daughter, son and sister on the force.

Beck cited his father, who rose to the rank of deputy chief in the department before retiring, as an symbol of the LAPD's conflicted past.

"Through him and through my own service, I know the ghosts and the glory of this police department's past," he said. "There were failures, [times when] we did not rise up to our ability, we did not do what we should have done in some instances. Those are the ghosts. But the glory of the department is reflected in my father's leadership, his ability to work with people and his ability to understand community policing before it was a popular concept."

In praising the choice, City Council President Eric Garcetti echoed the generational note that pervades Beck's place in the LAPD.

He "embodies the new era of the LAPD," Garcetti said. "He represents the future, but connects us with the best of our past. He has the vision, temperament, and intellect to continue making Los Angeles safer. I believe he is the right chief for our time."

Villaraigosa chose Beck nearly three months after Chief William J. Bratton abruptly announced his plan to step down after seven years in which he oversaw dramatic declines in crime and had improved long-strained relations between the police and minority communities. Bratton left office Saturday.

Beck faces the difficult task of sustaining his predecessor's hard-won gains made at a time when budget constraints were not the dire concern they are today.

Villaraigosa in recent days described the appointment as perhaps the most important decision he will make as mayor, and it appeared to be a difficult one for him. He met for several hours last week with Beck and the other two finalists for the job, Assistant Chief Jim McDonnell and Deputy Chief Michel Moore, and then summoned the three again Sunday afternoon.

The mayor had sought the advice of numerous elected officials and others. On Saturday, he met with Garcetti, along with other council members, and spent Sunday morning chatting with church leaders around the city. He is keenly aware that after inheriting Bratton, the new chief's success or failure could weigh heavily on his effectiveness governing Los Angeles, just as it did for Los Angeles' three previous mayors.

Beck's five-year term would run to 2014, one year after Villaraigosa will be forced out of office by term limits.

The mayor wrestled with the decision for a week, since the Los Angeles Police Commission forwarded the names of the three finalists, each of them respected veteran LAPD commanders whom Bratton tutored and promoted to the department's high ranks.

"The mayor gave this a very detailed, thorough and complete analysis," Councilman Dennis Zine said Sunday afternoon. "It's not an easy decision. All these men are very qualified."

After remaining decidedly neutral in the selection process, Paul M. Weber, president of the union representing the department's nearly 10,000 officers, quickly offered support for Beck, saying he knew Beck well and feels comfortable with the prospect of working with the new chief.

Such support will be crucial as Beck goes about the unenviable task of following a chief with a reputation as one of the country's leading law enforcement minds, implementing a crime-fighting strategy built around an obsessive focus on crime data that pinpointed areas of Los Angeles in need of additional police officers. Crime rates have fallen every year since Bratton's arrival.

Because of that success, the mayor and City Council leaders mostly tolerated Bratton's brash style and churlish politics -- last spring, Bratton threatened to remove officers from the Westside when that area's councilman voted to halt police hiring because of the city budget crisis.

Beck should not expect the same latitude.

"There's only one Bill Bratton and he certainly has his good points, but there were some things that I felt were counterproductive," Councilwoman Janice Hahn, who represents San Pedro and a portion of South Los Angeles, said earlier. "I think you can get the same results with the council with good communication and understanding."

Bratton also benefited from Villaraigosa's relentless push to add hundreds of officers to the department, an effort the council indirectly supported by tripling trash fees. But the city's current precarious finances have put an end to the hiring binge.

This year, the department's budget was slashed by $60 million, and hiring was reduced to replace only those officers who retire or resign. As a result, November's Police Academy class was canceled. Under the terms of a new contract with the city's police union, officers also will forgo cost-of-living increases for two years and instead of being paid overtime, many will be forced to take extra days off -- meaning fewer police patrolling the streets.

This comes as Los Angeles may see an increase in the number of convicted felons on local streets. In response to California's recent budget crisis, the California Legislature voted to slash $1 billion in funding for the state prison system and impose measures projected to reduce the prison population by more than 20,000 inmates over two years. Included in those cuts is a loss of $250 million for inmate rehabilitation services, including substance abuse programs, which experts said increases the likelihood that offenders will commit more crimes.

Councilman Tony Cardenas, who represents a portion of the northeast San Fernando Valley, said the new chief can overcome those potential setbacks by embracing alternative programs for combating crime, including prevention intervention programs for street gangs and prisoner reentry.

"They've come a long way in the last few years when it comes to the top brass, and more of the line officers in understanding those roles, but at the same time the new chief is going to have to expand on that, not abandon it," Cardenas said in an interview before Beck was chosen.