Sandra Figueroa-Villa is a former member of the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners, the five-member appointed body that oversees the Los Angeles Police Department. She has been described as "a key leader in the Latino community" in Los Angeles.[1]
Sandra Figueroa-Villa | |
|---|---|
| Born | Los Angeles, California |
| Education | California State University at Los Angeles |
| Occupation | Non-profit director |
| Employer | El Centro del Pueblo |
| Board member of | Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners |
| Spouse | Jesus Villa |
Biography
editFigueroa-Villa was born and raised in South Los Angeles and graduated from Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights and California State University at Los Angeles.[2]
She spent 40 years working in the non-profit sector, including as executive director since 1980 of El Centro del Pueblo, which describes itself as "a non-profit community service agency for the purpose of alleviating and mitigating the negative affects of gang violence."[3]
In 2013, she was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners.
In 2017, she voted in favor of a controversial LAPD pilot program to use unarmed drones in a limited capacity during high-risk tactical situations.[4]
Figueroa-Villa is a member of the Cal State LA President's Council.[5]
Controversy
editIn August 2019, an investigative report published by the Los Angeles Times said that Figueroa-Villa failed to disclose that her nonprofit group received millions of dollars in contracts from the city to work with the police on gang initiatives, as well as a $7,500 donation from PredPol, a technology firm with ties to the LAPD that developed a controversial software program to predict where and when crimes were likely to occur over the next 12 hours.[6][7][8]
References
edit- ^ "LAPD Commissioner Sandra Figueroa-Villa failed to disclose income from city contracts". Los Angeles Times. 2019-08-30. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "Figueroa-Villa, Sandra - Los Angeles Police Department". Los Angeles Police Department. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "Mission & History". El Centro Del Pueblo. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "LAPD Board Approves Controversial Drone Program". Student News Daily. 2017-10-18. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "President's Council". Cal State LA. 2017-10-25. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "LAPD Commissioner Sandra Figueroa-Villa failed to disclose income from city contracts". Los Angeles Times. 2019-08-30. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "Los Angeles Police Commissioner Failed to Disclose Income From City Contracts: Records". KTLA. 2019-08-30. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ "LAPD pioneered predicting crime with data. Many police don't think it works". Los Angeles Times. 2019-07-03. Retrieved 2019-08-30.