The city of Beverly Hills announced on April 25 that Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli is retiring. Her last day will be May 15.
Beverly Hills City Manager George Chavez said in a statement, “During the chief’s tenure, crime was reduced while the department increased diversity, public outreach, best practices and advancements in technology. We thank Chief Spagnoli for her service to our community and her three decades of public service in law enforcement.”
Spagnoli said in a statement, “I am grateful to have served Beverly Hills and proud of the accomplishments over the past 4 years to keep this world-class community one of the safest in the nation.”
According to the Los Angeles Times, Spagnoli will be on vacation for an unspecified amount of time before the May 15 date.
Spagnoli has been the target of several allegations of making anti-Semitic and racist comments toward her employees since she became Beverly Hills’ first female police chief in February 2016. Among the allegations are that Spagnoli referred to yarmulkes as “funny little hats” and that she told Beverly Hills Police Captain Mark Rosen, who is Jewish and has since retired, that it’s “sacrilege for your people not to invest money.” Spagnoli also reportedly said, “Ew, gross” when learning that one of her employees is a lesbian and asked if she had to “dress Mexican” when she was invited to a Latino employee’s home.
There were also allegations that Spagnoli had sexual relations with two subordinate employees who later were rewarded with promotions over more qualified officers.
More than 21 current and former employees filed lawsuits and complaints regarding these allegations, resulting in the city of Beverly Hills paying $7.3 million in settlements, according to Los Angeles Magazine.
Spagnoli accused those making the allegations of launching a smear campaign against her.
“When you implement change, you create some waves within an organization, which is what has happened here,” Spagnoli told the Los Angeles Times in January 2019.
The city has defended Spagnoli from the allegations, although a report from NBC Los Angeles stated that Spagnoli was told that she had to step down by April 24 or else she would be removed from her position as police chief.
Attorney Brad Gage, who has represented several people who filed lawsuits against Spagnoli, told the Los Angeles Times, “To me, any employer who retains someone as long as they did in the face of so many different lawsuits from so many different long-term employees who had never brought claims of discrimination, retaliation or harassment ever in their long careers is very telling. Why did it take so long to get rid of the chief?”
