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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Does LA's police department plan to close a sexual-assault investigation unit?

By Jacob Alabab-Moser
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YES

Facing budget pressures, Los Angeles' police department says it plans to dissolve a sexual-assault unit that is part of its robbery and homicide division, according to NBC's Los Angeles affiliate. A dozen specialized detectives and one lieutenant will be reassigned to geographic bureaus. In June, the city council cut $150 million from the department's $1.86 billion budget after Black Lives Matter protests called for shifting funding from policing to community programs. The department is also anticipating city funding pressures as the coronavirus pandemic continues.

LA's police chief is planning to cut other specialized investigative groups as well, in order to preserve capabilities to handle daily emergencies and calls. The alternative would be to "decimate our patrol staffing," he explained.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
NBC Los Angeles: LAPD's ‘SVU' that investigates complicated sex crimes shuttered in initial budget cuts
Los Angeles Times: LAPD to dramatically downsize special units
Los Angeles Police Department: Commitment to community and potential budget cuts
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Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.