LA city council president introduces motion to cut LAPD funding

The president of Los Angeles's city council introduced a motion Wednesday that would direct officials to identify millions of dollars' worth of funding cuts to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) following criticism of the department's treatment of protesters.

Councilwoman Nury Martinez (D) said in a statement released on Twitter that the move was about resetting the city's priorities following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in Minneapolis police custody last week. Video of Floyd's arrest and death sparked protests around the country, including in Los Angeles.

"Today we [introduced] a motion to cut funding to the LAPD, as we reset our priorities in the wake of the murder of #GeorgeFloyd & the #BlackLivesMatter call that we all support to end racism. This is just one small step. We cannot talk about change, we have to be about change," Martinez tweeted.

If passed, Martinez's motion would direct officials to identify between $100 million and $150 million in cuts that could be made to the department's funding, a small chunk of the department's yearly $1.18 billion budget.