Southern California will need 24,000 officers for the 2028 Olympics – NBC Los Angeles

Security planners for the 2028 Olympics have estimated at least 24,000 police officers will be needed over the 66 days of the events to protect venues across Southern California, and plans are in motion to bring in extra help from around California and the rest of the country.

The LAPD will be responsible for security and traffic control around eight venues within Los Angeles City limits, as well as some road events, creating a need for as many as 6,700 officers on single days with multiple, simultaneous events.

As of last month, the department estimated it will be able to provide roughly one-third, or 2,200, of those officers based on its current total employment of around 8,500 officers.

“That leaves a staffing gap of approximately 4,400 officers per day,” said LAPD Commander Mario Mota, who heads the Major Events Group and is managing security planning for the games.

“The LAPD alone needs roughly 12,000 to 15,000 officers assigned to the LAPD to cover the games,” he said, referring to only the venues and tasks in the City over the two months.

The state legislature is considering a bill sponsored by LA Mayor Karen Bass to authorize the hiring of out-of-state police officers, who would get temporary law enforcement certifications to work in California during the summer of 2028.

“Any of the out-of-state officers will receive California POST training and will be required to comply with, and enforce all California laws,” said Assemblywoman Tina McKinnor, who introduced the bill.

The out-of-state officers, perhaps thousands of them, would need to be housed and trained in advance of and during the two months of the Olympic and Paralympic events.

The LAPD was also discussing the possibility of dispatching the recruits being trained over the summer of 2028 to work in Olympic security roles, several law enforcement sources told NBC4 Investigates, but they also said it was one of a number of plans under consideration to boost staffing.

The recruit use discussion was first reported by the LA Times.

The Olympics will return to Los Angeles for an historic third time in 2028. The LA 2028 Olympics Opening Ceremony is July 14, 2028 with competition through July 30, 2028. The LA28 Paralympic Games will kick off Aug. 15, 2028 and close Aug. 27, 2028.