Los Angeles
police chief William Bratton said Thursday the city has had
fewer problems with paparazzi since Britney Spears "started
wearing clothes" and other celebrities changed their
partying ways.
"If you notice,
since Britney started wearing clothes and behaving,
Paris is out of town not bothering anybody anymore, thank
God, and evidently, Lindsay Lohan has gone gay, we
don't seem to have much of an issue," Bratton told
KNBC TV.
Bratton said the
altered behavior makes proposals being considered for
new laws to crack down on paparazzi an unnecessary "farce"
because photogs who swarm neighborhoods and shopping
districts have been losing interest in snapping stars
in trouble.
"If the ones that
attract the paparazzi behave in the first place, like
we expect of anybody, that solves about 90% of the problem.
The rest we can deal with," he said.
Bratton, wearing
gray gym clothes with a towel around his neck, said he
interrupted his workout to speak to a TV reporter after
hearing city councilman Dennis Zine discussing
possible new restrictions on freelance photographers.
Zine was set to lead a meeting later in the day at City
Hall to discuss ways to restrict aggressive paparazzi.
Officials from
celeb enclaves in and around Los Angeles such as Beverly
Hills, West Hollywood, and Malibu were to take part.
Bratton called
the hearing "grandstanding and foolishness" and said
he would not participate.
"We have
sufficient laws on the books" to deal with aggressive
paparazzi, he said.
Bratton later
made similar remarks to other TV stations.
Zine said his
concerns about paparazzi were prompted by the $25,000 that
police spent to escort Spears from her Studio City home to a
West Los Angeles medical center for a psychiatric
evaluation in January.
Zine has authored
a motion for the city to require a "personal safety
zone" around celebs, but it has not yet been heard by the
city council. Bratton has said such an ordinance would
be ambiguous and difficult to enforce.
In the past the
city has used existing ordinances to curb paparazzi.
Earlier this month, for example, police arrested two
photographers for loitering near Spears's home. (AP)
