LOS ANGELES (CNS) - All Los Angeles city flags will be at half-staff until sunset on Jan. 7 in honor of former Los Angeles Police Department First Assistant Chief Earl Paysinger, Mayor Eric Garcetti proclaimed.
“Chief Paysinger embodied everything a police officer should be: a strong, humble, selfless leader who always put young people and the community first,” Garcetti wrote in a memo Wednesday, going on to describe Paysinger as a “Los Angeles Police Department giant.”
Paysinger died Monday at the age of 64. He had battled cancer and died at a hospital, LAPD Cmdr. Al Labrada told the Los Angeles Times.
Paysinger spent 41 years with the LAPD, retiring in 2016, when he was appointed as USC's vice president of civic engagement, a post he held at his death.
“Our university and our city are better because of him, and I know we are all grateful for the wonderful legacy that he has built over these many years,” said David Brown, USC interim senior vice president for university relations. “His team, and so many throughout USC, will continue his good work with purpose and passion.”
At USC, Paysinger strengthened community outreach and involvement in the neighborhoods surrounding the university. Through programs like the Good Neighbors Campaign, which provides educational and financial support to local families, businesses and organizations, he tackled tangible issues like small businesses and homelessness while working to elevate residents' social, physical and economic well-being.
“There are always opportunities unrealized,” Paysinger said in 2016. “As many programs as there are and opportunities available, there's still a population of community and youth looking for something else and our job is to provide that something else.”