LAX shooting lessons still linger after 1 year

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- It has been nearly a year since a gunman opened fire at Los Angeles International Airport, killing a Transportation Security Administration officer. While some changes have been made since that somber day, some complain it's not enough.

It was Nov. 1, 2013 when shots rang out inside Terminal 3 at LAX. A lone gunman armed with an assault rifle opened fire.

TSA Agent Gerardo Hernandez was killed and several others were wounded. Now, the union that represents the airport's police officers says the Airport Authority has done nothing to prevent a repeat of that incident.

"The police officers did an outstanding job. The chaos and confusion was happening at the management level and that still hasn't been corrected at this point," said Marshall McClain, the president of the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association. The organization represents officers who work for the Los Angeles World Airport's Police Department.

"It's not just what we want to have done. It's what all the experts are recommending that hasn't been done," McClain said.

However, Los Angeles Airport Police Chief Patrick Gannon has a different take.

"Are we safer today than we were last year? Yes, we are," Gannon said.

In response to the union's assertions, Gannon pointed out that the airport has since installed in a massive closed-circuit camera system and has enacted new emergency procedures in the event of another attack. But he says there is only so much that can be done.

"I can't guarantee that tomorrow, somebody wouldn't be able to come here and commit a violent act. I wish I could say that, but that's not the case," Gannon said.

The airport police union says that the number of uniformed airport officers has dropped from 450 in 2010 to the current number of 398. But Gannon disputes those figures, saying the department currently boasts more than 500 sworn officers.

"I don't know where they're getting those numbers," Gannon said.

Marshall says the fact that the Airport Authority hires a contingent of LAPD officers to patrol LAX causes confusion and diverts money away from the airport's police department.

"That money is going into the city coffers, going into LAPD's budget. We can use the money better here," Marshall said.

But Gannon says the split policing duties make LAX a safer place.

"I'm going to rely on all of the resources that are available to me in order to protect this airport to the best it can be," Gannon said.

The airport police union and management are currently in the middle of contract negations. The union says it has been working without a contract since June. The union is also calling for the city to appoint an inspector general to audit the Airport Authority's policies.