In reality it's an absolute dogshit job. The hours are long, there's a very real chance of PTSD or bodily harm, and they haze you worse than bootcamp. LAPD has a problem recruiting since everyone who is level headed enough to make a good cop sees it rightly as this horrible job.
You can fix a lot of it but at the end of the day, no one likes standing on your feet directing traffic for hours in a black uniform on a hot day, or having to pin down an aggressive drunk at 3am. LAPD functions in a lot of ways as a bouncer would, but with more risk of contracting bloodborne disease. It's just a not a very pleasant line of work no matter what you do or how you reform the system, and that's why they can't recruit.
