Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti must resume his part-time duties as a lieutenant in the U.S. Navy Reserve with a stint on Saturday and Sunday at a military facility near the 710 Freeway in Bell.

Since 2005, when he enlisted, Garcetti has worked about 40 days a year on training and exercises with the reserve’s intelligence service, juggling his military obligations with his full-time job as a member of the City Council -- and now, as mayor.

“While serving in the Navy, he’s also mayor of Los Angeles, and is in contact with his staff and the Police and Fire departments, and is ready to act just as if he were doing any other activity over the weekend,” spokesman Yusef Robb said.

Garcetti, whose specific assignments are classified, plans to work all day Saturday and Sunday at the Navy Operational Support Center in Bell, but spend Saturday night at his family’s home in Silver Lake.


“If something were to happen, he can break away,” Robb said.

Garcetti abandoned a trip to Washington and returned home this week after violence and vandalism broke out in Los Angeles as protesters vented their anger over the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Florida killing of teenager Trayvon Martin. On Saturday morning, civil rights groups are planning a “Justice for Trayvon” vigil and rally outside the federal courthouse downtown.

Garcetti’s eight-year commitment to the Navy Reserve ends in September. During his campaign for mayor, he deferred several weekend training sessions that he was going to have to make up after the May 21 election.

Robb said he was unsure how many more days Garcetti still needed to put in for the Navy.


Garcetti has been eligible for deployment in Iraq or Afghanistan, but the Navy has not assigned him to any war zones. During the campaign, he expressed interest in extending his service in the reserve beyond September.

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