California cops wearing symbol of rank in a casual manner (8)
I believe the answer is:
slapdash
'in a casual manner' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.
'california cops wearing symbol of rank' is the wordplay.
'california cops' becomes 'lapd' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'wearing' is an insertion indicator.
'symbol of rank' becomes 'sash' (part of a military uniform).
'lapd' placed inside 'sash' is 'SLAPDASH'.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for slapdash that I've seen before include "Perfunctory" , "Careless - haphazard" , "Cowboy" , "Slipshod, sloppy" , "disorganised" .)