Rodney King
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March 3, 1991: Rodney King beaten by LAPD officers
March 3, 1991: Rodney King beaten by LAPD officers

Rodney Glen King (born April 2, 1965 in Sacramento, California) is an African-American taxi driver who, in 1991, was stopped and then beaten by Los Angeles Police Department officers (Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Theodore Briseno and Sergeant Stacey Koon) after being chased for speeding. A bystander, George Holliday, videotaped much of the event from a distance. Part of the video was broadcast around the world and shows four LA police officers restraining and repeatedly striking a black man, while four to six other officers stand by.[1] There is no part of the tape that shows Mr. King attacking the officers, as some have claimed.[2] King had also been tasered by the officers.[3][4]

The resulting public outrage raised tensions between the black community and the LAPD, and increased anger over police brutality and issues such as unemployment, racial tension, and poverty in the black community of South Central Los Angeles. The four officers were tried in a state court for using excessive force, but were acquitted, due to a hung jury. The announcement of the acquittals sparked the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

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Arrest and trial

Rodney King was arrested by a group of police officers on March 3, 1991. The incident, except for the first thirteen seconds after King stopped, was captured on video by a private citizen, George Holliday, from his apartment near the intersection of Foothill Blvd and Osborne St. in Lake View Terrace. The officers testified that they believed King was under the influence of the dissociative drug phencyclidine (PCP).[5]

The Los Angeles district attorney charged the four officers with use of excessive force. The initial judge was replaced, however, and the new judge changed the venue, as well as the jury pool, citing contamination of the jury pool by the media coverage. The new venue was a new courthouse in Simi Valley in neighboring Ventura County. The jury consisted of Ventura County residents — ten whites, one Latino and one Asian. The prosecutor, Terry White, was African-American. The jury acquitted three of the officers, but could not agree about one of the charges for Powell. On April 29, 1992, only Powell was convicted.[6]

Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley said, "the jury's verdict will not blind us to what we saw on that videotape. The men who beat Rodney King do not deserve to wear the uniform of the L.A.P.D."[7]

LA riots and the aftermath

Main article: 1992 Los Angeles riots

The news of acquittal triggered the Los Angeles riots of 1992. By the time the police, the US Army, the Marines and the National Guard restored order, the casualty included 53 deaths, 2,383 injuries, more than 7,000 fires, damages to 3,100 businesses, and nearly $1 billion in financial losses. Smaller riots occurred in other cities such as Las Vegas and Atlanta. On May 1, 1992, the third day of the L.A riots, King appeared in public before television news cameras to appeal for calm, asking:

“ People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it, making it horrible for the older people and the kids?...It’s just not right. It’s not right. It’s not, it’s not going to change anything. We’ll, we’ll get our justice....Please, we can get along here. We all can get along. I mean, we’re all stuck here for a while. Let’s try to work it out. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to beat it. Let’s try to work it out.[8] ”

Federal trial of officers

After the riots, the Department of Justice reinstated investigation and obtained an indictment of violations of federal civil rights against the four officers. The federal trial focused more on the evidence as to the training of officers instead of just relying on the videotape of the incident. The jury found Officer Laurence Powell and Sergeant Stacey Koon guilty, who were subsequently sentenced to 30 months of prison, while Timothy Wind and Theodore Briseno were acquitted of all charges.

Analysis and cultural impact of the event

The video of the beating is an example of inverse surveillance of citizens watching police. Several copwatch organizations were subsequently organized nationally to safeguard against police abuse, and an umbrella group, October 22nd Coalition to Stop Police Brutality, was created. The riot was the backdrop for the 1997 film Riot, which focuses on four stories - Chinese, Hispanic, White and Black. The videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas modeled the 1992 Los Angeles Riots in the game after a corrupt police officer was found not guilty.

After the riots

King was awarded $3.8 million in a civil case and used some of the proceeds to start a hip hop music label, Straight Alta-Pazz Recording Company.[9]

King was arrested for spousal assault in 1999. In 2001, he was ordered to undergo a year of drug treatment after pleading guilty to three counts of being under the influence of PCP and one of indecent exposure.[10]

On August 27, 2003, King was arrested again for speeding and running a red light while under the influence of alcohol. He failed to yield to police officers and slammed his SUV into a house, breaking his pelvis.[11]

While going home on November 29, 2007, King was shot in the face, arms, back and torso with birdshot by two thieves attempting to steal his bicycle,[12] but his injuries were characterized as not life threatening.[13]

In October 2008, King will appear on the second season of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.[14]

References

  1. ^ L.A. Times feature article
  2. ^ George Holliday. The footage second-by-second.
  3. ^ Rodney King Beating: MARCH 19, 1991
  4. ^ Torture in Democratic Societies: Interview with Darius Rejali
  5. ^ Lou Cannon. Official Negligence: How Rodney King and the Riots Changed Los Angeles ISBN 0813337259
  6. ^ JURIST - The Rodney King Beating Trials
  7. ^ NY Times: April 30 1992, THE POLICE VERDICT; Los Angeles Policemen Acquitted in Taped Beating
  8. ^ Ralph Keyes. The Quote Verifier: Who Said What, Where, and When. ISBN 0-312-34004-4
  9. ^ BBC News "Flashback: Rodney King and the L.A riots"
  10. ^ Where are they now? "Rodney King's claim to fame"
  11. ^ Rodney King slams SUV into house, breaks pelvis
  12. ^ Reston, Maeve (2007-11-30). "Rodney King is shot while riding his bicycle.", Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2007-11-30. 
  13. ^ "Rodney King Sprayed With Shotgun Pellets", Associated Press (2007-11-29). Retrieved on 2007-11-29. 
  14. ^ TV Guide; June 23, 2008; Page 8

See also

External links
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