1991 : POLICE BRUTALITY CAUGHT ON VIDEO:
At 12:45 a.m. on March 3, 1991, robbery parolee Rodney G. King stops
his car after leading police on a nearly 8-mile pursuit through the
streets of Los Angeles, California. The chase began after King, who
was intoxicated, was caught speeding on a freeway by a California
Highway Patrol cruiser but refused to pull over. Los Angeles Police
Department (LAPD) cruisers and a police helicopter joined the pursuit,
and when King was finally stopped by Hansen Dam Park, several police
cars descended on his white Hyundai.
A group of LAPD officers led by Sergeant Stacey Koon ordered King and
the other two occupants of the car to exit the vehicle and lie flat on
the ground. King's two friends complied, but King himself was slower
to respond, getting on his hands and knees rather than lying flat.
Officers Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Ted Briseno, and Roland Solano
tried to force King down, but he resisted, and the officers stepped
back and shot King twice with an electric stun gun known as a Taser,
which fires darts carrying a charge of 50,000 volts.
At this moment, civilian George Holliday, standing on a balcony in an
apartment complex across the street, focused the lens of his new video
camera on the commotion unfolding by Hansen Dam Park. In the first few
seconds of what would become a very famous 89-second video, King is
seen rising after the Taser shots and running in the direction of
Officer Powell. The officers alleged that King was charging Powell,
while King himself later claimed that an officer told him, "We're
going to kill you, nigger. Run!" and he tried to flee. All the
arresting officers were white, along with all but one of the other two
dozen or so law enforcement officers present at the scene. With the
roar of a helicopter above, very few commands or remarks are audible
in the video.
With King running in his direction, Powell swung his baton, hitting
him on the side of the head and knocking him to the ground. This
action was captured by the video, but the next 10 seconds were blurry
as Holliday shifted the camera. From the 18- to 30-second mark in the
video, King attempted to rise, and Powell and Wind attacked him with a
torrent of baton blows that prevented him from doing so. From the 35-
to 51-second mark, Powell administered repeated baton blows to King's
lower body. At 55 seconds, Powell struck King on the chest, and King
rolled over and lay prone. At that point, the officers stepped back
and observed King for about 10 seconds. Powell began to reach for his
handcuffs.
At 65 seconds on the video, Officer Briseno stepped roughly on King's
upper back or neck, and King's body writhed in response. Two seconds
later, Powell and Wind again began to strike King with a series of
baton blows, and Wind kicked him in the neck six times until 86
seconds into the video. At about 89 seconds, King put his hands behind
his back and was handcuffed.
Sergeant Koon never made an effort to stop the beating, and only one
of the many officers present briefly intervened, raising his left arm
in front of a baton-swinging colleague in the opening moments of the
videotape, to no discernible effect. An ambulance was called, and King
was taken to the hospital. Struck as many as 56 times with the batons,
he suffered a fractured leg, multiple facial fractures, and numerous
bruises and contusions. Unaware that the arrest was videotaped, the
officers downplayed the level of violence used to arrest King and
filed official reports in which they claimed he suffered only cuts and
bruises "of a minor nature."
George Holliday sold his video of the beating to the local television
station, KTLA, which broadcast the footage and sold it to the national
Cable News Network (CNN). The widely broadcast video caused outrage
around the country and triggered a national debate on police
brutality. Rodney King was released without charges, and on March 15
Sergeant Koon and officers Powell, Wind, and Briseno were indicted by
a Los Angeles grand jury in connection with the beating. All four were
charged with assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force
by a police officer. Though Koon did not actively participate in the
beating, as the commanding officer he was charged with aiding and
abetting it. Powell and Koon were also charged with filing false
reports.
Because of the uproar in Los Angeles surrounding the incident, the
judge, Stanley Weisberg, was persuaded to move the trial outside Los
Angeles County to Simi Valley in Ventura County. On April 29, 1992,
the 12-person jury, which included 10 whites and no African Americans,
issued its verdicts: not guilty on all counts, except for one assault
charge against Powell that ended in a hung jury. The acquittals
touched off rioting and looting in Los Angeles that grew into the most
destructive U.S. civil disturbance of the 20th century. In three days
of violence, more than 50 people were killed, more than 2,000 were
injured, and nearly $1 billion in property was destroyed. On May 1,
President George H.W. Bush ordered military troops and riot-trained
federal officers to Los Angeles to quell the riot.
Under federal law, the officers could also be prosecuted for violating
Rodney King's constitutional rights, and on April 17, 1993, a federal
jury convicted Koon and Powell for violating King's rights by their
unreasonable use of force under color of law. Although Wind and
Briseno were acquitted, most civil rights advocates considered the
mixed verdict a victory. On August 4, Koon and Powell were sentenced
to two and a half years in prison for the beating of King. King
received $3.8 million in a civil suit against the Los Angeles police
department.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1820 : Congress passes the Missouri Compromise
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4807
1863 : Congress passes Civil War conscription act
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4808
1918 : Russia makes a separate peace
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4809
1931 : "The Star-Spangled Banner" becomes official
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4810
his car after leading police on a nearly 8-mile pursuit through the
streets of Los Angeles, California. The chase began after King, who
was intoxicated, was caught speeding on a freeway by a California
Highway Patrol cruiser but refused to pull over. Los Angeles Police
Department (LAPD) cruisers and a police helicopter joined the pursuit,
and when King was finally stopped by Hansen Dam Park, several police
cars descended on his white Hyundai.
A group of LAPD officers led by Sergeant Stacey Koon ordered King and
the other two occupants of the car to exit the vehicle and lie flat on
the ground. King's two friends complied, but King himself was slower
to respond, getting on his hands and knees rather than lying flat.
Officers Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Ted Briseno, and Roland Solano
tried to force King down, but he resisted, and the officers stepped
back and shot King twice with an electric stun gun known as a Taser,
which fires darts carrying a charge of 50,000 volts.
At this moment, civilian George Holliday, standing on a balcony in an
apartment complex across the street, focused the lens of his new video
camera on the commotion unfolding by Hansen Dam Park. In the first few
seconds of what would become a very famous 89-second video, King is
seen rising after the Taser shots and running in the direction of
Officer Powell. The officers alleged that King was charging Powell,
while King himself later claimed that an officer told him, "We're
going to kill you, nigger. Run!" and he tried to flee. All the
arresting officers were white, along with all but one of the other two
dozen or so law enforcement officers present at the scene. With the
roar of a helicopter above, very few commands or remarks are audible
in the video.
With King running in his direction, Powell swung his baton, hitting
him on the side of the head and knocking him to the ground. This
action was captured by the video, but the next 10 seconds were blurry
as Holliday shifted the camera. From the 18- to 30-second mark in the
video, King attempted to rise, and Powell and Wind attacked him with a
torrent of baton blows that prevented him from doing so. From the 35-
to 51-second mark, Powell administered repeated baton blows to King's
lower body. At 55 seconds, Powell struck King on the chest, and King
rolled over and lay prone. At that point, the officers stepped back
and observed King for about 10 seconds. Powell began to reach for his
handcuffs.
At 65 seconds on the video, Officer Briseno stepped roughly on King's
upper back or neck, and King's body writhed in response. Two seconds
later, Powell and Wind again began to strike King with a series of
baton blows, and Wind kicked him in the neck six times until 86
seconds into the video. At about 89 seconds, King put his hands behind
his back and was handcuffed.
Sergeant Koon never made an effort to stop the beating, and only one
of the many officers present briefly intervened, raising his left arm
in front of a baton-swinging colleague in the opening moments of the
videotape, to no discernible effect. An ambulance was called, and King
was taken to the hospital. Struck as many as 56 times with the batons,
he suffered a fractured leg, multiple facial fractures, and numerous
bruises and contusions. Unaware that the arrest was videotaped, the
officers downplayed the level of violence used to arrest King and
filed official reports in which they claimed he suffered only cuts and
bruises "of a minor nature."
George Holliday sold his video of the beating to the local television
station, KTLA, which broadcast the footage and sold it to the national
Cable News Network (CNN). The widely broadcast video caused outrage
around the country and triggered a national debate on police
brutality. Rodney King was released without charges, and on March 15
Sergeant Koon and officers Powell, Wind, and Briseno were indicted by
a Los Angeles grand jury in connection with the beating. All four were
charged with assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force
by a police officer. Though Koon did not actively participate in the
beating, as the commanding officer he was charged with aiding and
abetting it. Powell and Koon were also charged with filing false
reports.
Because of the uproar in Los Angeles surrounding the incident, the
judge, Stanley Weisberg, was persuaded to move the trial outside Los
Angeles County to Simi Valley in Ventura County. On April 29, 1992,
the 12-person jury, which included 10 whites and no African Americans,
issued its verdicts: not guilty on all counts, except for one assault
charge against Powell that ended in a hung jury. The acquittals
touched off rioting and looting in Los Angeles that grew into the most
destructive U.S. civil disturbance of the 20th century. In three days
of violence, more than 50 people were killed, more than 2,000 were
injured, and nearly $1 billion in property was destroyed. On May 1,
President George H.W. Bush ordered military troops and riot-trained
federal officers to Los Angeles to quell the riot.
Under federal law, the officers could also be prosecuted for violating
Rodney King's constitutional rights, and on April 17, 1993, a federal
jury convicted Koon and Powell for violating King's rights by their
unreasonable use of force under color of law. Although Wind and
Briseno were acquitted, most civil rights advocates considered the
mixed verdict a victory. On August 4, Koon and Powell were sentenced
to two and a half years in prison for the beating of King. King
received $3.8 million in a civil suit against the Los Angeles police
department.
history.com/tdih.do
General Interest
1820 : Congress passes the Missouri Compromise
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4807
1863 : Congress passes Civil War conscription act
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4808
1918 : Russia makes a separate peace
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4809
1931 : "The Star-Spangled Banner" becomes official
history.com/tdih.do?action=tdihArticleCategory&id=4810
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