This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Darwinek (talk | contribs) at 19:12, 28 September 2004. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 19:12, 28 September 2004 by Darwinek (talk | contribs)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)
"Rodney" Glen King (born April 2, 1965 in Sacramento, California) was an African-American motorist who, while videotaped by a bystander, was struck repeatedly by Los Angeles police officers (LAPD) during a police stop on March 3, 1991. The incident raised an outcry, as many people, both within and outside the African-American community, believed that the alleged beating was racially motivated, excessive, and an example of police brutality. The acquittal in a state court of four officers charged with using excessive force in subduing King led to riots in Los Angeles and around the country.
King had been pulled over for driving recklessly through a residential neighborhood. Later tests showed he was drunk and had marijuana in his system. When police ordered him out of the car, he refused, and the police eventually pulled him out. Twice, the police attempted to subdue him with tasers, but these did not succeed in rendering King immobile. Next, the police were accused of kicking King and striking him 56 times with night sticks, first to knock him down, then to keep him there as he attempted to lift his head while he lay on the ground.
In addition to the three officers personally involved in delivering blows, 24 other law enforcement officers allegedly watched the beating; some of them were said to have assisted in holding King down by placing their feet on his back. Two other African-Americans who were in the car with King cooperated with police, it was said, and were not harmed.
Three officers and a sergeant were indicted on March 15 for "assault by force likely to produce great bodily injury and a deadly weapon" and with assault "under color of authority," and two were charged with filing false police reports. Three of the men charged were non-Hispanic whites, and one was Hispanic.
The defense successfully filed for a change of venue away from Los Angeles County, where the incident occurred and where it was argued that the policemen would not receive a fair trial, to suburban Ventura County (Simi Valley), whose population is more affluent, contains a much smaller proportion of African-Americans, and contains a disproportionately large number of law-enforcement officers. At trial, the defense argued that the officers had legitimate reason to believe King was extremely dangerous and possibly on a mind-affecting drug such as PCP and that the force used was justified by that threat. Although media coverage had repeatedly emphasized the racial aspect of the case, King testified at trial that he did not believe the police beat him because he was black.
On April 29, 1992, three of the officers were acquitted by a jury of 10 non-Hispanic whites, one Hispanic, and an Asian. The jury could not agree on a verdict for one of the counts on one of the officers.
The verdict shocked much of the country. The President of the United States, George H. W. Bush, made a rare statement on a trial, saying that the verdict "has left us all with a deep sense of personal frustration and anguish." The verdict triggered massive rioting in Los Angeles, which left hundreds of buildings severely damaged or destroyed and dozens dead. Smaller riots occurred in other U.S. cities. During the disturbances King pleaded with the rioters, saying on national television, "Can't we all just get along?"
On May 1, as the unrest continued, President Bush announced that he would most likely charge the officers with violating King's civil rights. King testified in this Federal trial on March 9, 1993. Then on August 4, a federal judge sentenced LAPD officers Stacey Koon and Laurence Powell to 30 months in prison on this charge. The other officers were not convicted, and there was no rioting.
King's actual first name is Glen, not Rodney. The media referred to him as "Rodney King" because in either initial police reports or initial news reports, he was mistakenly called Rodney King, and as the news was rebroadcast, the error was rebroadcast as well. The name "Rodney" was not associated with Glen King (Glen being King's birthname) until after his 1991 car stop by police.
Since the 1991 incident, King has been arrested several times for drug infractions, violence, and motoring offenses.
The video of the incident is an example of inverse surveillance (i.e. citizens watching police). To the extent that the bystander was initially capturing the incident serendipitously, the recording was a form of sousveillance, in both the sense of inverse surveillance as well as the sense of personal experience capture. The video was first broadcast on the local Los Angeles television station KTLA Channel 5.
African American community and civil rights leaders have repeatedly used the Rodney King incident as an analogy of other incidents of perceived police beating against black suspects.
Fiction
- The movie Dark Blue is set with the events in the background, and contains the same themes.
External links
- Stan Chambers: "Rodney King and the Los Angeles Riots"
- Salon: "Rethinking Rodney King"
- Court TV: "Rodney King's Legacy"