3 Mai 1991 Jahr - Rodney King Beating

Beschreibung:

Rodney King (1965-2012) was apprehended by police after a high-speed chase and subsequently brutalized by four officers while the other responding officers stood by and watched. though King was unarmed and clearly posed no threat to the dozen or so armed officers on the scene, officers Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Theodore Briseno, and Stacey Koon continued to kick King and strike him with their batons. Unbeknownst to them, civilian George Holliday was filming the ordeal and later released the video to KTLA.

The four policemen involved were charged with assault and use of excessive force and were acquitted on April 29, 1992.

News of the acquittal insensed African American communities across the nation and mear hours after the verdict riots broke loose in major cities across the states and in Canada. In California, Riots were led mainly by black and Latino communities who expressed their outrage by wreaking havoc on their town. The infamous court decision sent the message that the safety of black citizens was not a priority. The riots in South LA killed 63 people and cost nearly a billion in damages.