Chapter 1

March 3, 1991, Los Angeles:
The LAPD and the Rodney King Videotape

While the videotapes of Bull Conner’s southern brutalities—1961-1963—during the Civil Rights decade of the 1960s have largely faded into the past, the 1991 Rodney King videotape and riots have remained etched in the American psyche …

Rodney King was born in Sacramento April 2, 1965; he grew up in Altadena, California. In November, 1989, he robbed a store in Monterey Park, wielding an iron bar. He threatened a Korean store owner with the iron bar; he was caught, convicted and sentenced to two years in prison. He was paroled after one year.

In the evening of March 3, 1991, he and two companions, Bryant Allen and Freddie Helms, were driving west on the Foothill Freeway (Interstate 210) in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angles.

At 12:30 a.m., officers Tim and Melanie Singer, husband-and-wife team members of the California Highway Patrol, noticed King’s car speeding. They pursued King, but he refused to pull over; King later stated that he refused to pull over because a charge of driving under the influence (of alcohol) would violate his parole for his earlier robbery conviction.

King left the Freeway and the high-speed pursuit continued. After about eight miles, officers cornered King in his car. The LAPD arrived—officer Stacey Koon, Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind, Theodore Briseno and Rolando Solano.

Officer Tim Singer ordered King and his passengers to leave the car—the two others, Allen and Helms, did so and were arrested without incident. King got out, acted in a bizarre manner and waved to a police helicopter now hovering overhead. He grabbed his buttocks, which officer Melanie Singer believed to mean he was reaching for a weapon. She drew her weapon and approached him, preparing to arrest him.

At this point, Stacey Koon, the ranking member of the LAPD announced that the LAPD would be in charge. He ordered the other LAPD officers to holster their weapons; LAPD officers are instructed not to approach a suspect with weapons drawn, as a suspect may attempt to grab an officer’s weapon. Koon then ordered the LAPD officers to “swarm” King.

King was able to throw Powell and Briseno off his back; LAPD officers then believed that King has taken the drug phencyclidine (PCP)—common street name Angel Dust—although a toxicology test later proved negative for that drug.

King was then hit by high-voltage Taser weaponstwice and overcame both electrical charges.

At this point, George Holliday watching from nearby, began videotaping the incident. He eventually had nine minutes of black-and-white videotape.

King is shown in the tape, rising, and moving to attack officer Powell or to escape. King and Powell collide; Powell hits King with his baton and King falls to the ground. Powell hits him several more times; Briseno moves in attempting to stop Powell from hitting King again. Koon apparently says “that’s enough,” but Powell and Wind are seen on the tape, continuing to hit King.

Koon then ordered the continuing use of the batons—ordering Powell and Wind to hit King with “power strokes.”

Koon ordered the officers to “hit his joints, hit his wrists, hit his elbows, hit his knees, hit his ankles.”

Holliday continued videotaping the assault.

The officers miss oc