Paper Topic:

Los Angeles Riots of 90s-Rodney King

Los Angeles Riot

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Introduction

On March 3 , 1991 , Rodney King led a group of LAPD police officers on a high-speed car chase in San Fernando Valley . Once cornered , King and his friends were pulled over and ed to move out of the car . King was subsequently beaten by the LAPD officers . King suffered 56 baton strokes , was kicked in the head and body and was stunned by a stun gun ( Shielded from Justice : Police Brutality and Accountability in United States , 1998 . An amateur

photographer caught everything on video and it was subsequently shown around the world exposing the extent of force and violence law enforcement officers may employ against an unarmed individual

Charges of assault with a deadly weapon and assault under color of authority were d against the police officers . On April 29 , 1992 the police officers involved were acquitted by the state court . This triggered one of the worst riots in American History ( Rodney King Reluctant Symbol of Police Brutality , 2001 . After the riot fifty four (54 ) people were killed , two thousand three hundred eighty three (2383 ) were injured and thirteen thousand two hundred twelve (13 ,213 were arrested , property damages was estimated to be at seven hundred Million 700 M ( Shielded from Justice : Police Brutality and Accountability in United States , 1998

A . Plan of Action by the LAPD

I believe the most crucial time in every hostile situation e .g . riots hostage-taking scenarios , is its inception . It is at this point where the mob assesses the whole situation . If the response of the police force toward the incident is not only weak but is also delayed , these people get emboldened and they start to get out of control . They not only increase in number as other people take advantage of the confusion and anarchy but emotions also start to run high . It is because of this reason that the police officers should start to take control of the situation at its very beginning . This is what the Los Angeles Police Force failed to do

The LAPD definitely lacked a concrete plan of action to avert the impending dis that may happen . It was very disturbing that the LAPD failed to anticipate the sequence of events may probably trigger the riot . It could be recalled that even before the beating of Rodney King was shown on television , social unrest in Los Angeles was noticeable . There was an extremely high unemployment rate , the citizens were hit by a nation-wide recession , and there was a widespread perception about the LAPD being engaged in racial profiling and excessive force . The whole city was like a time bomb waiting to explode . The Rodney King incident was only the last straw for the people of Los Angeles to handle

Further , the LAPD should have noticed that the situation was so fragile that the venue of the trial was transferred to Ventura County . This is an indication that the issue was serious and that it was highly probable that...

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