Rodney King 1991

Rodney King was a victim of a police brutality case that led to public protests and riots. Rodney King shows the injuries he received in a beating by Los Angeles police officers on March 3, 1991. ‪

•‬The photo, taken three days after the attack, was one of three introduced into evidence by the prosecution in the trial of four LAPD officers in a Simi Valley, California courtroom on March 24, 1992. ‪

•‬The police officers caught King after a high-speed chase, dragged him from his car, and brutally beat him. ‪

•‬An amateur cameraman, George Holliday, took a video which was broadcast nationally of what happened. ‪

•‬The officers were indicted for assault with a deadly weapon and use of excessive force, but after a three-month trial three officers were acquitted by an all-white jury and they declared a mistrial for the fourth. ‪

•‬The result sparked the L.A. riots. Over 50 people were killed during the explosive riots. ‪

•‬Nine years later, two of the officers were found guilty of civil rights violations and sentenced to prison.