About Rodney King
Rodney Glen King (April 2, 1965 – June 17, 2012) was an African-American man who on March 3, 1991 became a victim of police brutality when he was severely beaten by officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) during his arrest after a high speed pursuit on California's state freeway, Interstate 210 having initially evaded arrest. George Holliday, an uninvolved resident, saw and filmed the incident from his nearby balcony and then sent the footage, which showed an unarmed King on the ground being beaten, to KTLA, a local news station who broadcast the film, which was then rebroadcast by other stations casting a worldwide spotlight on the LAPD and King. King was taken to Pacifica Hospital after his arrest where he was found to have suffered a fractured facial bone, a broken right ankle, and multiple bruises and lacerations. Nurses later reported that the officers who accompanied King openly joked and bragged about the number of times they had hit him. Blood and urine samples taken five hours after his arrest measured King's blood alcohol content at 0.075%, below the legal limit of 0.08%. The LAPD initially charged King with "felony evading", but later dropped the charge. Upon his release, King spoke to reporters from his wheelchair, with his injuries evident: a broken right leg in a cast, his face badly cut and swollen, bruises on his body, and a burn area on his chest where he had been jolted with a stun gun. King described the beating and also stated that he was scared for his life when the officers drew their guns on him. Three of the four officers were charged with excessive force. Within hours of their acquittals the 1992 Los Angeles riots started, sparked by outrage among minorities over the trial's verdict as well as long-standing societal issues. King appeared on television to advocate for peace, that has been often paraphrased as "Can we all just get along?". The federal government prosecuted a separate civil rights case, obtaining grand jury indictments of the four officers for violations of King's civil rights. In April 1993, two of the officers were found guilty in federal court and sentenced to prison while the other two were acquitted. In a separate civil lawsuit in 1994, a jury found the City of Los Angeles liable and awarded King $3.8 million. In a separate civil lawsuit in 1994, a jury found the City of Los Angeles liable and awarded King $3.8 million in damages. KTLA's Warren Wilson was the first reporter to take on the story, interviewing King inside his jail ward. At this point, Holliday's video recording shows King on the ground after being tasered by Koon. An uninvolved resident, George Holliday, saw and filmed the incident from his nearby balcony and sent the footage, which showed King on the ground being beaten, to a local news station, KTLA.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.