[quote]Rodney King, whose beating by Los Angeles police in 1991 was caught on camera and sparked riots after the acquittal of the four officers involved, was found dead in his swimming pool Sunday, authorities and his fiancee said. He was 47.Police in Rialto, California, received a 911 call from King's fiancee, Cynthia Kelly, about 5:25 a.m., said Capt. Randy DeAnda. Responding officers found King at the bottom of the pool, removed him and attempted to revive him. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital, DeAnda said.There were no preliminary signs of foul play, he said, and no obvious injuries on King's body. Police are conducting a drowning investigation, DeAnda said, and King's body would be autopsied."His fiancee heard him in the rear yard," he said, and found King in the pool when she went outside.Kelly was a juror in King's lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles in 1994.
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120412074227-rodney-king-2-story-body.jpg[/IMG]2011: Rodney King, 20 years later
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120617025529-rodney-king-1-story-body.jpg[/IMG]2011: Rodney King's nightmare
King's beating after a high-speed car chase and its aftermath forever changed Los Angeles, its police department and the dialogue on race in America.King was 25 and on parole after a robbery conviction in April 1991. In an interview in 2011, he recalled he had been drinking and was headed home from a friend's house when he saw a police car following him and panicked, thinking he would be sent back to prison. So he attempted to flee."I had a job to go to that Monday, and I knew I was on parole, and I knew I wasn't supposed to be drinking, and I'm like 'Oh, my God,'" he told CNN.[URL="http://www.cnn.com/2012/04/28/us/rodney-king-profile/index.html"]Related: Rodney King looks back without anger[/URL]He realized he couldn't outrun the police, but looked for a public place to stop. "I saw all those apartments over there, so I said, 'I'm gonna stop right there,'" he said. "'If it goes down, somebody will see it.'"An amateur cameraman caught the scene as four white police officers struck King more than 50 times with their wooden batons and used a stun gun on him.King said as the officers beat him, they yelled, "We are going to kill you, n***er," although the officers denied using racial slurs.The video shows King cowering on the ground and attempting to crawl away as he is surrounded by a crowd of police officers. Four of them used their nightsticks to strike him.King was beaten nearly to death. Three surgeons operated on him for five hours.The video of the beating appeared on national television two days later, focusing attention on the issue of racially-motivated police brutality."We finally caught the Loch Ness Monster with a camcorder," King attorney Milton Grimes said.Four LAPD officers -- Theodore Briseno, Laurence Powell, Timothy Wind and Sgt. Stacey Koon -- were indicted on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force by a police officer.But following a three-month trial in the predominantly white Los Angeles suburb of Simi Valley, three of the officers were acquitted of all charges. The jury, which had all white members, deadlocked on one charge of excessive force against Powell, and a mistrial was declared on that charge.Powell's attorney, Michael Stone, said earlier this year the unedited video worked against King and helped prove the officers' case.
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120426084701-vault-la-riots-20-years-later-00005321-story-body.jpg[/IMG]Los Angeles riots: 20 years later
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120424041220-exp-point-king-one-00002001-story-body.jpg[/IMG]King writes memoir sharing his story
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120424042242-exp-point-king-two-00002001-story-body.jpg[/IMG]Rodney King on getting beyond race
[IMG]http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120424042011-exp-point-king-three-00002001-story-body.jpg[/IMG]King finds forgiveness after 21 years
"Most of the nation only saw a few snippets where it's the most violent," Stone said. "They didn't see (King) get up and run at Powell."But African-Americans in Los Angeles exploded in outrage. Rioters ran through the streets -- looting businesses, torching buildings and attacking those who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. The violence was responsible for more than 50 deaths and $1 billion in property damage.On the third day of rioting, King emerged from seclusion to make a plea: "People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along?"The violence ceased, but the debate did not.Nearly a year later, the four officers stood trial in federal court on civil rights charges. Two African-Americans were picked for the jury, and King testified. He hedged, however, on whether police used racial slurs during the beating. He told CNN in 2011 that slurs were used, but said he vacillated on the stand because his mother had told him to avoid talking about race.Koon and Powell were found guilty and sentenced to 30 months in prison. Briseno and Wind were acquitted."It was like ... I just hope we just get one," King said. "I hope we just get one on that. If we get one, we're good. So to get the two, I was really happy."King also sued the city of Los Angeles."Half of them had no sympathy whatsoever," Kelly, his fiancee, told CNN earlier this year about her fellow jurors. "... They just didn't care. Like, 'He broke the law. He deserved what he got.' I told them they were crazy. It was about justice for what happened to him. No one deserves to get beat like that."The other jurors came around, and King was awarded $3.8 million in damages.In later years, King had several more run-ins with the law, including a 90-day jail stint in 1996 for a hit-and-run involving his wife at the time. On the 20th anniversary of the beating in 2011, he was pulled over and ticketed for a minor traffic violation."The trouble that (people) see me in is a part of my life that I'm working on," he said in 2011. "I'll always have an issue when it comes to alcohol. My dad was an alcoholic. The addiction part is in my blood. What I've learned to do is arrest my addiction -- arrest it myself, so I don't get arrested."In 2008, King appeared on the VH1 reality show "Celebrity Rehab." He also released a memoir, "The Riot Within," in which he describes his difficult upbringing and his reflections on the beating and its aftermath.The ranks of Los Angeles police are much more diverse than they were at the time of King's beating. Changes have also been made -- some compelled by the courts -- in the way certain neighborhoods are patrolled and how complaints are handled.King said earlier this year he has forgiven the officers who beat him."Yes, I've forgiven them, because I've been forgiven many times," he said. "My country's been good to me ... This country is my house, it's the only home I know, so I have to be able to forgive -- for the future, for the younger generation coming behind me, so ... they can understand it and if a situation like that happened again, they could deal with it a lot easier."[/quote]
[URL]http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/17/us/obit-rodney-king/index.html[/URL]
Thread music.
[video=youtube;z-L3D8vKBCM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-L3D8vKBCM[/video]
That is sad. I saw a few interviews with him. He is a really down to Earth person.
47 is way to young for anybody to die.
[QUOTE=meatballfish;36369168]47 is way to young for anybody to die.[/QUOTE]
Same age as my dad :(
A little eerie to read considering the whole trayvon martin brouhaha
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369182]A little eerie to read considering the whole trayvon martin brouhaha[/QUOTE]
I don't really see the connection
[QUOTE=cr2142;36369176]Same age as my dad :([/QUOTE]
Same age as my mom :(
So he drowned in his pool, probably drunk? A pretty anti-climatic way to go.
For anyone that might be interested.
[video=youtube;tWhYmb1sANM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWhYmb1sANM[/video]
[QUOTE=Rents;36369209]So he drowned in his pool, probably drunk? A pretty anti-climatic way to go.[/QUOTE]
Honestly I think there where some drugs involved, drunk people generally can stay awake enough to swim (unless he had alcohol poisoning).
[QUOTE=leet;36369197]I don't really see the connection[/QUOTE]
black guy gets attacked by white guy(s) which gets blown up into a giant media spectacle?
Rest In Peace, Rodney King.
He's up there now. . .getting the shit beaten out of him by the angels.
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369182]A little eerie to read considering the whole trayvon martin [b]brouhaha[/b][/QUOTE]
why
[QUOTE=bluesky;36369241]Honestly I think there where some drugs involved, drunk people generally can stay awake enough to swim (unless he had alcohol poisoning).[/QUOTE]
I find it pretty tough swimming while sober, drinking much at all is probably about as good for your swimming skills as it is for driving.
[QUOTE=Rents;36369397]I find it pretty tough swimming while sober, drinking much at all is probably about as good for your swimming skills as it is for driving.[/QUOTE]
Not saying that it's safe, but I've driven and swam while seriously drunk. I'm not dead yet, don't you think his wife would've heard like HELP or something? He's a fucking millionaire, of course he's gonna be partying and doing drugs. I think if he was on drugs it would be easy to just nod out while you swim.
my parents fucking [I]hate [/I]this guy and I can't understand why
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369248]black guy gets attacked by white guy(s) which gets blown up into a giant media spectacle?[/QUOTE]
Too bad Trayvon's shooter wasn't white
[QUOTE=Furioso;36369483]my parents fucking [I]hate [/I]this guy and I can't understand why[/QUOTE]
Probably due to what happened on April 26th, 1992.
[video=youtube;z-L3D8vKBCM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-L3D8vKBCM[/video]
[QUOTE=bluesky;36369445]Not saying that it's safe, but I've driven and swam while seriously drunk. I'm not dead yet, don't you think his wife would've heard like HELP or something? He's a fucking millionaire, of course he's gonna be partying and doing drugs. I think if he was on drugs it would be easy to just nod out while you swim.[/QUOTE]
I'm assuming it was alcohol because he's quoted as saying he's an alcoholic in the article.
I'm still gonna say it was a alcohol + drug combination.
[QUOTE=AJisAwesome15;36369355]why[/QUOTE]
why not?
[editline]17th June 2012[/editline]
[QUOTE=LegndNikko;36369499]Too bad Trayvon's shooter wasn't white[/QUOTE]
[img_thumb]http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/4f864909eab8ead84a000020/george-zimmerman-mugshot.jpg[/img_thumb]
eh close enough
If only he had drained that pool when he was supposed to.
[QUOTE=leet;36369197]I don't really see the connection[/QUOTE]
Its because they were both black, probably.
From what I've seen Rodney King was a good guy. Sucks what happened to someone who practically became a figure of anti-police-corruption.
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369182]A little eerie to read considering the whole trayvon martin brouhaha[/QUOTE]
brouhaha
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369182]A little eerie to read considering the whole trayvon martin brouhaha[/QUOTE]
There is no connection or similarity between a 47 year old man drowning in his pool in California, and a teen getting shot in Florida.
[QUOTE=Lambeth;36369248]black guy gets attacked by white guy(s) which gets blown up into a giant media spectacle?[/QUOTE]
You are comparing Kings assault 21 years ago to Trayvons death?
How about this: King was arrested and sent to prison over an assault. He gets out and goes to a party, after leaving, he gets insanely paranoid about a patrol car behind him, because since he was on parole [b]it was illegal for him to be drinking and he had been, and now he's driving a car. And for some reason, his first response is to [b]run away from the police[/b]. This leads to a high speed pursuit, which ends with cops beating the ever-living shit out of him. Once this concludes, riots start all over LA, businesses and property are stolen and destroyed, and after his volley of lawsuits, King comes out with over 3 million from his settlement.
So here's a time line. King gets arrested and sent to prison, he gets out and drinks even though it goes against his parole. When leaving the party, he sees a patrol car and knows he didn't follow his parole and broke the law. So what does anyone who breaks the law do? Try to get away with it by speeding away from the police. Obviously he doesn't get away and the police give him a good clubbing. After this occurs, angry black folk all over LA decide the best course of action will be to rob stores and destroy property. Because retaliating against the police has to involve ruining the lives of people not involved! So then King takes this opportunity to sue the state and police, and walks away with a cool 3+ million in his pocket.
Trayvon got the munchies after smoking pot and decided to go get some skittles and iced tea, which resulted in him being tailed by a dumbass who was half white and half Puerto Rican. They get in a scuffle, and in that Trayvon takes a bullet and dies. And of course, Zimmerman is awaiting a fair trial to see if he truly is guilty. And since we don't have all the evidence, you can't say Zimmerman is guilty, because you don't know the whole story and you aren't part of the jury.
In conclusion, no comparison and all you did was make a fool of yourself.
Why is anyone celebrating Rodney King. He was a deadbeat drunk/druggie who got in a high speed chase with cops then got dragged from the car and beat up. And since then his pattern hadn't changed all he did was get drunk and get arrested.
[QUOTE=BANNED USER;36370667]In conclusion, no comparison and all you did was make a fool of yourself.[/QUOTE]
Fair enough. But now I want to know what the hell is wrong with the word brouhaha
I know it's a terrible stereotype, but Rodney King seems to fit the 'Black Stereotype' pretty good. The guy tries to get lose the police, he does drugs, and he can't swim. I'm going to Hell.
[QUOTE=Reserved Parkin;36370955]I know it's a terrible stereotype, but Rodney King seems to fit the 'Black Stereotype' pretty good. The guy tries to get lose the police, he does drugs, and he can't swim. I'm going to Hell.[/QUOTE]
Maybe you should educate yourself what happened to King and why the LA Riots started
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