APRIL 29

On this date in 1992, the jury acquitted the four police officers in Los Angeles who had been charged with assault and use of excessive force in the 1991 traffic arrest of a black man named Rodney King who originally failed to stop his car when requested and evaded their attempts to stop him.  A person who lived nearby the scene filmed what happened and sent the film to an LA TV station.  In today's parlance, it went viral.  The country was aghast!

Within hours of the verdict, riots broke out in East Los Angeles and in other cities across the country.  In LA, rioting and destruction lasted six days there.  It resulted in 63 deaths, over 2,000 injuries, more than 7,000 fires, and damage to over 3,000 businesses; all at a cost of more than a billion dollars to the city and businesses. 

This case made America sensitive to future charges of police brutality - especially with regards to the black community.  It's effects are still being felt.

Interestingly, the jury who acquitted the officers saw parts of the tape that had been deleted from the over-TV version and never shown to the public.