Daily Archives: March 4, 2011

Rodney King was reportedly pulled over by police in Arcadia, California for running a red light the day before the 20^th anniversary of the savage beating he received from the LAPD.

King was reportedly given was a citation by police not for running the light but for driving with an expired license and wound up calling a friend to take him and his fiancée home.

King was notoriously savagely beaten by four white police officers following a high-speed chase in a Los Angeles suburb on March 3, 1991. The nine-minute lumping was caught on camera by an onlooker and the footage eventually reached the entire world, touching off a strong debate on police brutality.

Despite the footage, the four officers were acquitted a year later, sparking huge riots in the black community. Fifty-five people died, 200 were injured and the onslaught of lootings led to $1 billion worth of property damage in the LA area.

King, who was left with brain and kidney damage from the whooping, was eventually awarded $3.8 million in a lawsuit he settled with the city of Los Angeles. However, throughout the years he has reportedly struggled with substance abuse and has been arrested a few times for driving related offenses.