March 3, 1991, George Holliday filmed the brutal LAPD beating of Rodney King. Officers hit King over 50 times, As Holliday quietly filmed the scene from his balcony, the LAPD officers, most of whom were white, surrounded King, a 25-year-old Black man. Over the next nine minutes, Holliday filmed the cops using batons, stun guns, and their feet and fists to beat King, even once he was lying prone on the ground causing severe injuries. Despite the video, the officers were initially acquitted of charges, sparking the historic 1992 L.A. Riots.
While the official police report claimed King only had "minor" injuries, the grainy camcorder footage revealed a violent assault that left him with severe physical injuries. Despite the world seeing the beating on tape, on April 29, 1992, the jury acquitted officers Koon, Wind, Briseno, and Powell of all charges (save for one assault charge against Powell that ended in a hung jury). Hours later, Los Angeles erupted into riots and changed the American conversation on police brutality forever.
