Rodney Glen King was an African American man who was a victim of police brutality.
45 Facts About Rodney King
2.
Rodney King described how he had knelt, spread his hands out, then slowly tried to move so as not to make any "stupid moves", being hit across the face by a billy club and shocked.
3.
Rodney King said he was scared for his life as they drew down on him.
4.
Rodney King was born in Sacramento, California, in 1965, the son of Ronald and Odessa Rodney King.
5.
On November 3,1989, Rodney King robbed a store in Monterey Park, California.
6.
Rodney King threatened the Korean store owner with an iron bar.
7.
Rodney King then hit the store owner with a pole before fleeing the scene.
8.
Rodney King stole two hundred dollars in cash during the robbery.
9.
Rodney King was caught, convicted, and sentenced to two years' imprisonment.
10.
Rodney King was released on December 27,1990, after serving one year in prison.
11.
Rodney King later married and had a daughter with Crystal Waters.
12.
Rodney King later said he tried to outrun the police because a charge of driving under the influence would violate his parole for his previous robbery conviction.
13.
Rodney King left the freeway near the Hansen Dam Recreation Area and the pursuit continued through residential streets at speeds ranging from 55 to 80 miles per hour, and through at least one red light.
14.
Rodney King grabbed his buttocks, which Officer Melanie Singer took to mean Rodney King was reaching for a weapon, though he was later found to be unarmed.
15.
Rodney King drew her pistol and pointed it at King, ordering him to lie on the ground.
16.
The officers later testified that they believed Rodney King was under the influence of phencyclidine, although Rodney King's toxicology tested negative for the drug.
17.
Rodney King is placed in handcuffs and cord cuffs, restraining his arms and legs.
18.
Rodney King is dragged on his abdomen to the side of the road to await the arrival of emergency medical rescue.
19.
Rodney 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.
20.
Pacifica Hospital nurses reported that the officers who accompanied Rodney King openly joked and bragged about the number of times they had hit Rodney King.
21.
Rodney King later sued the city for damages, and a jury awarded him $3.8 million, as well as $1.7 million in attorney's fees.
22.
The city did not pursue charges against Rodney King for driving while intoxicated and evading arrest.
23.
The first two seconds of videotape, contrary to the claims made by the accused officers, show Rodney King attempting to flee past Laurence Powell.
24.
The men who beat Rodney King do not deserve to wear the uniform of the LAPD.
25.
On March 9 of the 1993 trial, Rodney King took the witness stand and described to the jury the events as he remembered them.
26.
Rodney King strongly criticized King, who, he said, provoked the officers' initial actions.
27.
Rodney King refused and sued the city, and was awarded $3.8 million.
28.
Rodney King invested a portion of his settlement in a record label, Straight Alta-Pazz Records, hoping to employ minority employees, but it went out of business.
29.
Rodney King was subject to further arrests and convictions for driving violations after the 1991 incident, as he struggled with alcoholism and drug addiction.
30.
Rodney King was convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol, fined, and entered a rehabilitation program, after which he was placed on probation.
31.
Rodney King had previously been arrested twice on suspicion of abusing her.
32.
Rodney King was sentenced to 90 days in jail after being convicted of hit and run.
33.
Rodney King failed to yield to police officers and slammed his vehicle into a house, breaking his pelvis.
34.
On November 29,2007, while riding home on his bicycle, Rodney King was shot in the face, arms, and back with pellets from a shotgun.
35.
Rodney King reported that the attackers were a man and a woman who demanded his bicycle and shot him when he rode away.
36.
In May 2008, Rodney King checked into the Pasadena Recovery Center in Pasadena, California, where he filmed as a cast member of season 2 of Celebrity Rehab with Dr Drew, which premiered in October 2008.
37.
Rodney King appeared on Sober House, a Celebrity Rehab spin-off focusing on a sober living environment.
38.
Rodney King's appearance was aired in the third-season episode "Triggers".
39.
Rodney King won a celebrity boxing match against Chester, Pennsylvania, police officer Simon Aouad on September 11,2009, at the Ramada Philadelphia Airport in Essington.
40.
On September 9,2010, it was confirmed that Rodney King was going to marry Cynthia Kelley, who had been a juror in the civil suit he brought against the City of Los Angeles.
41.
On March 3,2011, the 20th anniversary of the beating, the LAPD stopped Rodney King for driving erratically and issued him a citation for driving with an expired license.
42.
Rodney King died 28 years to the day after his father, Ronald Rodney King, was found dead in his bathtub in 1984.
43.
Rodney King is interred at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Los Angeles County, California.
44.
Rodney King has become a symbol of police brutality, but his family remembers him as a "human, not a symbol".
45.
Rodney King started a nonprofit, the Rodney King Foundation, on behalf of her father.