officers - The Black Vault

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(Indicate page, name of
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s·tar-News
------------------~~M~o~u~n~tC~fi~rpp~ln~g~l~n~Sp~e~c~e~B~eb~w~)--------------------1Pasadena, California
Date·
Edl~n: 3/11/91
Daily
0·350 (Rev. 5·8·81)
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, Police_ chief says
beatirig shatler~d
• ",:.~,-- ... • • ,AA:. -~ • -- ' • -
LAPD's imaae
-· ~ ~ -
By Rose Ana Berbeo
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES Chief Daryl F. Gates has
taped a video in which he vows to punish all
n~: POLICE CHIEF SAYS
BEATING SHATTERED LAPD'S
IMAGE
Character: CIVIL RIGHTS
or
Classification: 8 0-3 3 B
Submitting Office:
In de
Los Angeles
~ARCHED INOEXED'---1
SERIA~IZ£0,.......,_.....,... fiLED'----1
·officers involved in the relentless beating of a MAR 2 0 1991
.black motorist and assures that his faith in ihe
·Police Department remains unshaken. 1 LOS ANGELES
"We've been the model, the LAPD," he said.
J--.--.:..F.:;;B:....---==-~==rr~'i
"'Those thoughtless officers, 'in those· couple of
minutes, destroyed that image and it's going to
'take us a long time to rebuild that image."
Gates made his comments on a 15-rninute video- li·J St~te•·and fe~eral ~utn~~~t~es :.. On Sunday,-l>etltions were cirtape
first shown to officers during roll calls Fri- , ave jauncp~. mve~!IgatlQP.$: m- -~~t€;4 qn Y.~¢:~e. B~!it;b· apd m ..
·day. The tape will be shown to the entire depart- :J~~bl:~:C~~4fu~e\~~~d \be Fir_St Mi'Icail ~efli~d~t Epis;
·rnent. .. , . ····~ .· . .sa~.;t.-·. •«Jopal Ghurch deman~ Gates
On March 3, plumber George Holliday stuck his ·wvage_I~ ~epu!ah?n. ·' · , \~~·:_: l~~signation. · .'! :: i: : ~:
new camcorder out the window of his Lake View 1 . ~ate& sal~ K_~ng s -b~a.tlp.g_-l_s i City -qouncil candidate ,Kermit
''Terrace apartment .and viqeotaped the beating of t!le ~o.n,.d ~~~ :m r~e:Q.t ~ 1 ~t9ey ¥addo:x: -~ol~ the ,:AME congrega•
Rodney Glen King after a traffic stop. , tpat .~: ~u~nor·•Offi~er.J~j.lei£1 Jo Q.qn -~·-tb~ -time IS now for ac-
- . . ·--· --- . ·~I? -i11;~d. stop otr~~·t~om von.. ... \..·. . :.,. ' :: ..
The tape of ~g:s beating has b.een broad~st 'f!~irig qut;of line. ;:"'';'~"~,trf ··~ · ~ "Let me tell you, this is ··not
repeatedly natmnwide. It. shows Km~,· 25, beuig l Vje protect one anoth,~r ~m ~ississippi ·1955. This 'is_n.ot
}c~ubbed more than 50 times and kicked seven Jiettmg int~:tro~ble," -he;~~ud ill South Africa~; We're not· slaves~
i:t~es by uniformed officers. . ~ ~ vid~r .. ~0'-Y 1n.th~~orld !i we·~ ttted._of.this treatment'.',,.
· Thousands of angry calls have flooded the Pollee ~rgeaht can .«c;>t step fw:·wara tNinetY-two ·percent . 0 r- na·.clty
Department and Mayor Torn Bradley's office. 9n iill4 ~e·th.e a~on ~ec~ tp tesidents polled by the r.oS Ange­
Sa~day, more than 300 people protested outside Jt,eep tllem ,D;Ut Of tr~ble, {.can- 1es Times ~ursday. ·and Friday
pollee headquarters downtown and demanded ~ot understand. - ~ .\"'" nt\H~-u.sed· ti'V'I· inuch· force···.
Gates' ouster. · .,, ~~I've said that it is absolutely-~~-... -~··· ·."""-:-.: ·
·· On his video, Gates said he woUld not step down,. ~~~ tl).attYP.U PQlt~ offi~r,s •m King's beating.·····_ .
!. "It'd be easy for me to pack up and go away," he ~ this•city ~ :->trhave.a-reverence:.; Among thos.!3 polled, blacks
·said. ''But I didn't put 42 years intq this job to see tbr ~~ law~ Ana .the Jaw saya 1 :were ~ost .distrustful of the po­
;u ~low up in smoke. I'm not going to resign. I'~ ·that ¥Q~ yliit ~nly ~-~t fo~ 'die~ v~rsion ot. the beating,
:gomg to be here to make sure that what I say IS that ~-~SSSry. :_ ·- _..; "-·'...! _ --~ ~:Which ·'!-8 :th~t King r~fused. to
done.".
. i"PeoJ?le _)pok... to .you- ·for th8:f leave.~ car after leading police
. In h1s message to the force Gates spoke gravely, ·protection,.iJu~y look_.to you foi'·r-'on. a h1_gh-speed chase. Blacks
,almost reproachfully, into the camera. · that seryice. They don'.t look to •said 78 ·percent to 2 percent that
"With those two minutes of videotape .. ~ two 1ou for ~ ·b.~ting. .i :....:,. ::'!" : :tthey believed King's· account -
:fum t th · · . . . ~ ·· · · t "There are going to be"' sitwi- :.that he'Jiulled .over as .soon as
~- u ~s at wp.I go down ?Jl m- ~on8:~.:. 'Where·you h.W.#.to'use tpolice,·requestOO.. · .. :··· .
RUIIY m the history of thiS de- " G t 'd "U 't but '1
f)art:m.ent," Gates said, "the work . - rce, . a es
·or those p' olled sa· pe t
s~ . f?e I' .., ~--· . .,. , .. ' . ____:cen
Mtiw~®~.QfJ>eople._who-bave
.l).se ~t m ~ n~essary ~d_reas9p- ·said police brutality_ was corntmt
their very best efforts for- lJPle f3Ehltfil -m;m onlY 1rrllfat: mon, 28 percent said 1t was very
ward to make this department ..' qates t~ld hiS. office~ ;th~ ma~. common and 35 percent said it
~e very -~~t. in ~e . worl!} ...:!.... Jpnty of city residents like ~ou. was fairly common.
~ose ha.v~·shatterel:l tha:t imag~. ~;Y support you. . . • Asked wh~ther they approved
f{ "There's not .a man or ;w.omah , ~e?pJe want to 8 ~- '·~ 0 ~ m ··how .the pollee department was
~ this department thafdoes not t;beir- ·neigh_borhood. ~It gives doing its job, 46 percent of those
feel betrayed. We're going to
prosecute three . of the officers
:~em. a gooq .feeijng. ~ !t;l ~ot so polled approved and 47 percent
~~e It gives. them a gOOd feeling · disapproved.
~d discipli,ne all of the officers ;~ght ~. 0 ~ -~d. -~ha~ a shame More than half of those polled
·who wer:!'l iJ?.velved.•:.I.t is abso- · at is •..., · '· 1 :•· ··-': : ~aid t~ey dis~ppr9v~d ~f how
:li.Uety .e.§SeJ!ti!ll'_tha~ w~.:ti~.i~:·: 1 . }Gates IS handling hiS JOb;, ·
ttA.tPrrtA·--, ,qq~;,~-~o~~e .. IUIDOJ