Luther v. Borden

In the early hours of 3 March 1991, motorist Rodney King was stopped by Los Angeles, California, police officers following a three-mile, high-speed chase. According to arrest reports filed later, King refused orders to exit the car, then put up such a struggle that officers had to use batons and stun-guns to subdue him. Unbeknownst to the officers, the entire incident had been captured on video by a nearby resident, and the resulting 81-second tape told a different story. In it, King seemed to offer little resistance to the officers who kicked and beat him to the ground while others watched.

The highly publicized first trial of Theodore J. Briseno, Stacey C. Koon, Laurence M. Powell, and Timothy E. Wind for assault, excessive force by a police officer, and filing a false report resulted in not guilty verdicts, with a deadlocked jury on one charge against Powell. Within hours of the verdict on 29 April 1992, rioting erupted in LA, leaving 58 people dead and causing $1 billion in damages.

The landmark second trial for violations of civil rights was significant due to the jury not only having to deal with a question of guilt or innocence, but also dealing with how best to assuage outraged civic sensibilities. On 4 August 1993, Koon and Powell were found guilty and sentenced to 30 months imprisonment. Briseno and Wind were acquitted.