The announcement that Rodney King has died was confirmed by his publicist. This celebrity addict and petty criminal had a publicist, a book and a pretty good lifestyle. He had carved out a life though not necessarily a career from his 15 minutes of fame.
We all know about how King was brutally beaten by LA police on October 2, 2012 after a high speed chase while under the influence. The beating had while resisting arrest was not necessarily an isolated event in LA. What was different was that George Holliday, a private citizen, caught the lengthy beating on video from his apartment. This was still the early days of person video taping and the video became a media sensation.
The media attention led to charges against police officers who were eventually acquitted which triggered the 1992 Los Angles riots. By the time order was restored the casualties included 53 deaths, 2,383 injuries, more than 7,000 fires, damages to 3,100 businesses, and nearly $1 billion in financial losses. On the third day of riots there was live footage of Rodney King at an impromptu news conference saying, "People, I just want to say, you know, can we all get along?"
For the rest of his life he struggled with his addictions and the effects of the beating and lived the life of a minor celebrity until found floating at the bottom of his swimming pool.
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