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Los Angeles Riots Fast Facts

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Updated 2012 GMT (0412 HKT) April 22, 2019

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Firefighters spray water on a burning building in south Los Angeles on April 30, 1992, a day after rioting broke out over the acquittal of four white police officers charged with assault and the use of excessive force on Rodney King.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
Firefighters spray water on a burning building in south Los Angeles on April 30, 1992, a day after rioting broke out over the acquittal of four white police officers charged with assault and the use of excessive force on Rodney King.
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A frame from the video made by George Holliday from his balcony shows Los Angeles police officers beating King after he was stopped for a traffic violation on March 3, 1991. The video shows King being struck by police batons more than 50 times. More than 20 officers were present at the scene, most from the LAPD. King suffered 11 fractures and other injuries in the beating.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
A frame from the video made by George Holliday from his balcony shows Los Angeles police officers beating King after he was stopped for a traffic violation on March 3, 1991. The video shows King being struck by police batons more than 50 times. More than 20 officers were present at the scene, most from the LAPD. King suffered 11 fractures and other injuries in the beating.
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Officers Theodore J. Briseno, second from left, is escorted out of the courthouse on April 29, 1992 after being acquitted of all charges. Laurence M. Powell, right, was acquitted of all but one charge. Hours after the officers' acquittal, rioting and looting broke out in South Central Los Angeles.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
Officers Theodore J. Briseno, second from left, is escorted out of the courthouse on April 29, 1992 after being acquitted of all charges. Laurence M. Powell, right, was acquitted of all but one charge. Hours after the officers' acquittal, rioting and looting broke out in South Central Los Angeles.
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A news helicopter captures video of the beating of Reginald Denny, a white truck driver, after he was pulled from his vehicle. Gov. Pete Wilson declares a state of emergency and calls in National Guard troops.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
A news helicopter captures video of the beating of Reginald Denny, a white truck driver, after he was pulled from his vehicle. Gov. Pete Wilson declares a state of emergency and calls in National Guard troops.
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A rioter breaks a glass door of the Criminal Courts building in downtown Los Angeles on April 29.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
A rioter breaks a glass door of the Criminal Courts building in downtown Los Angeles on April 29.
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A California Highway Patrol officer directs traffic around a shopping center engulfed in flames on April 30.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
A California Highway Patrol officer directs traffic around a shopping center engulfed in flames on April 30.
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Rodney King pleads for rioters to end the violence during a news conference in front of his lawyer's office on May 1 saying, "People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it horrible for the older people and the kids?"
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
Rodney King pleads for rioters to end the violence during a news conference in front of his lawyer's office on May 1 saying, "People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it horrible for the older people and the kids?"
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More than 9,800 National Guard troops were called in to end the violence, which left 55 people dead and more than 2,000 injured.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
More than 9,800 National Guard troops were called in to end the violence, which left 55 people dead and more than 2,000 injured.
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Looters target a shopping center in Los Angeles on April 30.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
Looters target a shopping center in Los Angeles on April 30.
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A woman runs out of a store that has been heavily looted as the overhead sprinkler system is triggered on May 1. More than 700 retail stores were damaged during the riots.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
A woman runs out of a store that has been heavily looted as the overhead sprinkler system is triggered on May 1. More than 700 retail stores were damaged during the riots.
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People line the sidewalk across from a burned out apartment building that was destroyed in the violence. More than 1,100 buildings were destroyed or damaged during the riots.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
People line the sidewalk across from a burned out apartment building that was destroyed in the violence. More than 1,100 buildings were destroyed or damaged during the riots.
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Patrick Simpson of Los Angeles points to the federal building in anger after two of the four officers were sentenced to 30 months in prison for violating King's civil rights.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
Patrick Simpson of Los Angeles points to the federal building in anger after two of the four officers were sentenced to 30 months in prison for violating King's civil rights.
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In his book, "The Riot Within: My Journey From Rebellion to Redemption," King writes about his experience during the riots and in the media spotlight.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
In his book, "The Riot Within: My Journey From Rebellion to Redemption," King writes about his experience during the riots and in the media spotlight.
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King gestures to supporters at an event in Los Angeles in April 2012. He was found dead on June 17 that same year, at the age of 47. His death was the result of accidental drowning, although alcohol, cocaine, marijuana and PCP found in his system were contributing factors, authorities said.
Photos: Rodney King and the 1992 Los Angeles riots
King gestures to supporters at an event in Los Angeles in April 2012. He was found dead on June 17 that same year, at the age of 47. His death was the result of accidental drowning, although alcohol, cocaine, marijuana and PCP found in his system were contributing factors, authorities said.
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(CNN)Here is some background information about the 1992 riots in Los Angeles. The riots stemmed from the acquittal of four white Los Angeles Police Department officers in the beating of black motorist Rodney King in 1991.

Facts:
The riots over five days in the spring of 1992 left more than 50 people dead, and more than 2,000 injured.
The rioting destroyed or damaged over 1,000 buildings in the Los Angeles area. The estimated cost of the damages was over $1 billion.
    More than 9,800 California National Guard troops were dispatched to restore order.
    Nearly 12,000 people were arrested, though not all the arrests were directly related to the rioting.
    Read More
    Timeline:
    March 3, 1991 - Rodney King is beaten by LAPD officers after King leads police on a high-speed chase through Los Angeles County. George Holliday videotapes the beating from his apartment balcony. The video shows King being struck by police batons more than 50 times. Over 20 officers were present at the scene, most from the LAPD. King suffered 11 fractures and other injuries due to the beating.
    March 4, 1991 - Holliday delivers the tape to local television station KTLA.
    March 7, 1991 - King is released without being charged.
    March 15, 1991 - Sergeant Stacey Koon and officers Laurence Michael Powell, Timothy Wind, and Theodore Briseno are indicted by a Los Angeles grand jury in connection with the beating.
    May 10, 1991 - A grand jury refuses to indict 17 officers who stood by at the King beating and did nothing.
    November 26, 1991 - Superior Court Judge Stanley Weisberg orders the trial of the four officers charged in the King beating moved to Simi Valley.
    April 29, 1992 - The four white LAPD officers are acquitted of beating King. Riots start at the intersection of Florence and Normandie in South Central Los Angeles. Reginald Denny, a white truck driver, is pulled from his truck and beaten. A news helicopter captures the beating on videotape. Mayor Tom Bradley declares a state of emergency, and Governor Pete Wilson calls in National Guard troops.
    April 30-May 4, 1992 - Dusk to dawn curfews are enforced in the city and county of Los Angeles.
    May 1, 1992 - King makes an emotional plea for calm, stating, "People, I just want to say, can we all get along? Can we get along? Can we stop making it horrible for the older people and the kids?"
    May 3, 1992 - Over 1,100 Marines, 600 Army soldiers, and 6,500 National Guard troops patrol the streets of Los Angeles.
    August 4, 1992 - A federal grand jury returns indictments against Koon, Powell, Wind, and Briseno on the charge of violating the civil rights of King.
    October 21, 1992 - A commission headed by former FBI and CIA Director William Webster concludes that the LAPD and City Hall leaders did not plan appropriately for the possibility of riots prior to the verdicts in the King case.
    February 25, 1993 - The trial begins.
    April 17, 1993 - The federal jury convicts Koon and Powell of violating King's civil rights. Wind and Briseno are found not guilty. No disturbances follow the verdict.
    August 4, 1993 - US District Court Judge John Davies sentences both Sergeant Stacey Koon and Officer Laurence Powell to 30 months in prison for violating King's civil rights. Powell is found guilty of violating King's constitutional right to be free from an arrest made with "unreasonable force." Ranking officer Koon is convicted of permitting the civil rights violation to occur.
    April 19, 1994 - The US District Court in Los Angeles awards King $3.8 million in compensatory damages in a civil lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles. King had demanded $56 million, or $1 million for every blow struck by the officers.
    June 1, 1994 - King is awarded $0 in punitive damages in a civil trial against the police officers. He had asked for $15 million.
    April 2012 - King's autobiography, "The Riot Within: My Journey from Rebellion to Redemption. Learning How We Can All Get Along," written with Lawrence J. Spagnola, is published.
      June 17, 2012 - Rodney King, 47, is found dead in the swimming pool of his Rialto, California, home.
      August 23, 2012 - The San Bernardino coroner releases an autopsy report, which states that his death was the result of an accidental drowning and that King was in a "drug and alcohol-induced delirium" when he died.