Law Enforcement Tactics and Occurrence of Injuries

Law enforcement personnel faced snipers and a few heavily armed rioters who did not hesitate to fire on them or innocent citizens. Other sections of this report provide evidence demonstrating the level of risk faced and the resulting injuries. Law enforcement agencies have developed effective means for dealing with such violent confrontations. The recommended method for controlling a civil disturbance is to contain the area by limiting access, and then to pacify smaller segments. No attempt to implement such tactics was made until after 9:00 PM Wednesday evening (Webster, 1992). According to the Webster report, a civil disturbance is defined as a breakdown of the law. Under these conditions police must act and arrest violators if civil order is to return. Violators must be arrested and taken off of the streets to reduce tensions. The Webster report found that: While during the recent civil disturbance, the LAPD did make some arrests, when and where they were made did not seem to have a significant impact. Given the widespread scope of the problems to be dealt with, the Department needed to make arrests earlier, faster and on a much larger scale. ...Our Study shows that order may not have been restored until the fourth or fifth day at the earliest (Webster, 1992, p. 131). This Webster Report finding may be a controversial one. After reviewing the arrest characteristics of 5,633 adults arrested during the civil disturbance, a recent study by Petersilia and Abrahamse found: The data suggest that, contrary to widespread impression, the police did not lie low for long: most of the arrests --1,417--were made during the 24-hour period that began at midnight following the Rodney King Verdict. Looting arrests predominated during this initial period. When the curfew was imposed the next day, property-related arrests fell dramatically and curfew violations rose (Petersilia, and Abrahamse, 1993). Their data shows that 51 % of the arrestees were Latino and 36 % African Americans. "...Latino males aged 18-24 years accounted for 30 percent of all arrests, while black males in the same age range accounted for only 10 percent. The race/ethnic distribution was reversed for femal es: more black than Latino females were arrested...... (Petersilia and Abrahamse, 1993) Men were more likely to be arrested for civil disturbance; women for property related crimes. The authors identify a number of factors that may account for the differential ethnic arrest rates including: differences in the distribution of the population by age for African Americans and Latinos, possible discrimination in law enforcement practices against Latinos, efforts to avoid inflaming the disturbance by under arresting African Americans. According to the authors, existing information cannot resolve these interpretations, particularly those alleging discriminatory practices (Petersilia and Abrahamse, 1993). Tactics used to clear the streets were very weapon intensive. Fire service observers report that police cars lined up across both traffic lanes, several deep, with officers armed with shot- guns holding the doors open at the ready. Shots were not fired. California National Guard (CNG) vehicles with armed soldiers followed these cars. Tow trucks brought up the rear and placed cars in such a way as to block the street. Generally, it appears that law enforcement personnel used either a gun or a baton stick in their response to armed and unarmed looters and rioters. For example, the National Guard used military rifles that fired regular military ammunition that could ricochet. It should be emphasized that law enforcement personnel and the Guard showed remarkable restraint in their use of lethal force given the circumstances (Webster, 1992). Other control measures such as tear gas were not used. One explanation is that firing the gas into a store filled with looters would have caused a panic, increasing the number of injuries as people trampled each other to get out. Also, the looters and rioters did not gather in stable groups but move around making it difficult to use gas to disperse them. Finally, it was necessary for law enforcement to protect themselves and the public against snipers. On the other hand, the Kerner Commission specifically recommends the use of gas and other agents for the control of looters and rioters (not snipers) in just such a situation. It would help to reduce injuries by quickly stopping the disturbance. The Commission recommends that in suppressing disorder, the police, whenever possible, follow the example of the US Army in requiring the use of chemical agents before the use of deadly weapons. ...Distinctive marking dyes or odors and the filming of rioters have been recommended both to deter and positively identify persons guilty of illegal acts. Sticky tapes, adhesive blobs, and liquid foam are advocated to immobilize or block rioters. Intensely bright lights and loud distressing sounds capable of creating temporary disability may prove to be useful (Kemer, 1968, p. 331). [Bold in the original.] Early use of such non-lethal crowd control techniques might have reduced the number of people injured or killed. For example, if it became apparent that looters would be permanently marked with a dye for later identification, fewer people might have participated. Use of an offensive odor might have deterred groups of looters from continuing their activities in a particular area without causing panic. The LAPD are now examining such alternatives and have established a pilot program using a cayenne pepper spray to subdue combative suspects (Sacramento Bee, January 12, 1993).

Medical Care for the Injured

Continue to Routing of Emergency Calls

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