Rodney King found dead at 47

Rodney King, whose beating by Los Angeles police in 1991 was caught on camera and sparked riots after the acquittal of the four officers involved, was found dead in his swimming pool Sunday, authorities and his fiancee confirmed. He was 47.

Police in Rialto, California, received a 911 call from King's fiancee, Cynthia Kelly, about 5:25 a.m., said Capt. Randy DeAnda. Responding officers found King at the bottom of the pool, removed him and attempted to revive him. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital, DeAnda said.

There were no preliminary signs of foul play, he said, and no obvious injuries on King's body. Police are conducting a drowning investigation, DeAnda said, and King's body would be autopsied.

Full article

Aww, what a shame.

I just hope they don't start showing the video again to "stir" everyone up.
MSM wouldn't do that.

Or would they?

Rodney...RIP.

I know that King was a controversial figure, and even a simple piece of news like this could possibly bring out people's conflicting viewpoints regarding him. Hopefully if debate/discussion breaks out on this thread, it will remain respectful.

All I will say is RIP Rodney.

Not enough bath salts for the pool?

IRM

Infaredman, Your signature is supurb. You should include pics of Adam Sandler and Bill Maher too.

People that just aren't funny are charlatons too.

I lived in LA/Orange County area during the riots after his beating by the police....I am white and my best friend is black. We were mortified to be seen together at that time, out of fear we isolated ourselves indoors for a while....

Lets hope his death will not have people relive the turmoil and craziness of the time in an aggressive and violent way.....

reply to post by InfaRedMan


What's "IRM"?

RIP Rodney.

He was a weak man thrust into a position even Martin Luther King Jr. would have had a hard time dealing with, spiritually speaking. He was a sinner and an unconventional and reluctant martyr.

No one deserves to be beaten but he was also wrong that day along with the officers.

Now that this has came out, the story we will hear which will cause more riots and more racial undertones throughout the communities all over is:

LAPD taints evidence of Rodney Kings death. LAPD kills Rodney King. Then Mrs. little wifey of his, will sue the LAPD from here to eternity. I already know how the story ends.

And here comes another Trayvon Martin neighborhood vigil, like the world ended, along with President Obama, saying that King was like a father to him, and he looked up to the man.

What else is new?

The guy was not a role model and neither was Trayvon.

RIP King. My condolences to his family.

reply to post by Manhater


Role model or not, Trayvon Martin didn't deserve to be killed. Please stay on topic.

We will miss you Rodney! I would even argue that he has done more for the black community then even Martin King jr.
Today should be marked Rodney Luther King day in honor of this great man.

Originally posted by niceguybob
I just hope they don't start showing the video again to "stir" everyone up.
MSM wouldn't do that.

Or would they?

Rodney...RIP.

yea! the last thing "we" need is a video of a bunch of cops beating the holy crap out of someone to stir up trouble with "them"

brutality should be kept hidden away, out of sight like at a prision or basement somewhere!

Martin King Jr. took one quick bullet.. Rodney had to take a long tuff beating!!

reply to post by mrballistic


Dr. King took a lot of beatings and a lifetime of discrimination. We can't downplay his contributions.

You could look at him as the catalyst for social change. Police brutality continues today unfortunately, but we became so much more aware thanks to Rodney. He was young to die. R. I. P. Condolences to his family and friends.

Cant we all just get along????

I remember watching the video of Rodney King's beating....and I was appalled. He did not deserve the treatment he was given...and I am glad the world had a wake up call regarding some police that are into brutality.

When Rodney was on celebrity rehab...I got to see Rodney the man in fuller detail. I think he was a gentle soul who really cared about humanity.

When the King video came out, remember those jackasses in San Fernando Valley coming out of the bank in full "Death Gear" shooting at all the Law Enforcement officers?

That was caraaazzzey. I've never seen the live or video footage again. And the BAD guys died and not one lost enforcement officer.

Rodneys beating will stay in my head.... but no loss of life after that crap stands stronger while LAPD dealt with that barrage of bullets.

The 2 extremes are to keep our heads in the middle with what they deal with.

For Law enforcement too.

Aw this is sad news.
I watched the 'Celebrity Rehab' episodes that he appeared in, & grew to really like him as a person.
While others were loud, flashy & non-stop drama, Rodney seemed to hold himself with a quiet dignity & full focus on getting better, which he appeared to achieve.
I hope he was able to find peace in the last couple of years that eluded him for much of his life. He seemed to work hard to banish the demons within him.
RIP Rodney.