From the Archives: Majority says police brutality is common

Los Angeles residents overwhelmingly believe that police used excessive force in arresting Rodney G. King and that instances of police brutality are commonplace, a Los Angeles Times Poll has found.

Nearly two-thirds of those polled, including a majority of Anglos, said they believe incidents of brutality by Los Angeles police are common, with 28% saying such incidents are very common.

One out of four of those surveyed said that in the last five years they had personally seen or been involved in an incident in which a Los Angeles Police Department officer used excessive force. One of three blacks said they had seen or been a party to such an incident.

The poll found widespread belief among Anglos, blacks and Latinos that King was beaten because he was black and that police generally are tougher on blacks and Latinos than they are on Anglos.

Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates has apologized for the beating of King, calling it an “aberration.” The incident last week prompted scattered calls for the chief’s resignation by some civil rights and community activists.

More than half of those polled said that they disapprove in general of the way that Gates is handling his job. But only one of eight residents believe that the chief should resign immediately over the beating of King, which was videotaped by an onlooker.

The poll found extremely strong sentiment in favor of setting up a civilian board to review alleged cases of misconduct by Police Department officers. Three out of four city residents said they favored such a board.

While the poll found that three of four Los Angeles residents have confidence in the ability of the police to protect them from crime, it also found substantial distrust of the department.

Asked, “When it comes to being honest, what is your impression of the Los Angeles Police Department?” 50% of respondents said they had an unfavorable impression and 44% had a favorable impression.

This expression of distrust was higher than the 38% recorded in 1979 when The Times Poll asked the same question after a controversial incident in which police shot to death a black woman, Eulia Love, outside her house.

Eighty-six percent of those surveyed in last week’s poll said they had seen the often-televised videotape, which shows King being repeatedly kicked and clubbed more than 50 times by uniformed officers.

The beating occurred after police said King had led them on a high-speed chase that ended with him refusing to leave his car. Police said that when King emerged they thought he might have a weapon.

King, however, has said that he pulled his car over as soon as police requested and that his manner was cooperative.

Asked whether they believed King’s version or the police’s, respondents favored King’s by a margin of 52% to 15%. The rest were unsure.

Blacks were most distrustful of the police account, declaring belief in King’s version by a margin of 78% to 2%.

Whether they believed King resisted arrest or not, an overwhelming majority of those polled--92%--believed police used “too much” force against King.

Even 89% of those who believe King resisted arrest said officers used excessive force.

The poll was taken by telephone Thursday and Friday nights, as officials were reacting to the incident.

On Thursday, Gates told a news conference that he was asking the district attorney’s office to file felony charges against three of the 15 officers at the scene, and planned to administratively discipline the sergeant who was present and to discipline as many as 11 other officers.

On Friday, the district attorney’s office announced that it would take the case before the county grand jury Monday and that more than three officers might be criminally charged.

Despite moves to prosecute those responsible, the poll found that only 28% said they were very confident that “justice will end up being done.” Another 30% were somewhat confident; 23% were somewhat doubtful and 14% very doubtful. The rest were not sure.

In their assessment of how common police brutality is, 63% of all surveyed said it was common, with 28% saying it was “very common” and 35% “fairly common.”

Among Anglos, 19% said it was very common and 39% fairly common.

Among Latinos, 33% said it was very common and 27% fairly common.

Among blacks, 44% said brutality is very common and 36% fairly common.

A plurality of those surveyed said they believe that the problem of Los Angeles police officers striking suspects because they think the suspects will not be dealt with appropriately by the courts is increasing.

Forty-seven percent said such incidents of “street justice” have increased over the last 10 years.

By contrast, only 3% of Los Angeles officers polled by The Times last summer said street justice had increased; 67% said it had decreased.

Despite the evident gulf between citizens and police on perceptions of police brutality and honesty, residents still have considerable confidence in their Police Department’s ability to protect them from crime and help them in other ways.

Overall, 54% of those surveyed reported some confidence, and an additional 22% reported “a lot” of confidence that police will protect them from crime.

A majority of Latinos and Anglos and a plurality of blacks reported a somewhat or very favorable impression of the Police Department “when it comes to holding down crime.” Among all respondents, 39% reported a somewhat favorable impression and 13% a very favorable impression of the department’s crime-fighting ability.

1/15

Rodney King shows the bruises he sustained at the hands of four Los Angeles police officers. A citizen with a video camera, George Holliday, had recorded from his balcony the prolonged beating of King by four white police officers.

  (KEVORK DJANSEZIAN / Associated Press)

2/15

Steven Lerman, attorney for Rodney King, displays a photo of his client during a press conference at his office in Beverly Hills on March 8, 1991. King’s doctor outlined the extent of the man’s injuries for reporters during the meeting.

  (Nick Ut / Associated Press)

3/15

George Holliday, who captured the Rodney King beating on his video camera, in February 2006

  (Michael Kelley / For the Times)

4/15

Fires burn out of control on the second day of rioting in Los Angeles following announcement of the Rodney King verdicts.

  (Kirk Mckoy / Los Angeles Times)

5/15

Rodney King asks the now-famous question, “Can we all get along?” in a press conference outside his lawyer’s office in Beverly Hills. King asked that the killing, looting and destruction spurred by his case would stop.

  (Larry Davis / Los Angeles Times)

6/15

Darryl Gates, former LAPD chief, arrives at the Roybal Federal Building and is surrounded by news media. Gates was chief during the King beating and subsequent rioting.

  (Leffingwell, Randy / Los Angeles Times)

7/15

Warren Christopher hands a copy of the Christopher Commission report to Police Chief Daryl F. Gates in Gates’ office at Parker Center. The report examined the operation of the LAPD, especially its recruitment, hiring and training practices, internal disciplinary system and citizen complaint system in the wake of the King beating.

  (Rick Meyer / Los Angeles Times)

8/15

Rodney King looks at a picture of himself from May 1, 1992, the third day of the Los Angeles riots, which hangs in the living room of his home in Rialto, in 2012. At that press conference, King uttered the famous words, “Can we all get along?”

  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

9/15

Rodney King at his home in Rialto in 2012. King, whose beating by police was caught on videotape and then sparked the L.A. riots when the accused police were acquitted, has a book coming out, timed with the 20th anniversary of the riots.

  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

10/15

Rodney King at his home in Rialto in 2012.

  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

11/15

Rodney King during a day of fishing at Glen Helen Regional Park in San Bernardino in 2012.

  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

12/15

Rodney King at his home in Rialto in March 2012. King was found dead in the pool in June of that year.

  (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

13/15

Investigators from the Rialto Police Department at the swimming pool where Rodney King was found dead.

  (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

14/15

A memorial service for Rodney King, whose videotaped beating by Los Angeles police officers led to the worst urban riots in a generation and spawned widespread reforms, at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills cemetery on June 30, 2012, some two weeks after he was found dead in his swimming pool.

  (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)

15/15

Rodney King’s coffin at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills cemetery June 30, 2012, some two weeks after he died in his swimming pool.

  (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)

Moreover, 44% reported a somewhat favorable impression of the police “when it comes to helping citizens.” An additional 15% said they had a very favorable impression.

But in response to the comprehensive question, “Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Los Angeles Police Department is doing its job?” city residents were nearly evenly split, with 46% saying they approved and 47% reporting that they disapproved.

This represented a nose-dive from a measurement taken in 1988, when The Times Poll found that 74% of city residents approved of the job the department was doing.

In last week’s poll, Anglos were evenly divided on the department’s performance. Latinos approved by a margin of 51% to 41%. Blacks disapproved by a margin of nearly 3 to 1.

Gates’ approval rating has also plummeted.

Thirty-three percent said they approved of the job the chief was doing. Fifty-five percent said they disapproved.

Approval was highest among Anglos--with 36% pleased with the chief--and lowest among blacks, with 23% endorsing his performance.

By contrast, the 1988 Times Poll found that 61% of city residents, including a majority of blacks, approved of the job Gates was doing.

However, there is minimal support for his immediate resignation, favored by 13% of those polled last week; and only moderate support, an additional 27%, for his resignation if an investigation proves there was wrongdoing by police. Slightly less than half of those polled said he should not resign.

Mayor Tom Bradley appears to have weathered the King incident unscathed, with 61% of city residents approving of the way he is doing his job.

The Times Poll is directed by John Brennan. In conducting this poll, The Times interviewed 718 residents in the city of Los Angeles.

The overall margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points. The margin for subgroups is higher. For Anglos, the margin is plus or minus 6 points; for blacks it is plus or minus 8 points. For Latinos, the margin is plus or minus 9 points.

Assistant Times poll director Susan Pinkus contributed to this story.

THE LOS ANGELES TIMES POLL How Angelenos View the Police The following are results from a Los Angeles Times poll of 718 adult Los Angeles city residents contacted by telephone Thursday and Friday. Past comparisons are from Times polls conducted in March of 1988 and April of 1979.

Do you think certain groups tend to be victimized by police brutality more than other groups, or not? If yes, which groups?

All Residents Anglos Blacks Latinos Blacks 54% 57% 73% 45% Latinos 47 46 61 47 Whites 2 1 - 4 Gays 2 3 - 2 Asians 1 1 - 1 Others 14 13 12 18 No Group 22 20 9 26 Don’t Know 10 12 11 8

Do you think incidents of police brutality involving the Los Angeles Police Department are:

All City Residents Anglos Blacks Latinos Very Common 28% 19% 44% 33% Fairly Common 35 39 36 27 Fairly Uncommon 23 30 10 22 Very Uncommon 10 7 6 14 Don’t know 4 5 4 4

Police Chief Daryl Gates should:

All City Residents Anglos Blacks Latinos Resign immediately over the King incident 13% 9% 18% 17% Resign if investigation proves police wrongdoing 27 24 32 32 Should not resign over the incident 48 59 43 35 Don’t Know 2 1 - 1

Approve the way Gates handling job

All City Residents Anglos Blacks Latinos April, 1979 55% 66% 36% 54% March, 1988 61 65 51 61 March, 1991 33 36 23 32

Approve the way LAPD handling job

All City Residents Anglos Blacks Latinos April, 1979 52% 62% 29% 45% March, 1988 74 74 64 80 March, 1991 46 47 26 51