King officer 'too soft' with baton
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Only hours before taking part in the beating of Rodney King, a white police officer, Laurence Powell, was reprimanded for not striking hard enough with his baton, a police sergeant testified, AP reports from Los Angeles.
Sgt Richard Di Stefano was responding to questions from a defence lawyer seeking to suggest Mr Powell could not have caused extreme fractures of Mr King's face in March 1991. After more instruction, Mr Powell managed to 'put some more power into the blows', Mr Di Stefano told the court where Mr Powell and three other officers are charged with violating Mr King's civil rights. Their acquittal in a criminal case last April provoked three days of rioting during which more than 50 people died.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments