Zimmerman protests: Hundreds of LAPD cops to descend on South L.A.
Hundreds of LAPD officers were set to descend on South Los Angeles on Tuesday afternoon to help deter violence in the wake of the George Zimmerman verdict.
The officers will stage in the area of the L.A. Coliseum mid-afternoon before fanning out around the Crenshaw area and Leimert Park, Los Angeles Police Department officials said.
Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck said he would not tolerate lawlessness and promised a strong police presence after a group of unruly protesters smashed windows, lighted small fires and, in several cases, assaulted media and bystanders Monday in the wake of the not guilty verdict on Saturday in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed Florida teen Trayvon Martin.
At a weekly Police Commission meeting Tuesday, Beck had stern words for those hoping for a repeat of the night before. He said the department “will be very aggressive” in its approach in contrast with the previous two nights where police largely allowed protesters to move through the streets.
“When crowds obey the lawful orders of police ... we allow them a lot of leeway,” Beck said. “Unfortunately we won’t be able to do that tonight.”
Los Angeles police reported 14 arrests from Monday, including six juveniles. Most of the L.A. arrests were for what police said was failure to disperse, though one was for allegedly inciting a riot.
Najee Ali, a local activist, said he hopes Los Angeles organizations will cancel all further vigils and rallies in support of Martin in light of Monday night’s vandalism and violence.
Another community organizer, Earl Ofari Hutchinson, president of Los Angeles Urban Policy Roundtable, held a press conference Tuesday morning also calling on protesters to practice nonviolence.
He said they planned to have community “peace monitors” out along Crenshaw Boulevard to help report illegal activity to authorities and keep the crowd calm, according to news reports.
Ali said Monday night’s prayer vigil was planned as a peaceful event, but that it was “sabotaged.”
“The purpose of the rallies, number one, was to give the community a safe space, a safe place -- which is Leimert Park for black L.A. -- to vent their anger and frustration and come together as a community to give each other emotional support,” Ali said.
Young people spread word on social media about a separate and growing protest near the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue around 8:30 or 9 p.m., he said.
“It was essentially a flash mob of protest,” Ali said. “It wasn’t premeditated. It was instantaneous.”
He commended the “remarkable restraint” shown by the LAPD.
Tuesday morning, Ali requested members of local gangs to speak with young people in the neighborhood. He hoped they will ask the youth to stop the violent actions and vandalism.
The older gang members, whom he likened to mayors in their own areas, were receptive and indicated they would do so, he said.
“They don’t want the extra attention from the police,” Ali said. “They don’t want the spotlight and the glare of the LAPD in their neighborhoods.”
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Twitter: @anblanx
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