King Beating

Members of the Assn. of Black Law Enforcement Executives (ABLE) are deeply hurt and embarrassed by the savage brutality inflicted upon Rodney King. The acts perpetrated by those officers cannot be defended by any of us. Their actions were criminal behavior and there is more and more evidence to show that it was a racially motivated event. However, we firmly believe that this is not indicative of the way that all police officers routinely perform their duties.

The current situation has compromised the strong relationship that the department has had with the community and put the police at a disadvantage in serving the public. When public trust is lost, efforts must be made to quickly regain that trust so that the customary high level of law enforcement service can be restored to the people of Los Angeles. We must now concentrate our efforts on investigating and re-evaluating police-citizen contacts because the community perceives the activity displayed in the videotape as routine police practice.

Much has been said and written about Chief Daryl F. Gates and the measure of his responsibility in regard to the incident. The call for the resignation of Gates is a simplistic and an unwarranted answer to a much larger problem. The man is not the issue. The tenure of the chief of police is separate and apart from what should be the main issue. Support for ensuring that justice is done through the execution of a thorough investigation, the proper administration of discipline for the involved officers and the establishment of a system to repair the harm that has been done to the community should be the main objectives. Chief Gates has provided leadership for this organization in all functions of management, including training and the administration of discipline. It is ludicrous to place blame at the feet of one person.

Every police officer in the Los Angeles Police Department must rightfully share the burden and the responsibility for rectifying the harm that has been done to this department by being professional and courteous in every public contact.

Whatever punishment the officers receive will not change what occurred to King, but will put in place graphic steps to rebuild public confidence in the LAPD and remind officers of the necessity of maintaining a reverence for the law while jealously guarding public trust.

As we seek strategies to eradicate the underlying causes of this terrible incident, we must look to the community to maintain and enhance those cooperative partnerships that have sustained us for so many years. As an integral part of the community, we must regain community trust in the Los Angeles Police Department’s ability to do its job in a fair, humane, and even-handed manner.

LYMAN DOSTER, President of ABLE