The name Rodney King is a very prominent name in the African American community that will forever be remembered, especially for the residents of Los Angeles, California during the year of 1992.
The National Geographic Channel has a new documentary out right now titled "LA92" that documents what happened leading up to the viral assault of Rodney King back in 1992 by the Los Angles police department.
Along with highlighting the importance of the case of Rodney King, "LA92" also sheds some valuable light on the case of the fifteen-year-old high school student, LaTasha Harlins, who was murdered after being accused of stealing milk from a corner store of her neighborhood in 1992.
This insightful film also introduces the controversy behind the use of tasers by law enforcement as well.
Who is LaTasha Harlins?
The riots of 1992 were so bad, yet helped shed light on a decades-long problem going on between law enforcement and civilians. Many may only remember the 1992 riots stemming from the officers being found not guilty after the viral video of beating Rodney King was seen around the world, but there were many other events that took place around that time as well.
LaTasha Harlins was a fifteen-year-old high school student who lived in Los Angeles, California in 1992. She walked into a corner store one afternoon to purchase some things for herself like any other customer, but never had the opportunity to walk back out that day.
Harlins was shot and killed, at point blank range, by the Korean store owner after being accused of stealing milk. Harlins was inside of the store the entire time and never stepped foot outside the store with any merchandise.
In fact, the entire incident was caught on video, showing no wrongdoing by Harlins the entire time she was inside the store.
What the video evidence does show, is the Korean store owner shooting a fifteen-year-old, female customer in the back of the head as she walked away. With this evidence, a jury convicted the store owner of murder and recommended a 15-year prison sentence. But the judge on the case did not see that particular sentence as fitting for the crime.
She instead overturned the conviction and sentenced the store owner to a $500 fine, five years of probation, and 400 hours of community service in the murder of LaTasha Harlins.
The introduction of tasers
Most may not know, but tasers being used by law enforcement is fairly new. They were first introduced, and used often, around the time of the assault of Rodney King was shown to the public. These new devices, however, were not highly favored at all by the public. Many argued that there were not enough tests done to make sure they were safe to use on the public and that they were being misused by law enforcement for entertainment purposes, more than properly being used for safety.
