For two California lawmakers, April 29, 1992 became a day that continues to impact their legislative careers three decades later.
Assemblyman Mike Gipson was a police officer and Assemblyman Reggie-Jones Sawyer was working as an emergency preparedness coordinator.
The video that captured the beating of Rodney King was profound in so many ways. For the very first time, the nation witnessed police brutality in a raw form as filmed, not by a member of the media, but rather from an average citizen.
And marginalized communities of color now had evidence of what we had been saying for years – law enforcement used unlawful tactics and tended to target Black males and used excessive force without cause or care of discipline.
By Reggie Jones-Sawyer
Imagine you are home asleep at 2 a.m. and you hear violent banging on your front door. You see from your video security camera someone who looks like a single police officer attempting to break down that door. As you call 911 for police assistance, the individual at your front door enters your home and tries to arrest you.
Now imagine that when police arrive, they see you struggling with the person who broke into your home. The officers, believing he is a fellow officer, begin to assist him in your arrest, which ends with your being killed.
"First and foremost, I applaud Governor Newsom for his work on placing California on the right path that has led us safely through the pandemic and into a more normal state of existence.
(Sacramento, California) – Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D-South Los Angeles) has introduced a bill that gives law enforcement additional tools to arrest individuals alleged to have committed an organized retail theft crime, also known as smash-and-grab, in-lieu of issuing a written notice or citation.
To the editor: We, the members of the California Legislative Black Caucus, want to directly address NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to express our outrage over the claims of discrimination made by fired Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores.