WEBSTER COMMISSION RECORDS
WEBSTER COMMISSION RECORDS
On April 29, 1992, just minutes after a majority-white jury acquitted four LAPD officers of criminal charges in the beating of Black motorist Rodney King, unrest erupted on the streets of Los Angeles. For six days, the city experienced widespread looting, assault, and arson. All in all, more than sixty people died, 2,383 were injured, and close to a billion dollars in property damage was sustained.
During the course of the mayhem and destruction, the LAPD and its chief, Daryl Gates, came under intense scrutiny for using excessive force in the King incident, for failing to prepare for civil unrest prior to the acquittals, and for not reacting swiftly and sufficiently to end the violence. Private citizens, community activists, politicians, the media, and many law enforcement officials cast their doubts as to whether the LAPD was capable of adequately serving and protecting the citizens of Los Angeles.
By a motion adopted on May 11, 1992, the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners spearheaded an investigation aimed at examining law enforcement's performance in connection with the riots. The board selected William H. Webster, a former federal judge who had served as director of both the FBI and the CIA, to preside over the investigation. Hubert Williams, head of a law enforcement think tank and the former police director of Newark, New Jersey, was named second-in-command. Webster and Williams were assisted by more than one hundred attorneys and a small staff on loan from other cities' police departments. Local news reports announcing the start of the investigation suggest differences of opinion between the commission and Chief Gates about whether the LAPD should be held to scrutiny and blame.
The contents of the Webster Commission records consist of materials collected, analyzed, and created by the panel over the course of its investigation. The commission took into account information obtained from a wide variety of sources, including LAPD officers, other law enforcement personnel, politicians, the media, and community leaders. The links above highlight some of the areas investigated and summarize the conclusions presented in the commission’s report.