Both Kevin McCarthy and Lee Zeldin have called for action to be taken against sitting congresswoman Maxine Waters. 2019 TIME USA, LLC. Like the Rodney King case, a video captured the beating . He was released after four years, and went back to prison in 2003 for his role in a murder unrelated to the 1992 social unrest. Numerous friends had accompanied Miller to Hollywood when he was shot in the early hours of Feb.1, Thrasher said. was transpiring in the neighborhood. -- Damian "Football" Williams was 18 years old on April 29, 1992, when he participated in a series of attacks on motorists at the intersection of Florence and Normandie in South Central Los Angeles, following the acquittals of four white police officers in the Rodney King beating trial. simple mayhem. Search instead in Creative? Racially motivated attack during the 1992 L.A. riots, Looking east from the southwestern corner of Florence and Normandie, in March 2010, United States District Court for the Central District of California, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, "At the corner of Florence and Normandie, marking causes of L.A. riots", "The L.A. Miller was shot and killed Feb 1, 2004 during a nightclub shoot out, in Hollywood. Paramedics who attended to Denny said he suffered major trauma and came very close to dying. The L.A. soon found himself back in jail. TIME made many efforts to contact because of his memorable nickname. He was sentenced to 46 years in prison in 2003. Antoine, who was 20 years old at the time, had been living with Damien's family for years when the incident occurred. Rioters His attackers, a group of Black men who came to be known as the " L.A. Four ", targeted Denny because he was White. Ben Carson is one of the most brilliant brain surgeons in our country and Maxine Waters is not even smart enough to be a Congresswoman. himself back in jail. There would have been a reward for whoever took out Williams in a staged fight in prison. A man accused of beating trucker Reginald Denny at the start of the spring's deadly riots has sued some of the city's top officials, saying he has been convicted in the news media before being brought to trial. in prison. So that started pulling me closer to that lifestyle that my mother had told me to stay away from. Rep. Maxine Waters (Democrat) supported those convicted of beating "She embraced Damian Williams, the infamous thug who hurled a chunk of concrete at white truck driver Reginald Denny and performed a victory dance over the bloodied innocent bystander." In that Super Bowl, he scored the Chiefs' game-clinching touchdown on a 38-yard run with less than two . I wanted a part of [it.] She went on to describe the LA Race Riots as, quote, a rebellion, and in ways understandable. Including, apparently, the part about smashing peoples brains in for being the wrong color. The defendants' supporters contend that the so-called L.A. 4 are victims of a criminal courts system that treats black suspects more harshly than whites. I think there was a turning point when I got probably about 10. Damian Williams, 20, was sentenced to the maximum term by Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge John Ouderkirk, who said the viciousness of the attack showed no 'spark of human compassion.' Williams was a high school [2][12] During his recovery, he received over 27,000 get-well cards from supportive members of the community. Reginald Oliver Denny (born 1953) is a former construction truck driver who was pulled from his truck and severely beaten during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. Even before the murder charges were filed, the case has brought controversy. Miller was arrested again in August 1994 for having a gun in his car and in 1995 received a six-month prison sentence. Riots Q&A, Cleveland Woman Threatens Barber with Gun Cause Sons Haircut Taking Too Long (WATCH). This post on Reginald Denny Video YouTube will explain all the crucial details related to the viral incident of Reginald Denny. That means, what, Im packing in the old for something new. ESPN According to the Los Angeles Times, Damien, a football player, also had a reputation for "gangbanging." He had a 3-month-old baby boy at the time of the attack. But at the same time I was still counting blessings everyday with my mother. In the late According to the Associated Press, King was attacked after he tried to elude police because he'd been drinking and was on probation. need your help for this. Analytics cookies help website owners to understand how visitors interact with websites by collecting and reporting information anonymously. And Gary Williams is recovering from a long-term drug addiction, according to friends. In a scene captured on video footage from news helicopters above, Denny was pummeled, his skull shattered into roughly 100 fragments. officials. And the only way I can do that, I have to live my life with honesty, with integrity, with peace, with compassion and genuine love. Marketing cookies are used to track visitors across websites. I consent to the use of following cookies: Necessary cookies help make a website usable by enabling basic functions like page navigation and access to secure areas of the website. So most people would say, Oh were a product of our environment. No, Im a product of bad decisions. Gary Williams plead guilty to attempted grand theft, assault, and robbery and was sentenced to three years in prison, perUPI. Four other Black L.A. residents who had been witnessing the attack on live television came to Denny's aid, placing him back in his truck and driving him to the hospital. Corrections Department The following are excerpts, in his own words. The most notorious attacker, 19-year-old Damian "Football" Williams, hurled a cinder block at the head of Reginald Denny, causing a near-fatal seizure. unsuspecting drivers on Antoine Eugene Miller, part of the mob that attacked trucker Reginald Denny in the first hours of the 1992 Los Angeles riots, died a week after being shot during an altercation outside a Hollywood nightclub, police said. [15][3] His left eye was so badly dislocated that it would have fallen into his sinus cavity had the surgeons not replaced the crushed bone with a piece of plastic. He had spent time in jail for armed robbery and was trying to turn his life around. Normandie had already images the vicious attack According to the Los Angeles Daily News, Reginald was living in Arizona working as a boat mechanic as of 2017. They dont care about muh white guilt because they have none. was oblivious to what was But I have a long way to go and like I tell many people, I want them to be able to speak about the good me, once I'm gone. The best available footage of Denny's beating on April 29, 1992, was filmed by Marika Tur from a helicopter piloted by her then-spouse, reporter Zoey Tur. excruciating images the vicious attack of a white truck driver named scapegoating the two), As a result of the injuries he suffered during the attacks, Denny had to undergo years of rehabilitative therapy, and his speech and ability to walk were permanently damaged. What you ever heard in the past about me, what you hear two, three months ago, it no longer exists, because I'm free. [32], In July 2006, LANS sued the site YouTube in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, for copyright infringement. Miller's mother was not able to care for him, so as a child, Miller was sent to live with his grandmother. He was interviewed in 2012 and that can be heard on this link. serious charges against him The prosecution counter-argued that the two had knowingly tried to kill Denny and were not victims. Riots: 15 Years After Rodney King: Key Figures: Reginald Denny", "When LA Erupted In Anger: A Look Back At The Rodney King Riots", "The L.A. Reginald Denny, to see face-to-face, I would talk to him and I would let him know how I feel from my heart. Together, they operated a company called Los Angeles News Service (LANS). transpiring in the Though Watson participated in the beating, placing his foot on Dennys neck, he also stopped rioters from continuing to hurt Denny, said neighborhood friend Roosevelt Tellis, founder of Safe Passage, an organization that help South Central L.A.s youth move safely through their communities. My goal was to make it to the NFL. Then something changed, Barstow police investigating after officer caught on video hitting man with a baton, Man found guilty of murdering teens who ding-dong-ditched his house, Sacramento, San Francisco mayors take shots at each others city before NBA playoff game, Unseasonable rain, cooler temperatures in forecast for Los Angeles this week, Masked gunmen tie up man and woman in Bel-Air home invasion. Williams has read Yoga for beginners, The Spirit of Man, and Denmark Vesey: The Buried Story of Americas Largest Slave Rebellion and the Man Who Led It. His influences include Nelson Mandala, Malcolm X, Elijah Muhammad, and Prophet Muhammad. He then Damian Monroe Williams (born March 17, 1973) was considered the most high-profile member of the four. A news helicopter videotaped, and broadcasted the scene, making Williams infamous. headed down the road, driving for his employer Transit Mixed Concrete. Williams then did a victory dance as he laughed and [8], Antoine Miller climbed up and opened the truck door, giving an unidentified man the chance to pull Denny out and throw him on the ground. [15], Williams' lawyers successfully argued that he had not intended to kill Denny;[18] he was found not guilty of attempted murder, assault, and aggravated mayhem, and convicted of four misdemeanors and simple mayhem, while Watson was convicted of a single misdemeanor assault charge. As Miller, The notorious attack on truck driver Reginald Denny and other assaults were videotaped and broadcasted on live television and quickly came to symbolize the violence of the riots. A football star in high school, he dreamed of becoming a professional football player and briefly played in a semi-professional league. one of the riots' most [31][non-primary source needed]. The law states that we can store cookies on your device if they are strictly necessary for the operation of this site. It all happened on videotape, a helicopter caught it, and it happened in Maxine Waters city. What he saw was the swagger of a "brotherhood" bound by secrets, flashy cars and fast . It was a hate crime if ever there was one. Denny suffered a fractured skull and impairment of his speech and his ability to walk, for which he underwent years of rehabilitative therapy. [2][12], In 1997, Damian Williams was released from prison early for good behavior, but in 2003, he was sentenced to 46 years to life in prison for the 2000 murder of drug dealer Grover Tinner. In a 11-page felony complaint, prosecutors said Williams and Tyrone David T Killingsworth, a 34-year-old with convictions for bank robbery and forcible rape, killed 43-year-old Grove Tinner at a West Gage Avenue drug house. He only served four of those years but ended up in prison again for being part of the murder of a drug dealer in 2000. The website cannot function properly without these cookies. According to authorities, Miller had an extensive criminal record that included arrests and convictions for gun possession, burglary, theft and assault. [1], Born in 1953 in Lansing, Michigan,[2][1] Reginald Oliver Denny was a 39-year-old truck driver at the time of the attack. [9] News footage showed Damian Williams throwing a cinder block at Denny's head, then doing a football-style victory dance in the road and gesticulating gang signs at the Los Angeles News Service helicopter of Zoey Tur[a] and Marika Gerrard. [2][27], As a result of the injuries he suffered during the attacks, Denny had to undergo years of rehabilitative therapy, and his speech and ability to walk were also damaged. DAMIAN WILLIAMS - The L.A. Riots: 15 Years After Rodney King - TIME L.A. SUSPECT SUES, SAYS HE'S VICTIM OF MEDIA - Deseret News Waters did not learna thing from the experience. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Reginal Denny Beater Arrested in Killing. The intesection of Florence and Normandie had already escalated into Damien Williams was released a few years later and went on to murder somebody else. So, I joined a gang which I thought was everything, at the time and it took me on a real rough journey in life.. Several congressmen, including Rep. McCarthy, are calling for action, possibly expulsion. afternoon of April 29, 1992, he had simply loaded up his 18-wheeler and Two National Guard members were injured in a shooting just hours after Rep. Menu. King, Denny Cases: to Many, a Contrast in Black and White [24] Gary Williams, Henry Watson, and Damian Williams gave interviews about the riots for the 2017 documentary Let It Fall: Los Angeles 19821992. mob looking for vengeance. [20], On May 12, outgoing Los Angeles police chief Daryl Gates started a search for three of Denny's attackers, who were identified from the video of the beating. Damien Williams was released a few years later and went on to murder somebody else in 2000.