King’s Attorneys Rest Case in Civil Suit

Attorneys for Rodney G. King rested their case Friday after a former deputy chief for the Los Angeles Police Department took the stand and blamed former Chief Daryl F. Gates for King’s beating.

Louis Reiter, who retired from the department in 1981 and is a police consultant, said he was called a Judas by Gates after he criticized the police chief’s management style.

“In my opinion, Chief Gates’ actions created an organizational environment that could make an incident like the Rodney King beating likely to happen,” said Reiter, the last of 22 witnesses called by King’s attorneys.

After the attorneys rested their case, U.S. District Judge John G. Davies dismissed the jury for the weekend and heard a motion from the defense to drop seven defendants, including Gates and six remaining “bystander officers.” Davies will also consider a request to drop former Sgt. Stacey C. Koon and Officers Laurence M. Powell, Theodore J. Briseno and Timothy Wind from the case.

“I’m going to take this motion very seriously,” said Davies, who will take up the issue Monday. “If I feel people should be let out, they are going to be let out, and let the chips fall where they may.”

On Thursday, King’s lawyers dropped four defendants, leaving 11 defendants in the trial to determine whether punitive damages should be assessed in the beating.

Jurors have already awarded King $3.8 million in compensatory damages from the city.

Gates’ 43-year law enforcement career ended with his 1993 resignation after criticism over the King case and the riots that followed the not guilty verdicts in the state trial. Powell and Koon were convicted of violating King’s civil rights in a federal trial last year and are serving 30-month prison terms.