Christopher Commission

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Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department
Investigatory commission overview
FormedApril 1991 (1991-04)
Dissolved1991
TypeIndependent commission
Jurisdiction Los Angeles, California
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California
Investigatory commission executive
Parent Investigatory commissionOffice of the Mayor of Los Angeles
Key document

The Independent Commission on the Los Angeles Police Department, informally known as the Christopher Commission, was formed by then-mayor of Los Angeles, Tom Bradley, in April 1991, in the wake of the Rodney King beating.

Contents

It was chaired by attorney Warren Christopher (who later became U.S. Secretary of State under President Bill Clinton). [1] "The commission was created to conduct 'a full and fair examination of the structure and operation of the LAPD,' including its recruitment and training practices, internal disciplinary system, and citizen complaint system." [1]

A year after the commission was formed, the officers involved in the King beating were acquitted, leading to the 1992 Los Angeles riots.

Findings

The following are, verbatim, some of the commission's findings:

The Christopher Commission found that only forty-two of 2,152 allegations of excessive force from 1986 to 1990 were sustained - or less than 2 percent. [2] "According to the Christopher Commission '... the complaint system is skewed against complainants.'" [2] "The majority of investigations at that time were done by division staff, not IAD, and the commission found this seriously problematic because division investigators often failed even to interview or identify witnesses." [2]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Shielded from Justice: Los Angeles: The Christopher Commission Report". Hrw.org. April 1, 1991. Retrieved April 29, 2016.
  2. 1 2 3 "Shielded from Justice: Los Angeles: Internal Investigations". Hrw.org. Retrieved April 29, 2016.