Zimmerman acquittal causes chaos on some streets in Los Angeles

By Terry Miller

LAPD and other agencies remained on Tactical Alert Tuesday as a precaution against backlash from the Trayvon Martin murder acquittal of George Zimmerman Saturday.
Police declared an unlawful assembly in South Los Angeles before 10 p.m. Monday after a group of demonstrators protesting the acquittal of George Zimmerman allegedly committed assault, vandalized businesses and jumped on stopped cars.
One eyewitness said it was “eerily like the post Rodney King trial that started the 1992 LA Riots.” Meanwhile, most incidents have thus far been somewhat isolated.
There were over a dozen arrests Monday night, one for “inciting a riot” and 13 for failure to disperse upon orders of LAPD. Six of those arrested were juveniles .

Monday was the third night of demonstrations in the Los Angeles area by those infuriated by a six-woman Florida jury’s acquittal of Zimmerman who killed unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla. He was found Not Guilty of all charges.
There have also been reports of those who want to take justice into their own hands and “eliminate” Zimmerman.
Los Angeles Police Department Chief Charlie Beck said the department was “sorely disappointed” by the behavior of about 150 people who broke away from a peaceful vigil Monday night “and vandalized and assaulted” the Crenshaw area.
Demonstrations began occurring in California Saturday evening, when word of the Florida verdict arrived. Trouble has repeatedly occurred in Oakland and in Los Angeles, particularly in the Crenshaw district southwest of downtown.
The newly inaugurated Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti told a late-night press conference that the trouble was caused by people exploiting the situation.

“The trial that we saw in Florida has ignited passions but we have to make sure that it will not ignite the city,” Garcetti said.
“We are outraged and heartbroken over the verdict,” NAACP President Benjamin Jealous said in a statement. “We will pursue civil rights charges with the Department of Justice, we will continue to fight for the removal of Stand Your Ground laws in every state, and we will not rest until racial profiling in all its forms is outlawed.”

In another bizarre and violent reaction to Trayvon Martin’s killer’s acquittal, a woman attacked one of the former Chamber Brothers, Lester Chambers as he was performing on stage at the Hayward Music festival.
The Mercury News reports the altercation took place once a 43-year-old woman, Dinalynn Andrews Potter, reportedly jumped on stage and knocked down the former Chambers Brothers member while he performed Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready.”
Ironically, one of the Chambers’ Bros’ number one hits in the 1970’s was : ” Love , Peace and Happiness.” As was ” To love somebody.”

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