February 11, 2009 3:48 PM

Rodney King Shot, Wounded In California

(AP)  Rodney King, whose videotaped police beating in 1991 led to deadly rioting when the officers involved were acquitted, was shot on a street corner, but his wounds were not life-threatening, police said.

King, 42, was shot two or three times from a distance by birdshot fired from a shotgun. He then bicycled about 1½ miles back to his home in neighboring Rialto and called police. King was hit in the face, arms, back and torso, police said.

Authorities said when they arrived at the home, King and others appeared drunk and were largely uncooperative in providing information about the shooting.

King was taken to a hospital. His condition on Thursday was not immediately known.

The shooting may have involved a domestic dispute, San Bernardino police Lieutenant Scott Paterson said.

King, who is black, was videotaped being beaten by white Los Angeles police officers after he was stopped for speeding in 1991. Four officers were acquitted of most criminal charges in 1992, triggering rioting in Los Angeles and neighboring cities that left 55 people dead and caused $1 billion in property damage.

King sued the city over the beating and obtained a $3.8 million settlement.

However, he continued to have run-ins with the law. In 2004, he was ordered to spend 120 days in jail and ordered into treatment after pleading guilty to driving under the influence of the drug PCP after he lost control of his SUV in 2003 and slammed into a power pole in Rialto.

Rialto and San Bernardino are about 55 miles east of Los Angeles.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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by bhappy2-2 December 1, 2007 12:04 AM EST
No, re/****, you got it ALL WRONG! Your "second amendment right" protects the states'''' rights to form "well-regulated militias", not your individual "right" to have any weapon you like! However, if we assume you are correct about this "right" (even though you are not), you STILL got it all wrong! Your ability to have a gun DOES NOT, IN ANY WAY protect anyone''''s first amendment right to free speech. You can''''t do ANYTHING to protect free speech other than (1) make good use of it, and (2) vote for politicians who understand and respect your right to free speech. (And that is definitely NOT what GW Bush and the neocons have done.)

Posted by MyIDonCBS

HEY JASSACK! When the second amendment falls YOUR first amendment won''t be far behind it! As long as the people are armed we have some small chance to remain free. When that right is taken away it will be to allow the others to be taken without resistance. While I may not be able to prevent the government from taking my rights I WILL be able to resist for a little while. Even if I fail at least I will die trying. NOT sucking air through @SS like you.
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by bhappy2-2 November 30, 2007 11:58 PM EST
bhappy2-2 ... you are talking about something that was written hundreds of years ago... the rights of yestarday should not be taken at the base word but analyzed on a much greater standard... does the second right reallyh indicate individuals to carry fire arms... or does it refer to the will of the people or representation...

plus i don''''t thing the guns then are represented of the guns today...

Posted by jester188

So, jester, does that mean the other amendments, since they are so old, should be disregarded as well? Or is it only those YOU don''t approve of that should be disregarded? After all, the first amendment (do you know what IT is about?) could be viewed by some as meaning the newspapers OF THAT ERA and the people OF THAT ERA needed the right of free speech to tell others about the perils of being governed by a king from across the ocean. Besides, the words of today are so advanced compared to what was available then, they didn''t even have words like COMPUTER, INTERNET, BLOG and so many others. Shouldn''t this whole freedom of speech thing be eliminated as an amendment to our constitution since SO MUCH HAS CHANGED SINCE IT WAS WRITTEN?
If you don''t support ridding ourselves of ALL amendments DON''T TELL ME WHAT ANY OF THEM MEAN. As I said, my second amendment protected firearm defends your first amendment right to tell me I don''t need one. When my second amendment rights disappear your first, third, fourth, fifth and right on down the line will not be far from falling as well.
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by kailumego1 November 30, 2007 5:08 PM EST
For all the white folks that are so quick to bring his race into the equation as symptomatic of his repeated predicaments, you need to watch CourtTv "Inside the Jail", I watched, as one after the other, white males and females, all in a drunken tirade, were thrown into a cell, for disorderly conduct.

Some high on alcohol, alcohol and meth, or other narcotic substances, so stop with the racial pandering, some white folks are drunken low-life losers as well.
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by kailumego1 November 30, 2007 4:59 PM EST
Iceman_1960,

Re: "the right to bear arms"

Thank you, for that profound explanation, when I''ve read the 2th Amendment repeatedly that''s the conclusion I''d drawn, a well armed militia.
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by santa2007-2009 November 30, 2007 11:02 AM EST
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by slim1h2o November 30, 2007 10:49 AM EST
16 years ago he was a black, drunk, drug-using, violent loser who hung out with the wrong crowd. Today in 2007 he is still a black, drunk, drug-using, violent loser who hangs out with the wrong crowd. Gee, what a fu*cking surprise!

Posted by MichaelT302 at 09:00 PM : Nov 29, 2007

Thanks,,,You just answered my question, before I asked it.

Which is,,Why does this knucklehead keep showing up in national headlines???????
Reply to this comment
by iceman_1960 November 30, 2007 3:02 AM EST
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms [Muskets], shall not be infringed." - Second Amendment

I"ve never handled a Musket, but it was certainly a comparatively primitive weapon and required a great deal of experience and practice to use effectively, like a crossbow or a sword.

Not like modern firearms that young criminals seemingly can become familiar with quickly.

The Second Amendment seems to be stating that the need for well-regulated Militias, is behind the Right of private persons to keep and bear these weapons so as to use them in military service without a long period of training.

That is my take on this. But I may just be another re/****.
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by myidoncbs November 30, 2007 2:52 AM EST
drivelphobe says, "He [Rodney King] deserved everything the cops did to him when he was beaten."

No human being deserves to be surrounded by a bunch of blood-thirsty cops, and kicked and severely beaten! Not even if he is a "thug", as you described him. You are a sick, inhuman being to think such atrocities are "deserved".

Futhermore, re/****, wherever the supposed $3.8 million dollars went is NO concern of yours, and it has absolutely no bearing on his honest attempt to quell the violence in LA when he said, "Why can''t we all just get along?" Whatever else he may have done in his life, that was a good moment. He deserves credit for trying to calm things down.
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by iceman_1960 November 30, 2007 2:50 AM EST
gunownerdan,

The more guns held in private hands in any modern society, the greater the level of criminal violence in that society.

There is no nation on earth, from Japan to Iraq to the USA, that has widespread private gun ownership and also civil peace and harmony.
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by myidoncbs November 30, 2007 2:45 AM EST
"Criminals will always prefer unarmed victims!" - gunSELLERdan

Gun dealers will always prefer a terrified and parnoid population. It drive sales through the roof! -- me

Dan doesn''t give a damm about ANYBODY protecting themselves. The fact is, if you own a gun, you are more likely to die from a gunshot than if you don''t own a gun. Sure, about 1 in a million times you might actually use a gun to save yourself. The problem is, the odds of being killed by that very gun are MUCH higher than 1 in a million. But Dan wants you to believe that you''ll "protect yourself" by waving the gun around, without shooting anybody. Ask yourself this: If a would-be assailant is scared off by seeing you wave your gun around, how serious of a threat was that assailant, REALLY? Don''t most criminals have their OWN guns? Don''t they arrive on the scene with the gun loaded, aimed, and ready to fire? Unless you are awake 24x7x365, and safely hiding behind a gun turret, with your gun loaded and pointed, what are the odds that YOU will get the drop on THEM? It just doesn''t happen like that!

More guns is NOT the solution to ANYTHING. More guns means more people will die, PERIOD.
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