Claim: The 1992 Los Angeles riots occurred.

The 1992 Los Angeles riots , also known as the Rodney King riots , the South Central riots , the 1992 Los Angeles civil disturbance , the 1992 Los Angeles civil unrest , and the Los Angeles uprising , were a series of riots , lootings , arsons , and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County , California in April and May 1992 . The unrest began in South Central Los Angeles on April 29 after a trial jury acquitted four officers of the Los Angeles Police Department of the use of excessive force in the videotaped arrest and beating of Rodney King . It then spread throughout the Los Angeles metropolitan area as thousands of people rioted over a six-day period following the announcement of the verdict .   Widespread looting , assault , arson , and killings occurred during the riots , and estimates of property damage were over $ 1 billion . Order was only restored after members of the California Army National Guard , the 7th Infantry Division , and the 1st Marine Division were called in to stop the rioting when local police could not control the situation . In total , 58 people were killed during the riots , more than 2,000 people were injured , and more than 11,000 were arrested . LAPD chief of police Daryl Gates , who had already announced his resignation by the time of the riots , took much of the institutional blame .