[doug from upland]

(IF OBAMA HAD A SON, HE WOULD LOOK LIKE DAMIAN FOOTBALL WILLIAMS)

Damian "Football" Williams, probably the best-known of the assailants, was a 19-year-old with a criminal record including arrests for auto theft and robbery but had no convictions. A football star in high school, he dreamed of becoming a professional football player and briefly played in a semi-professional league. When he was 16, he dropped out of school. He joined a gang called the "Eight Tray Gangster Crips".[2]

Williams became the most recognized participant of L.A. riots due to the live news broadcast of his attack on Denny and because of his memorable nickname which was repeated frequently in news media. Williams was identified as the man who had used a brick on Denny by computer enhancement of the videotape which revealed an identifying tattoo.[3] Although the Denny beating received great publicity, Williams and his companions also assaulted and beat several Asian and Latino motorists who were passing through the area. Williams was charged with attempted murder as well as assault and mayhem.[2]

After the riots the Mexican Mafia had a "hit" out on Williams, the contract to kill him was picked up by the now infamous and then little known MS-13.[4] In 1993, Williams was convicted of mayhem and misdemeanor assault and was sentenced to 10 years. In 1997, Williams was released for good behavior, but in 2003, he received a life sentence at Pelican Bay State Prison for the 2000 murder of Grover Tinner, a drug dealer.[2] He will not be eligible for parole until he serves 47 years

[Ditto]

Williams was released for good behavior, but in 2003, he received a life sentence at Pelican Bay State Prison for the 2000 murder of Grover Tinner, a drug dealer.[2] He will not be eligible for parole until he serves 47 years

Ain't LBJ's Great Society just great? We are well into the third generation of the Great Society right now. < /s >

It only gets worse from here on.

[gaijin]

The guy who climbed up on the truck and opened the door was shot in an LA club a couple years after the event, I read.

[originalbuckeye]

What a horrible turn of events that day. I saw Mr Denny at a mall a few years later. Just shopping. I remember thinking how lucky he was to have survived. He appeared ok except for the indentation in his skull. I also remember seeing an interview on LA TV around the time I saw him at the mall. He said his daughter started calling him ‘Reginald Denty’, because of the indentation. He seems to have gotten on with his life. Happy for him he has recovered to the point that he can still have a ‘normal’ life. I also remember seeing 'Football' Williams' mom on TV when he wasn't given life for the beating of Denny. She was so happy 'my son is not going to spend the rest of his life in jail'. Her son made choices both that day and after that have sealed his fate. Justice? Not for some of us who vividly remember that day.

[Kharis13]

At the time of the riots I was living in Ridgecrest, California, about two hours north of Los Angeles. I remember one announcer (not sure if he was in a chopper or a studio) who called the rioters “animals”. He was ripped by the liberal media, but I agreed with him.

[wolficatZ]

[doug from upland]

One of the classics from the riots was liberal Hollywood actors asking Charleton Heston to loan them guns. LOL No, jackasses, get trained, go through the waiting period, buy a weapon, and keep it ready to defend your home and family from the animals.

[doug from upland]

[Brad’s Gramma]

Great thread, Doug. Not a great time for LA....

WHO was the idiot mayor at the time?

[dirtboy]

Then, as Tur broadcast the savagery live, Williams, a one-time high school football star, threw a chunk of cinderblock with all his force against Denny’s skull. It fractured in 91 places.

Yep, how history repeats itself - a thug armed only with concrete draws blood - whether the concrete is used as a missile (Football Williams) or as an anvil for a beating (Trayvon).

Denny didn't have a gun. George Zimmerman did. That is why Denny ended up with a fractured skull and Zimmerman with just scalp lacerations. And I think a majority of Americans are realizing this now. And it drives liberals bonkers.

[Bon of Babble]

Doug:

Thanks for this posting. I didn’t know about the Mexican Mafia putting out a hit on Williams. I well remember the riots, I was over the hill in the valley but could see the plumes of smoke rising and smell the burning buildings.

We couldn’t believe the images on TV — no police around, no call for the National Guard or military action. I also remember that most of the looters that were arrested were Mexicans who had no idea who Rodney King was - they only saw smashed windows, no police presence and didn’t want to be left out of the fun.

[A.A. Cunningham]

Bob Tur invented the news helicopter ... was 21 years old when he began pitching his idea to L.A. television stations in the 1980s.

Revisonist history by the author and perhaps Tur himself. Television stations were using helicopters in the 70s. As only one example, Francis Gary Powers was killed in August of 1977 flying for KNBC.