Christopher Commission, the

The Christopher Commission was a special, independent investigative body created on April 1, 1991, by Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley to examine the structure and operations of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) with the assistance of the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office. The Commission's mission was to recommend reform to eliminate the excessive use of force by law enforcement, specifically by the LAPD. Its creation was a response to the George Holliday videotape of 27 California law enforcement officers, 23 of whom were from the LAPD, who were present at the savage beating of 25-year-old African American motorist Rodney King on Sunday morning, March 3, 1991. The videotape was the subject of numerous press reports both in the United States and throughout the world. The beating involved 56 baton strikes, plus numerous kicks to King's head and body by four LAPD officers—Sergeant Koon and officers Briseno, Powell, and Wind. King sustained numerous injuries, including a broken right ankle; broken cheekbone; and, according to his lawyers, 11 skull fractures, kidney damage, brain damage, and broken teeth. The videotape's existence is also significant because Paul King, the brother of Rodney King, had failed in his attempts to file an official complaint against the law enforcement officers involved. Among other things, the Commission discovered that such difficulties in filing an excessive-use-of-force complaint against officers were commonplace.

The Christopher Commission was eventually merged with another commission that had been created by then-LAPD Chief Darryl Gates. The Commission members were Warren Christopher, former Deputy Attorney General (Chairperson); John Arguelles, retired state Supreme Court Justice (Vice Chairperson); Roy Anderson of the Lockheed Corporation and the board of trustees for Stanford University; Leo F. Estrada, an associate professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA); Mickey Kantor, a law partner at Manatt, Phelps and Phillips; Andrea Sheridan Ordin, a former U.S. Attorney; John Slaughter, president of Occidental College; Dr. Robert Tranquada, Dean, University of Southern California School of Medicine; Willie Barnes, former Commissioner of Corporations of California; and Richard Mosk, former international judge and staff member of the Warren Commission. Also, three senior advisors were assigned to the Christopher Commission: Jesse Brewer, a retired officer from the LAPD with 38 years of service; James Q. Wilson, a widely published UCLA professor on crime and urban issues; and Patrick Murphy, former police commissioner of both New York City and Detroit. The Commission also had a staff of more than 60 lawyers and three accounting and data analysis firms.

The Commission heard testimony from 50 expert witnesses and more than 150 members of the community in five public hearings in different parts of Los Angeles. More than 500 LAPD officers were interviewed, and about 650 responded to a survey. The Commission also examined LAPD complaint reports, the paperwork of 83 civil damage lawsuits, and communication transcripts from patrol car mobile digital terminals (MDTs). The investigation lasted more than 3 months. The final report was 297 pages long. Its primary findings focused on use-of-force policies and practices, complaint procedures, applicant screening and recruitment, training, management and supervision, and organizational structure.

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