Hundreds March To End Excessive Force By Police

Hundreds gathered across the city Tuesday morning to march through the streets protesting the use of excessive and lethal force by the Los Angeles Police Department. 

The Youth Justice Coalition, the organization which organized the protest, painted 617 cardboard coffins, each adorned with the name, age and date of death of an L.A. resident who was killed by law enforcement since 2000. The protesters were split into four separate groups beginning their marches from different parts of the city before converging in front of the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration. 

Most of the protesters had not been personally affected by police violence, but some, like Brandy Brown, marched in honor of a fallen friend. For Brown, that friend was Ezell Ford, the unarmed, African-American man who was shot and killed by an LAPD officer in August 2014. 

Once the protesters reached their final destination, many laid the cardboard coffins in the street, essentially burying them in an act that mirrored an enormous funeral procession through the streets of Downtown Los Angeles. 

The demands of the crowd revolved primarily around increased accountability by police officers, especially in cases where lethal force is used. 

Captain Brian Pratt of the LAPD Rampart Area noted that the LAPD already has a system in place where the Inspector General, who operates independently, oversees internal investigations by the LAPD. 

Some organizers of the march and protesters present say that another march raising awareness for the use of excessive force by the LAPD will take place on April 14.