Former Los Angeles Police Chief Willie Williams, who took over as the head of the LAPD following the 1992 riots, has died, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.
Williams was 72. The Philadelphia Police Department confirmed his death via its Twitter account. Details regarding a cause of death were not immediately available.
Williams became the LAPD's first black police chief about a month after the verdict in the Rodney King beating trial, in which four white officers were acquitted. The verdict sparked a riot that lasted for six days and brought U.S. military presence to patrol LA streets.
Williams took over for Chief Daryl Gates and continued in the position until 1997.
Williams previously served as Philadelphia's police chief.
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