at florence and halldale, two officers issued a plea for assistance in apprehending a young suspect who had thrown an object at their car and whom they were pursuing on foot. approximately two dozen officers, commanded by 77th street division lapd officer lieutenant michael moulin, arrived and arrested the youth, 16-year old seandel daniels, forcing him into the back of a car. the rough handling of the young man, a minor who was well known in the community, further agitated an uneasy and growing crowd, who began taunting and berating the police. among the crowd were bart bartholomew, a freelance photographer for "the new york times", and timothy goldman, who began to record events with a camcorder.