The great drama began routinely enough. State Highway Patrol and L.A. police were chasing a suspected drunk driver in the early morning hours of Sunday, March 3, 1991. After the driver, Rodney King, was stopped, however, history-making events unfolded. In what appeared to be a display of excessive force, captured on a home videotape, the officers hit King repeatedly with their batons. They kicked him as well, and King had to be hospitalized for treatment of his injuries. Assistant Chief Bob Vernon was on duty as acting chief the day the story hit the news, and in L.A. Justice he provides the...

What makes a powerful leader? Is it something inherited? is it learned behavior? Can anyone acquire leadership abilities with sufficient determination? Why do some people seem to have a "presence" that compels others to follow? What is it about them that gives them a powerful ability to influence others? These questions have been asked for centuries. Yet the answers are clear. Powerful leaders do have some behaviors and characteristics in common. What may seem to be a mystery can be understood. This book documents a strong consensus about leadership behavior, discovered as the author traveled...