BUILDINGS beefed up security, tourists cancelled reservations and residents flocked to gun shops as Los Angeles braced itself for the verdict of Rodney King II - the civil rights trial of the year.
With the jury of nine whites, two blacks and one Hispanic expected to begin deliberating the fate of the four white police officers accused of beating Mr King, authorities called for calm and intensified preparations for strife.
Fifty-three people died and 1,400 homes and businesses were burned and looted in the worst urban riots in the US this century following the acquittal of the officers last year.
Police Chief Willie Williams has vowed to blanket the streets with thousands of police officers and crack down at the first sign of violence and Governor Mr Pete Wilson has made 5,000 National Guard troops available.
