An agent-based simulation of the LA 1992 riots

The Los Angeles riot in the spring of 1992 remains an ever-haunting example of the destructive manner in which some individuals handle social rage. While understanding some of the myriad of reasons for social rage could help address the psychological nature of such a problem, this work focuses on developing a model of the physical interactions that may precipitate a riot. In particular, an agent-based model is used to create both a car physics model and a social force model that are used to simulate a riot at an intersection. An example is given where emergent behaviors that closely match those in a riot situation, i.e., where cars are stopped and drivers are attacked, are obtained by choosing appropriate parameters for the models.