http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070616/ap_ ... ly_clash_1

SAN JOSE, Calif. - A journalist emotionally recalled Friday how a Los Angeles police officer beat her with a baton until she collapsed and lost consciousness when police used force to disperse an immigration rally last month.

In a tense exchange with Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton, Patricia Nazario of KPCC-FM brushed away tears as she recounted how the officer struck her while she was on assignment during the May 1 demonstration at a city park. She said she hit her head on the ground and was knocked out.

"I thought it was over for me," Nazario said during a panel discussion with Bratton at the annual convention of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. She said she still experiences headaches, dizziness and problems with her balance as a result of the police beating.

Bratton, who described command and control procedures during that rally as "awful," said the department is still investigating why officers fired rubber bullets and swung batons to disperse the crowd.

"In this situation, a lot went wrong," Bratton told a packed audience of at least 200 journalists.

Bratton didn't offer excuses for the officers' behavior but said the LAPD could learn from the melee. Among other changes, he said, the department hopes to make its media passes more distinctive and visible to police officers.

Bratton also said the department is using computer databases to replace a paper-based personnel review system, alerting top supervisors to possible signs of misconduct.