Jan. 3: Officers Robert Blaine Jorg and Patrick Caton are indicted in the November 2000 asphyxiation death of Roger Owensby Jr. while he was in police custody. Officers were on increased patrols in Roselawn that night, looking for drug activity. Mr. Owensby was questioned and handcuffed. No one knows how he suffocated.

Jan. 4: Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken gives the annual State of the City address, saying that the indictments of the two white officers in the death of Mr. Owensby, an African-American man in police custody, underscore the racial chasm in the city. The mayor acknowledges the racial gap between whites and blacks: "You would think we're not even on the same planet."

Jan. 5: Police Chief Tom Streicher strips Officers Caton and Jorg of their police powers.

Jan. 13: The Cincinnati Black United Front, a grass-roots organization, hosts meetings for African-Americans to register their stories of racial profiling by police in an effort to build a class- action lawsuit.

Feb. 21: In an unprecedented meeting held at the Enquirer, 28 black and white leaders representing Tristate business, education, religion, public safety, media, civic and legal interests rank race as a top priority for the region. "The future of this city depends more on our ability to treat one another fairly than on any single economic issue, and I think we have a long way to go," Mayor Luken says.

March 5: Chief Streicher acknowledges that racial profiling might occur, but he does not perceive a widespread problem. Any solution, he says, must "get at what's in the officer's heart."

March 14: The American Civil Liberties Union and local black activists file a federal racial profiling lawsuit against the city alleging decades of discrimination against blacks.

March 28: Cincinnati City Council passes a racial profiling law, which requires that officers must record details of every traffic stop they make. "This is not a panacea, but it's a good place to start," Councilman John Cranley says.

April 7: Cincinnati Officer Stephen Roach, who had been pursuing 19-year-old Timothy Thomas in Over-the-Rhine, shoots and kills the unarmed African-American at 13th and Republic streets. Mr. Thomas is the 15th African-American to die in confrontations with Cincinnati police since 1995. He was wanted on 14 misdemeanor warrants, most of them traffic offenses.

April 9: A group of citizens takes over council's Law and Public Safety Committee meeting. Chaos erupts, and protesters demand to know why Mr. Thomas was shot. That night, dozens of protesters break City Hall windows and gather outside police headquarters on Ezzard Charles Drive. April 10: Civil unrest turns violent. Protesters overturn planters and hot dog stands, break windows and pull several white motorists from their cars and assault them. By day's end, police have arrested 66 people, including five juveniles, and the Cincinnati Fire Division has made 53 runs. Eleven fires, most of them minor, are set in Over-the-Rhine.

April 11: Random violence ... arson, assault, looting, property destruction and shooting ... occurs in communities from Over-the-Rhine to Norwood. Police Spc. Andrew Nogueira is shot near Green and Vine streets. He escapes serious injury because his belt buckle and bullet-resistant vest absorb the impact. A Justice Department team arrives in the city to determine if it should begin a civil-rights investigation into the "patterns and practice" of Cincinnati's Police Division.

April 12: Mayor Luken declares a state of emergency and a citywide curfew beginning at 8 p.m. More than 100 Ohio State Highway Patrol officers in riot gear arrive. ""I have lived in this city all of my life, and I love it to death. I never thought I would sign an emergency order because of civil unrest,'' Mayor Luken says. The curfew ends after four nights with calm restored. The mayor would later say he wished he had imposed the curfew sooner.

April 13: Under pressure from some council members, Kent Ryan steps down as the city's public safety director, citing health reasons.

April 14: Mr. Thomas is buried. Attending the service are Kweisi Mfume, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Ohio Gov. Bob Taft, Martin Luther King III, Mayor Luken and almost all of city council. After the funeral, six Cincinnati SWAT officers are accused by witnesses of shooting beanbags into a peaceful crowd at Liberty and Elm streets in Over-the-Rhine. A federal investigation is launched.

April 16: Mr. Luken calls for the formation of Cincinnati Community Action Now, a task force on race relations. Its mission: improve racial disparities in such areas as education, economic advancement and police relations.

April 18: City and Hamilton County officials make plans to offer a combined $2.25 million in loans and grants for businesses that suffered losses in the riots ... and promise that another $1 million is on the way.

April 20: A Hamilton County grand jury indicts 63 on looting and violence charges stemming from the riots.

April 26: Two of four people hit by beanbags on April 14 file a civil lawsuit seeking at least $2 million.

May 1: The mayor appoints Cincinnati CAN's three chairmen: Rev. Damon Lynch III, Federated Department Stores executive vice president Tom Cody and Ross Love, founder, chief executive officer and president of Blue Chip Broadcasting. "If we continue our discomfort with making real changes, if we put our heads back in the sand, that sand will once again grow hot with rage," Mr. Love says. ""But if we raise our heads well above the sand, if we can make fundamental change, then there is a chance for Cincinnati to come out of this crisis a better city."

May 2: City Manager John Shirey, criticized by some council members for his handling of the unrest and riots, agrees to resign effective Dec. 1. Council also agrees to an unprecedented attempt to settle through mediation a federal lawsuit that accuses police of racial profiling.

May 3: A Hamilton County grand jury begins hearing evidence in the case of Mr. Thomas' shooting.

May 7: The grand jury returns charges of negligent homicide and obstructing official business, both misdemeanors, against Officer Roach for his role in Mr. Thomas' death. Although some denounce the charges as too lenient, protests are peaceful. Also, the U.S. Justice Department announces a formal investigation into Cincinnati police's alleged pattern of excessive force violating the civil rights of residents.

May 9: Organizers cancel the annual Pepsi Jammin' on Main, citing miserable ticket sales and the potential to lose money after protesters called for cancellation of the event.

May 11: The first hints of a possible police slowdown start to surface. Arrests average about 65 a day this week, down from 85 the week before. Prosecutors and public defenders notice lighter caseloads.

May 18: A group of 75 ministers called Concerned Clergy calls for a general boycott of Taste of Cincinnati. Catholics, Presbyterians, United Methodists, Unitarians and Jews are among religions represented.

May 22: Two federal lawyers arrive from Washington, D.C., to start an unprecedented civil-rights investigation of the Cincinnati Police Division.

May 26: Despite some calls to cancel the event, Taste of Cincinnati has a good turnout.

June 10: In the first of a series of investigative stories, the Enquirer reveals that the police division's system for tracking problems is so flawed that supervisors aren't automatically alerted to potential bad officers.

June 17: In the same series, the Enquirer reveals a lack of consistency and accuracy in the way police officers fill out cards on every traffic stop they make, a requirement of the new racial profiling law.

June 25: The first meeting is held in an unprecedented effort to gather thousands of ideas from all groups in the city to form a settlement in the racial profiling lawsuit against the city.

June 27: Channel 5 news anchor Courtis Fuller announces he will run for mayor because of the way Mr. Luken handled the riots.

June 30: Nearly two months after Officer Roach was indicted, arrests are down 35 percent compared with May and June 2000. Revenue from traffic tickets is down significantly: Drivers paid $25,000 during May, compared with more than $90,000 in fines the same time last year. Judges and lawyers report lighter dockets as fewer defendants appear in court.

July 8: The Enquirer reports that more than 90 percent of minor complaints by citizens against officers are dismissed. Complaints are rarely forwarded to the division's internal investigators and are seldom seen by the city's independent investigatory agency.

July 10: Forty-four of the 66 felony cases stemming from the riots have made their way through the courts. All but one defendant are convicted of all original felony charges, including breaking and entering and aggravated riot.

July 11: Chief Streicher announces the formation of the Violent Crimes Task Force, a 70-member team of undercover and patrol officers to battle the dramatic increase in shootings and crime since the April riots.

July 14: A coalition of religious and political groups calls for a boycott of Cincinnati, saying it is more about attracting attention to racial economic issues than trying to hurt specific local employers.

July 20: Ujima and Coors Light festivals are held downtown and at Cinergy Field, but have light turnouts.

July 27: Rickey Moore, a 21-year-old convicted felon and schizophrenic, is shot to death in Millvale by Officer Thomas Haas in the first police shooting since Mr. Thomas' death. The city stays calm, with leaders this time saying police have no choice when somebody aims a gun at them. Mr. Moore is the city's seventh homicide victim this week, the latest casualty in the unprecedented violence that continues to tear through the city.

Aug. 18: The city hosts the Midwest Black Family Reunion, which focuses on family values and racial harmony. An estimated 50,000 to 70,000 people attend.

Sept. 1: From April 13 to this date, there have been 107 shooting incidents involving 150 victims and at least 132 suspects, mostly in near-downtown neighborhoods. Officials say it is one of the worst stretches of violence the city has ever seen. "It's been a terrible time for this city,'' Chief Streicher says. "In 30 years, I haven't seen it worse."

Sept. 11: Mr. Fuller, the 44-year-old Charter candidate, finishes first in the historic primary for the city's next mayor, who will have significantly increased powers under a law change in the City Charter.

Sept. 26: After a six-day trial, Municipal Court Judge Ralph E. Winkler finds Officer Roach not guilty of charges relating to the Timothy Thomas shooting. There are scattered Dumpster fires and rocks thrown.

Sept. 27: Mr. Luken calls a citywide curfew from 12:30 a.m. to 6 a.m. A curfew also is in effect the next night. The police chief and safety director advise the mayor that the situation on the streets is ""very volatile'' with bricks and bottles being thrown.

Oct. 15: Justice Department officials are back in Cincinnati, fine-tuning their recommendations. This is three weeks after announcing that local officials are cooperating to make changes.

Oct. 16: In a lively radio debate in the mayoral campaign, Mr. Fuller and Mr. Luken face off. Mr. Fuller offers the best line: "Cincinnati remains polarized by race and economics ... the seventh most segregated city in America. People venture downtown these days just to get a good look at Newport." Mr. Luken says Mr. Fuller is a naysayer. "I'm optimistic about the future."

Oct. 24: The Justice Department outlines its preliminary recommendations for change at the police division. The Feds want better policies and reporting of police use of force, more public accountability, improved handling of disciplines and better training.

Oct. 30: A Hamilton County jury acquits Officer Robert Blaine Jorg of misdemeanor assault in the asphyxiation death of Roger Owensby. It's unable to reach a verdict on a felony charge of involuntary manslaughter, resulting in a mistrial. "It kind of stuns me that we can't convict a police officer of doing wrong," says the Rev. J.W. Jones, vice president of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Cincinnati. "And our police do wrong. This drives a stake in the heart of race relations. To me, Cincinnati is back in the days of the 1950s."

Nov. 2: Officer Patrick Caton is acquitted on an assault charge in Mr. Owensby's death. "He is relieved,'' says Merlyn Shiverdecker, Officer Caton's attorney. "I hope (the Owensby family) can find solace and some type of closure in this."

Nov. 6: City voters re-elect Mayor Luken and pass Issue 5, the civil service reform charter amendment that changes the way city police and fire chiefs are hired.

Nov. 7: Hamilton County prosecutor Mike Allen says he will not try Officer Jorg again. Mr. Allen says he doesn't think the outcome in a new trial would be different, citing the 10-2 vote to acquit.

Nov. 7: The Enquirer and other groups announce "Neighbor to Neighbor." The goal is to hold solutions-oriented conversations in every neighborhood, village, township and city in the region.

Dec. 1: Mayor Luken is sworn into office. "I always knew this day would come," he says. "I just didn't know if I'd still be in the building."

Dec. 3: After seeing a letter signed by the Rev. Mr. Lynch that accuses police officers of raping and killing people, Mr. Luken ousts him from the city's race commission.

Dec. 4: The remaining two co-chairmen of the city's race commission, Ross Love and Tom Cody, say the mayor's decision to fire the Rev. Mr. Lynch is the right thing to do.

Dec. 16: The Enquirer reports that over the past 10 years, Cincinnati has faced at least 137 lawsuits alleging improprieties by its police officers. It's been costly to taxpayers: The city has written checks totaling $2.36 million to settle 56 of the 93 cases closed through October. It's the first analysis tracking civil rights litigations involving the city.

Cincinnati 2001: Year of Unrest
Prologue to turmoil: "A very tense time"
The trigger: Shooting 'ignites furious response'
The riots explode: A city's dark week
Summer of blood - guns rule the streets
Tests of justice: Officers acquitted
Binding wounds: What can be done?
What comes next?: Good examples few
WARD BUSHEE: A chance to talk honestly ... and to act
2001: A timeline
Unrest photo timeline
Jim Borgman on race