LOS ANGELES, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- Rodney King, whose beating by the Los Angeles police became a national scandal, says he plans to marry a woman who served in the jury in his civil suit.

King and Cynthia Kelly have been involved in a romance that began immediately after he was awarded $3.8 million in damages in 1994, the New York Post said.

"She is a godsend, a blessing in my life," King told Radar Online, which broke the story of the upcoming wedding. "I can't wait to make her my wife!"

King's beating after a traffic stop in 1991 was videotaped and broadcast nationally. The acquittal the next year of several white police officers by an all-white jury sparked a riot that left 53 people dead. King's cry of anguish over the violence -- "Can we all get along?" -- became a catchphrase.

Kelly, the only black on the jury in the civil case, said later some of the other jurors did not want King to receive any damages for the beating. She and King reportedly met the day after the verdict for pizza.